Just About 24-months Ago

I wrote this:

You see ~ I have a long-term problem with procrastinating. This weekend I was motivated by a strong desire to avoid a crisis. So, finally, I attacked something I have been avoiding for simply months: almost 24-months to be exact. I had to earn 24 continuing education units in nursing to maintain my Registered Nurse license.

I could have made the title of this entry, “Oops! I did it again!” I had until June 30th to complete 24-hours of nursing education so that I can maintain my nursing license. So, last Tuesday I stayed up late searching the Internet for a class. I tried finding classes on fetal alcohol syndrome. I tried finding a pharmacology class on psychiatric medications. I looked in vain for a class on pediatric liver disease. Those classes I could use for the life I am living today. But, either there wasn’t a class on that topic, or it was accompanied by so few contact hours that I would have had to take more than one class to fulfill the obligation.

Anyway, I chose a class called Healing Nutrition. The class was worth a full 24 contact hours. I could take the test on-line and get immediate feedback. Oh, and the overnight shipping rates were very, very reasonable, much less than paying a late fee to the state of Minnesota for renewing my license past the deadline. And, I had hoped, I could use the knowledge now. Almost everyone in our family would benefit from better nutrition.

• I had a complete physical in June. My fasting blood sugar was 99 mg/dL (normal is 70-100 mg/dL). I passed by the skin of my teeth. I have a very strong family history of Type II diabetes. Obviously, I need to change my eating habits.
• Beverly’s last biopsy was full of good and bad news. First, the good news. There is no scarring (permanent damage) on Beverly’s liver and there is no sign of active virus. The bad news is that her liver is still inflamed. At this time, the doctor’s best guess is that Beverly has developed autoimmune hepatitis. We have stopped the medication that she was taking every day to suppress viral activity and in two-weeks she will have blood work to check her liver function and to test for signs of autoimmune hepatitis. I know it seems odd, but I hope that this is the case. What kind of mother would think it is good news for a child’s body to be treating her own liver like it was a foreign substance to be attacked? I just would rather deal with an out of control immune system that can be supressed than a second undiagnosed, undiagnosable liver disease that has no real treatment. Because, whether I like it or not, something is still going on in her liver and it doesn’t appear to be viral.
• Marissa has lost quite a bit of weight lately. She is at the very bottom of what is a healthy weight for her.
• I have already talked about David’s weight. I am still not worried about his weight right now. But, I suspect he could easily develop a weight problem. You see, he loves to eat. He argued with me the other day when he wanted a snack. I offered a half of a banana or a half a piece of whole wheat bread with peanut butter. He wanted Chee-tohs. “Mom, Chee-kohs are not junk food. There heal-py.” Uh, no they’re not.

The course was beyond useless. Well, that isn’t quite true; it did meet the state law for continuing education that allows me to maintain a license. But, the course itself taught me na-da, zip, zero, nothing-at-all.

Taste drives us to pick certain foods. Evolution formed a powerful connection between our taste buds and our brains, and this happened not in the last 100 years but over millions of years. When we each somthing that tastes good, our bodies signal our brains that this food is necessary for survival and our brains tell us yes, that is good, eat more, eat as much as we can, because in the natural world, our next meal may be a long way off.

You see, when I am craving salt, what I am really desiring is the slightly salty taste of roots and nuts. When I want something sweet, I am craving berries. And, when I am craving french fries, I really want wild game instead of buttery cream sauces. This worldview laden introduction was followed by drivel and duh statements. Did anyone not know that a malnourished body is susceptible to infections? Did you need a nursing license to know that? Bet not.

And, I am left scratching my head. Why do lawmakers think this is a reasonable way to assess competency? Have they all been bamboozled by the companies that write and sell these programs? Does my sitting down and reading a poorly written book and answering 100 questions about the content really equal competency to practice nursing? Think about it. Would you rather be cared for by a nurse who worked doing bedside nursing was praised by her patients, peers and managers or a nurse who sat home and answered recall level multiple choice questions?

I concluded that either our elected officials are accepting bribes or they have a very low veiw of nurses indeed. Oh well, I have 2-years before I have to do it again.