Lourdes College bestows the Newman Award biannually to a man or woman recognized for educational, social, moral or cultural leadership. The 2008 Newman Award will be presented to Father Richard T. Wurzel during Lourdes’ annual Awards Ceremony in May.

“Lourdes selected Father Wurzel for the Newman Award because he mirrors Newman’s love of learning and education. Through his many years of service, the Church and civic community have been enriched by his priestly ministry and leadership,” says Sr. Ann Carmen Barone, OSF, Vice President for Mission and Ministry.  

Father Wurzel earned a Master’s degree in Philosophy from the Athenaeum of Ohio and a Doctorate degree in Sacred Theology from the Angelicum University in Rome, Italy. In the spring of 1959, Father Wurzel was ordained by the Diocese of Toledo.

Friday, May 09, 2008 2:45:26 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)    Comments [0] | 

Helene Sheets, Director of College Relations for Lourdes College, is being honored for her achievements at the 2008 Urban All-American Celebration. Now in its 17^th year, the Urban All-American Celebration is presented by the Diocese of Toledo’s Central City Ministry of Toledo (CCMT). The event is being held on Monday, May 19, at Gladieux Meadows beginning at 7 p.m. 

The Urban All-American Award is presented to a graduate of a CCMT school who has achieved extraordinary success in his or her personal and/or professional life. “My education at SS Peter & Paul Parish instilled in me the values of community and service to others,” says Helene. “As a Director at Lourdes College, I feel blessed to be part of a community that also values service to others.”

Central City Ministry’s Catholic elementary schools provide a life-lasting, faith-based education to 600 children in the central city, many of whom are considered “at risk.” The CCMT campuses provide clear goals and expectations, strict discipline, and strong academics in a safe and secure environment

Friday, May 09, 2008 12:42:34 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)    Comments [3] | 

Sr. Shannon Schrein, O.S.F, Ph.D., Chairperson for the Department of Theological Studies at Lourdes College, has been named Vice President of the College Theology Society.

Sr. Shannon has been an active member of the College Theology Society since 1984 and has served as a session convener and as the Executive Director of the National Convention. “I am very pleased to have been elected to the role of Vice President because it provides me with another opportunity to serve the society and to interact with and on behalf of my colleagues within the discipline of Theology,” says Sr. Shannon. 

The College Theology Society is a professional association of college and university professors. Founded in 1953 as a Roman Catholic organization of lay and religious teachers of undergraduate theology, the CTS currently includes over 900 college and university professors throughout the United States, Canada and Europe.  

Wednesday, May 07, 2008 12:39:16 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)    Comments [25] | 

I suppose that sooner or later it would dawn on me that I've been out of touch with the "real" world for some time now.  I just found out last night that John McCain is not running against anyone, that's why the focus is on Hillary and Obama right now.  Not that I'm one to follow politics, I sway neither Republican nor Democrat, I vote the person who has a better platform.  Now, this all hit me last night while watching the 11pm news following CSI:Miami, which I apparently have not caught up on lately as one of the characters left the show and I knew nothing about it. 

My dad said, "Yeah, it was on the previews from last week."

I replied, "When did the writer's strike end?"

I guess that's what happens when you essentially live, eat, and breathe hospital.  Most people assume that on a day off one would kick back and watch TV, catch up on their soap opera, be a couch potato.  Not me.  I get out of the house.  I drive to different places around northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan and I enjoy the fantastic weather.  And I try to get some sleep.  I am caught up in things other than what is really going on this world.  Except gas prices.  You can't ignore that no matter how hard you try. 

So I came up with a plan: 

1.  Read the newspaper.  Even though the Blade's proofreading leaves little to be desired, I vow to partake in it long enough to get in touch with the goings on around here.

2.  Utilize my DVR more often.  That way I really can spend a day being a couch potato.  I can't tell you the last time I watched Top Chef or Hell's Kitchen the same week they aired. 

3.  Click on the top stories on the AOL homepage when I check my email.  That way I can get in touch with some of the more tabloid aspects of life. 

Whether or not these will work, I don't know.  But maybe I should focus a little less on the fact that I live, eat, and breathe hospital. 

Tuesday, May 06, 2008 5:19:59 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)    Comments [1] | 

I am so tired right now!  I've been on nights now for two weeks and it's been a difficult transition so far.  It's 11:45am right now and I got off work at 3:30am.  I was up at 9am.  And I haven't been back to sleep.  So here I am, staring bleary-eyed at a computer monitor in an almost catatonic state.  I was on the day shift for four months and detested getting up before the sun came out.  I never really got used to that at all.  I had the opportunity to switch to nights at the end of April and I jumped at it.  I'm used to late nights in a hospital.  There is a different atmosphere on nights, I guess.  For instance, the lights are turned down low, patients are bathed and readied for bed, and it's quieter.  Most nights. 

For me, nights are the best time to learn as a new nurse because you have time to sit with your preceptor and pick their brains.  You can gain so much knowledge from your preceptors and co-workers because nights are so much more relaxed (for the most part)and you don't have to worry about catching the doctors or dealing with visitors or the regular hustle and bustle that exists during the day.  At night you can sit back (if your patients are stable) and discuss your patient with your preceptor and really get a grip on the whole critical thinking aspect of nursing. 

In two weeks on nights I have learned how to view brain hemorrhages on a CT scan, how to draw blood off of an arterial line, how check a cardiac index on a Swan, what a proper CVP waveform looks like and how to troubleshoot a bad waveform, how to recognize an aortic aneurysm on a CT, what a procedure called a Whipple is, and how to call doctors on the phone and not make them upset because I'm calling about something little.  I've also perfected the art of giving a bed bath in under 15 minutes while completing my midnight assessment.  What accomplishments!

I also like nights because that's when I think a lot of excitement happens.  New admits come in who aren't stable, and the unit I'm on now gets the traumas, surgeries, and just about anything else that is critical.  The patients could potentially crash at any given moment and to me it's all very exciting--I like the adrenaline rush of having someone's life in your hands.  It's very fast-paced when a new admit comes.  There are about 10 people helping out, with someone documenting, someone else is getting supplies, several people are getting the patient moved onto the bed, and various people are hooking the patient up to the monitor, changing the linens, running the ventilator, cleaning up messes, hooking up IV lines and drips, and so on.  There's a lot going on in a limited amount of space and it's all exciting to me.

There are other nights when nothing is going on and it's all I can do to stay awake.  I've developed a caffeine habit that consists of Red Bull and coffee.  I hate coffee.  But it keeps me up as long as I put in a boat load of cream and sugar.  I get the yawns around 3am.  Between 3 and 5 I am a zombie.  I caught myself nodding off while charting my assessment last week.  In order to stay awake, I take a brisk walk down the hall or I do a few jumping jacks (not in front of everyone, but I go to the bathroom or the supply room and do them).  Then there are some nights that, regardless of what I do, I am either wired or exhausted and there's no way around it.  Nurses have it rough at night because we are constantly fighting our own bodies' response to Circadian rhythms.  Most people's bodies are not used to staying up through the night, and mine is certainly no exception. 

So while I love nights I hate the fact that I am not sleeping a lot during the day.  It'll take some time to get used to, but I can deal with it.  I'll have to regardless because almost all new nurses get put on the night shift after orientation anyway. 

Time to get back to bed.

Saturday, May 03, 2008 11:05:06 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)    Comments [0] | 

Alice T. Parisi, Lourdes College Director of Grants & Research, recently earned a nationally recognized credential in the grants field.  The recognition is conferred by the Grant Professionals Certification Institute, Inc. (GPCI), an affiliate of the American Association of Grant Professionals (AAGP). 

Alice was one of 170 certified grant designers and managers who were awarded the Grant Professional Certified (GPC) title after passing the inaugural GPC examination. The credential recognizes proficiency in standards that include tenure in the profession, education, demonstrated achievement and a commitment to service for public and private philanthropy.

“This certification recognizes the diverse skills and knowledge that grant professionals possess,” says Alice. “It is very fulfilling to have passed this examination and to be recognized for my professional achievements.”

Friday, May 02, 2008 12:35:21 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)    Comments [1] | 

It is absolutely beautiful outside and I am stuck in a basement computer room at the hospital working on my ECCO (Essentials of Critical Care Orientation).  Yes, I should be paying attention, but it's a web-based program that has a voice with a speech impediment.  Not that I am knocking anyone who has one, but to listen to a woman with a weird New England-type accent mispronounce words for roughly four hours at a time--I mean, really, come on now.

I am counting down the hours--it's been about 2 1/2 and I have another 1 1/2 to go, but there are so many better things I could be doing right now.  Like being outside.  And going for a cruise.  And getting some ice cream from some little hole in the wall roadside place.  And walking through a park.  And feeding some ducks/geese.  And I could go on and on, but alas I will not as this blog could easily become a list of the things I would do right now if I were not stuck in this room the size of a broom closet. 

And I digress...

I just finished my rotation on another unit this week and on Monday I start anew yet again.  Only now I'm on nights.  Yippee ki ay.  And yes, there is a lot of sarcastic enthusiasm there.  But I guess it's not that bad.  It's really the issue of working on the unit from 7p-3a and then sitting in front of a computer from 3a-7a to work on ECCO.  I tried it for an hour yesterday morning and I was ready to curl up in an empty hospital bed somewhere.  So I left and have to make up my hours on my day off.  Sure, I was off yesterday, but my plans to be here were thwarted by the fact that I had to drive to Findlay to pick up my brother from the hospital (nothing serious).  So that took up a few minutes of my time.  Then, he was hungry, had to return something to Best Buy, yadda yadda, and I'm like, seriously dude, you got a shot of morphine so let's get you home.  When all was said and done, I had no time left to come here. 

But here I am today.  And I'm so over it already.  Being alone in this room with nothing but a computer (cell phones don't work down here) really makes a person's thoughts wander. 

I have to make a hair appointment. 

Will the hospital track me down if they find out I'm surfing bored.com?  

Why doesn't environmental services come and clean up this room more often? 

I can't believe that I missed Top Chef this week. 

Did I set my DVR for Degrassi tonight? 

I'm hungry. 

I think I will bring in some pictures to hang on these stark white walls.  Maybe one of a kitten and one of the Care Bears. 

I wonder how old the printer in here is? 

I miss my dude.  

Oh oh oh oh oh, oh oh oh oh, oh oh oh oh oh, the right stuff... 

Why is it that you can't get a fabulous cell phone signal in the Franklin Park Mall? 

I think I have to use the restroom.  Maybe not.

We can dance if we want to, we can leave your friends behind...

It's nonstop random thoughts.  How does one deal?  Maybe I should just go back to listening so I can get it done.  There's a thought!

Friday, April 25, 2008 2:37:09 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)    Comments [2] |