This has been heavy on my head for weeks.
I had three things I had to complete by July 31.
They were:
- AORN poster abstract due for AORN Expo 2024
- AORN Expo 2023 videos and posters
- NCNA poster submitted
July 31 was the deadline.
Line in the sand.
I finished the poster abstract on July 20 and submitted it for consideration.
I finished the AORN Expo videos and posters and received my 50.6 CEUs on July 28th.
I was stuck on the NCNA poster. That is a lot of white space to fill. And, although I can write and speak about CTIAT, would it be interesting to have the entire story on a poster?
I started asking my coworkers about whether or not they thought Cookie Thursday is a Thing had morale potential and what was their favorite cookie on July 18.
I took 32 of the responses, and made a table answering the two questions. Next to the table I put the quotes that I didn’t ask for but got.
Following a template of sorts, I made different headings. Design, Method, Outcomes, Further Steps.
In the Further Steps section I explained that Cookie Thursday started before I started the back to school journey and that I realized that I did not do it properly in a research minded manner. But I have plans to do that in another department.
And this is the moment that I realize I didn’t add ANY pictures to the template. I can print them myself and add them to the poster later but what a rookie mistake! I also didn’t add any references.
The poster got submitted late. I submitted it last night August 6. I had emailed the person collecting the posters on July 31 after I realized that the posters were in reality due July 30. All I can plead is the summer cold that I was not enjoying at the time.
Not covid.
Myself and my husband were both sick sick sick. The poster was the furthest thing from my mind.
The person got back to me almost immediately and told me I could submit all the way through August 13.
It is submitted now.
References are not easy to find as it is such a different take on morale. You know, that isn’t pizza and is driven by a singular person, not by the hospital or the department.
But all three things are done.
There is still a week before classes start.
I count that as a win.
Dispatches from the Evening Shift 