not on my game

i'd like to think that i'm always a rockstar nurse. but honestly, some days, i'm just not on my game. yesterday i was ordered to give a medication that requires a pre level and a post level. the trough is drawn pre-administration of the drug and the peak is drawn post-administration. simple concept, right? a medication level in the system should be low prior to administration and high at its peak post administration. well, imagine my surprise when my peak came back the same as my trough. what the heck? how is that possible? does the patient metabolize the drug quickly? was the dose just too small to have an effect? nope. i forgot to give the damn thing! i hung the intravenous medication. but i forgot to unlock the clamp. hence, my patient got 100mL of saline. not antibiotic. i had to tell on myself to the pharmacist. he knows me. and he knows that sometimes i'm a rockstar. but not yesterday. like i said, i was not on my game. i blushed something awful! and my patient got her antibiotic late! p.s. i really hate the new blogger set-up. i can't figure out the layout and my returns are not working. this entry is NOT one big paragraph. i swear.