[delta32]

see CCM that is the problem right there, no wonder your staff does not respect them. you don't respect anyone else.

[CapeCodMermaid]

Originally Posted by delta32

see CCM that is the problem right there, no wonder your staff does not respect them. you don't respect anyone else.

Huh?? I respect honest, hard working, smart people. I respect those who speak their mind. Because I think this thread has gone past rational, you seem to think it's okay to disrespect me? Perhaps you should show me the same respect I show the rest of the posters...we are all entitled to our own opinions
And taking one line out of context...well...whatever

[Suesquatch]

Hey, CCM, I've been defending you in this thread. But that "one out of context line" was unnecessary.

[chip193]

Originally Posted by CapeCodMermaid

Huh?? I respect honest, hard working, smart people. I respect those who speak their mind. Because I think this thread has gone past rational, you seem to think it's okay to disrespect me? Perhaps you should show me the same respect I show the rest of the posters...we are all entitled to our own opinions
And taking one line out of context...well...whatever

Actually, much of what you posted here has been condescending to the other readers. Perhaps you do not realize that what you are posting is condescending. Perhaps you do not realize that you are condescending when you speak with your staff. This may be the cause of the alleged disrespect that you have been enduring on a regular basis.

You do not get to choose to whom you show respect. As a DON, you should know this already. Think about, when you doing family meetings, what would have happened if you had told that one family that really, really drove you insane with their requests and needs what was really on your mind. Your staff members deserve to be shown that same respect.

My wife was in a Nurse Manager position in a LTC facility. She was stuck in position where she had tons of responsibility and no authority. It drove her insane to watch nurses arrive late for work and have no consequences for that behavior. She took it personally when CNAs would ignore call bells for the DVD that was playing on the unit’s TV. The “victim culture” of her DON (oh, too bad for us, we’re too far from the Interstate so no one will work here, we do not have enough money for that, sure the equipment is old – but it work, etc.) was the cause of the problem. She was unable to change the culture so she changed jobs – and took a good part of the good staff with her.

It sounds like you need a culture change.

[CapeCodMermaid]

Honestly I can't see how what I've said has been condescending. I show my nurses respect every day by validating their experiences and their knowledge bases and by giving them encouragement. I also spend hours a week agonizing over the budget so they get the staff they need and I try to give them the best salaries I can.

[gracenotes1]

Well down here in Alabama we don't have contract nurses so I don't really know what they do or where they come from.
Maybe they do have an attitude.
Just do the best you can for your facility. But if it were me and someone talked to me that way--I would start the paper trail, hold them accountable and fire them the next time they did that.
Down here in the South we don't put up with such shenanigans--we got work to do.
Gracenotes1

[0128AAE]

I know nothing of being a supervisor, I in fact am a new nurse a LPN in fact, I too get tired of the DON or ADON telling us nursing what we are not doing. However I would never tell my boss to just try and do my shift and get out on time. I know that she would never do it for one and but no that is really disrespectful. The DON at my LTC facility is not as expeirenced as most but none of the nurses would talk that way to her. I think that in your position you could have done something a little more drastic than sending this nurse out of your office. My opinion and I know it doesn;t amount to a hill of beans but sometimes you have to do something to let that staff know how aerious you can be.

[withasmilelpn]

Originally Posted by CapeCodMermaid

I'm a relatively new DNS, but I've been a nurse for 25 years and have had every nursing job there is to have in LTC and then some. How do all y'all deal with disrespectful staff? I don't mind a spirited discussion but I am mighty tired of nurses saying "How do YOU know?" Mind you I've been a nurse longer than they've been on the planet. They complain about everything, feel 'entitled' as new nurses, and are so rude it's unbelievable. One of them today was complaining and said she was over worked because she had 33 patients on a 2p-10p shift. I explained to her that she had no sick people, no IVs, no trachs, no dressings...she said 'Why don't YOU try it'. I told her that I had worked on a true sub acute floor and had 30 patients for meds, treatments, 5 IV's with antibiotics every 4 hours, 2 fresh trachs, 3 central lines for TPN, 2 people at life's end from AIDS AND I had to do my own MDSs. She said "You did that and got out on time?" Yes I did I told her. "Then you must be a better nurse than I am and besides it was probably 20 years ago." I was speechless. I wanted to tell her I AM a better nurse than she is and it wasn't that long ago. Instead I told her if she was going to speak to me in that tone of voice, she could leave the office. She slammed the door on the way out. I am at my wit's end on how to deal with these totally unreasonable fresh nurses. Any advice?

CapeCod, how did you ever do that? Did you have good support staff? I find our 7-3 shift fairly manageable with 20 patients on our sub acute unit with all the help, like PT OT, recreation,unit clerk etc. 3-11 is always crazy, with all those people going home, admissions, lab results, doc that just wrote orders, or just returning calls finally,sun downing residents... Those same amount of people seem much more difficult to me. Plus it does seem like often times the CNAs are not as attentive on this shift. I work 16 hours and more times than not I struggle with the 3-11 shift and I am an experienced nurse. Sometimes people are just looking for some validation. Maybe her not 'sick' and 'stable' people are time consuming and needy in other ways? The LTC floor often I am speedier with their meds because I have a routine, however on 3-11 many family members come in and occupy my time. Also the sundowners can be out of control sometimes. I have been known to take them down the hall with me if they are w/c bound fallers. We also have some psych patients now that keep our unit pretty stirred up. The police have been to our facility in the last month 4 times, because of psych patients acting out or calling 911 themselves, acusing us of keeping them hostage. All on our beloved 3-11 shift.
I think it is best to try and find some empathy and try to relate rather than say "you have it easy". Ask how you can help. A lot of people won't take you up on it, but they will appreciate your concern.
That being said, she shouldn't have been rude!

[withasmilelpn]

Also, even if you could do all her patients with one hand tied behind your back, riding a unicycle and on a tightrope to boot, doesn't meen you should say it. (I am convinced that you can and are an excellent DON as well. ) This nurse sounds frustrated and demoralised (sp and is it even a word?)The last thing she needs to hear is that you can do her job and better than her, which is exactly how I would interpret your words. So she came away feeling worse about herself and with no solutions other than this probably isn't the right job for her then. Maybe she has unrealistic standards or things she can work on to make it more manageable for her. I know LTC 33 is pretty normal and can be worse. But I've been fortunate enough to have 17 patients and trust me they get much better care no matter how good the nurse is with the 33.
Hugs!

[noc4senuf]

Hey everyone, slow down here. For one thing, this thread is listed under the "LTC DON & ADON", meaning those of us DON/ADON's that would like to discuss issues with other DON/ADON's that have knowledge of the same things we go through on a daily basis are able to. It seems like the majority of the responders to this particular thread are not DON/ADON's.

I would like to know how many of you know the state & federal laws that we are responsible for complying with when it comes to LTC, employment law, wage & hours, etc. This is what we deal with on a daily basis. CCM was asking for help.... not to be attacked and criticized. Her problem is the nurse is under "contract". That means this nurse can stand around and do pretty much nothing, barely squeaking by and CCM has her hands tied when it comes down to doing anything about it.