[inthesky]

i've been feeling better about my job lately. I've been having a string of really good shifts.. the shifts where you are very busy..but have time to eat and talk to your patients.. and you leave feeling like..job well done... except for the whole controversy of the big psych manager coming in here and throwing out our water bottles, saying that we cannot have water!!!!!!!!!! what??? oh well right? i'll hide my water in a cabinet.

I am hoping that some of your work situations improve. I bet some of your situations actually break laws. Something that possibly your local NAMI could research. We are all good caring people and deserve to be treated as we treat others.

[aloevera]

What on earth is the rationality behind no water bottles?
We need to keep hydrated and that is better than having to leave to go to the drinking fountain all the time.....that does not make any sense to me.......like you said, keep it in a drawer....
We have never been told not to have a drink, we even eat our lunch at the desk sometimes....when the pts. are at the cafeteria....
oh well, who can figure management??

[showbizrn]

GET OUT OF THERE, INTHESKY!!!

You deserve better
Look into other areas
in Psych Nursing
(i.e., Day Treatment programs, Methadone Clinics, etc)

Don't listen to the
BULL about

WELCOME TO NURSING!!!

When you can look
elsewhere
to give the kind
of patient care
that's fulfilling and
rewarding.

YOUR JOB SUCKS---NOT YOU!!!

YOU CAN DO BETTER!!!
for yourself
AND FOR YOUR PATIENTS

[RN2begin]

Originally Posted by aloevera

Where do you guys work with only 7 or 10 pts.?????? We usually have between 25 and 30....some of them are line of sights, too....Staff is usually 2 RN's (if no one calls out), the med nurse, and 2-3 techs.....
We generally work through breaks and eat a bite of lunch at our desks while we are working.....or do you do all the meds and tech work too??

I work at the same hospital you do! My unit is supposed to be "capped" at 24...but we nearly always have more...we have 4 admission units and 3 long-term units...the admission units can never refuse an admission...maintainence just brings up more beds from the basement and we start putting them in the group room, visitors rooms, day areas...you name it...in fact the other night we ran with one nurse and two techs for a doublewinged unit of 27 patients...morale is notoriously low and high stress is a give in...you just have to keep remembering why you are in this field, because it is hard as heck most times...and some people still have the audacity to question whether or not psych nurses are "real" nurses...I challenge any doubters to spend a shift in my shoes...

[aloevera]

My med-surg or OR friends don't question whether I am a "real nurse", in fact they all say that they could not do what we do.....I enjoy psych and would NEVER go back .....
RN2begin- yes, it sounds like we are in the same hospital, for sure !!!
We love it, don't we ??? Keep on keepinon.....But I do have days when I wish I was ready to retire !!!

[RN2begin]

Abso-freakin-lutely! I went into RN school knowing that I wanted to work in psych...and I have yet to regret it. There are definately days that I leave work feeling like I got hit by a truck...but I have yet to find anything more rewarding than watching someone arrive on the unit severely psychotic and be able to witness their transition back to health...what a gift.

[here_kitty]

Wow! I feel very blessed to work where I do! The usual assignment is 3 patients plus meds on 1 or 2 others, on a day or evening shift. On night shift, it's another story, you could get 8 patients on our least acute unit, but for the most part they are sleeping all nite. I love my coworkers, and other than a new charge nurse who is a micro manager, management is fabulous and very receptive to staff concerns.

I'm sorry about the less than ideal working conditions for everyone that doesn't have it good! I hope that you are able to keep your morale up so that you can keep the patient's hopeful about their future as well.

[RN2begin]

Originally Posted by aloevera

We are so understaffed, it is pitiful.....nurses are leaving all the time....I don't know if it is the salary or working conditions....We have had 8 nurses leave since Jan....we are working extra shifts, short-staffed, I don't know what is going to happen...It seems to be getting worse....A new co. took over and I would think the first thing they would look into is the staff/pt. ratio....instead, they are improving the cosmetics of the building...go figure...I would want to know we are losing so many good nurse....oh well, I am not in management....

There are miracles in this biz everyday...well ya see, my state, for whom I work (?) is currently in a "hiring freeze" - all positions (yes, even nurses) have to be vacant for 12 weeks AND THEN a waiver is "presented" to the gov...who politely declines the need and here we are...bygones. Anyhoo...we got ourselves a brand new beautiful granite "entrance" sign, with a brand new and far more stigmatizing name for the facility. Wait! It gets better! Every unit got themselves brandy new flat screened monitors so we can watch all of our levels in style!! I am actually convinced that Tylenol (no, not just acetaminophen) bought our new sign, because we are now tylenol central. "Hearing voices? Have a Tylenol!" "Feeling blue? Here's a Tylenol!" "Liver failure you say? I say you need more Tylenol!"

...but I digress........................................... .........

[StuPer]

Hey Guys,
I have to say I'm truely amazed at the level of staff/patient ratios you guys in the States will put up with. There is no way on god's green earth that either the staff or the public would put up with that kind of care here in Australia, especially in an acute facility.
Locally in a small rural community we have a 20 bed acute unit with 8 high needs beds, the staff share the load across the areas so no one person is overloaded. Typically they have 5 staff for a morning shift and a couple of security/cleaners, 4 for an afternoon and 3 overnight.
Obviously I dont know what is the reason behind the situation over the big 'pond', but I suspect the private nature of healthcare and the need to provide profits to companies and shareholders is no small part. Whereas here of course everything is funded primarily via taxes and state run.
Anyway, as they say... horses for courses, and each to their own... but, I hope you guys working in these horrendous environments get some help soon... as working in that kind of setup would be a real danger to your own sanity imo.
StuPer

[RN2begin]

Originally Posted by StuPer

Hey Guys,
I have to say I'm truely amazed at the level of staff/patient ratios you guys in the States will put up with. There is no way on god's green earth that either the staff or the public would put up with that kind of care here in Australia, especially in an acute facility.
Locally in a small rural community we have a 20 bed acute unit with 8 high needs beds, the staff share the load across the areas so no one person is overloaded. Typically they have 5 staff for a morning shift and a couple of security/cleaners, 4 for an afternoon and 3 overnight.
Obviously I dont know what is the reason behind the situation over the big 'pond', but I suspect the private nature of healthcare and the need to provide profits to companies and shareholders is no small part. Whereas here of course everything is funded primarily via taxes and state run.
Anyway, as they say... horses for courses, and each to their own... but, I hope you guys working in these horrendous environments get some help soon... as working in that kind of setup would be a real danger to your own sanity imo.
StuPer

Are you at all familiar with our healthcare system over here in the US of A? Let me sum it up for you...WE DON't HAVE ONE ! It's not about putting up with absurd patient rations...it's about having a job...even if you literally get your arse kicked in the process...