[maggimay]

Originally Posted by sagarcia210

I work at a 12 bed inpatient rehab unit. We always have 2 nurses and an aide or 3 nurses. If it is known that admissions are going to be increased, an extra person--aide or nurse is added. Plus we have the physical therapist, the occupational therapist, and the rehab aide. We also have the speech therapist.
I would have to say that 8:1 ratio is pretty poor.

Reading about the patient nurse ratios posted here I feel very lucky. I work on a 10 bedded neuro rehab unit. We have our own physios, OT, part-time Psychology and speech therapist. From a nursing point of view we normally work with 6 staff in the morning 2 or 3 of those being qualified nurses and the remainder Support workers. Even with this amount of staff at times we are very busy. It really depends on the dependancy of the patients at the time. One of the best things I like about my area of work, apart from the fact it is very rewarding, is that you have the time to give patients and their families the time they deserve and so can give high standards of care all of the time. After all that is why most of us came into nursing in the first place.

[oramar]

I work 8:1 all the time, that is one aide and one RN for eight patients. I am busy with it but it is managable. Somedays I only have 6 or 7 and that is nice. It is those days when I do 9:1 or 10:1 that really slay me. It is a 24 bed unit and very soon we are getting a bunch of new help and then we are never supposed to go over 8:1 again. Promises, Promises!!

[RNKITTY04]

Since I orginally posted I moved to the 11p-7a shift and now my average is 10 patients, sometimes 11.
I totally agree with other posters in that there is NO WAY I can acurately score my FIMs. Most of the time I feel like I am neglecting my patients.
If my patient is not in a netbed or is a tubefeeder, for the most part they rarely see me.
I do not want to be a job hopper but I am not happy, this is not what I want to do.
Same day surgery sounds better and better.

[cilky]

Originally Posted by RNKITTY04

I also work in a free standing rehab, our ratios are 5:1 with 1 CNA.

hi, rn kitty, can i ask where in Florida are you.. I would like to relocate to Florida soon and continue with Rehab. Any suggestions?
cilky

[RNKITTY04]

Hi Cilky,
I am in Jacksonville Fl. After reading my last post I didn't mean to come off so grouchy, my jobs not that bad, I guess Ive just been PMSing or something.
Please forgive.

[cilky]

hi RN kitty
The rehab facility in florida? is this a hospital. I hope to be in florida september 2005 and i want rehab, and most ofyour rehabs are in hospitals as opposed to Mass where they are moslty in the long term care facilities, called subacute units

[RNKITTY04]

This is a "free standing" hospital. We have 4 floors. 2nd floor is Brain Injury and Peds, 3rd floor is Spinal cord and Ortho and the 4th (were I work) is mostly CVA/debility. The hospital is well known in the southeast and is second only to the big rehab center in Atlanta. (forget the name)
Please feel free to email me at:tinidancer2000@yahoo.com and I will be happy to give you more info.

[jyoung1950]

Originally Posted by rngreenhorn

I often float to a surgical unit at my current hospital. In that unit we have 5-8 patients (usually 5-6, occasionally 8), but the RN always has a CNA if she has more than 3 patients. The difference between the rehab and the surgical unit is the RN and the CNA have the same group of patients. So the RN won't have 2 CNA with 8 patients. It is tough with 8 patients with one CNA, thank goodness that doesn't happen that often.


.

Holy smokes - I'd feel like I was in heaven if I could work like that.

My home floor at the hospital I work at is Rehab.

Sometimes my load is 14 rehab patients with 2 nurses. Day shift there is hectic. Have to have all of them up, dressed, pottied, hygiene, etc. by 8:30 - 9:30 am for therapy.

And then if census is low in rehab, we rehab CNA's get pulled. I've had work loads of 20+ patients by myself along with the nurses assigned on days and evening shifts to boot! Spend the whole day getting patients on and off carts to go for tests, operations. Takes 2-3 hours to get all the vitals on them. God bless the nurses - 99% of them help me all they can.

At this hospital, a CNA's typical load is 10+ day shift; 15-20+ evening. I was pulled to PCU the other evening - had 16 to take care of.

Is this normal?

[RNKITTY04]

No Its insane!! Im done with Rehab, start another job in 2 weeks. Wish me luck y'all.

[NancyJo]

My job before this one was in rehab. Was told in my interview that I would typically have 8 pt.'s and a CNA. She neglected to tell me to that usually we only had one CNA, sometimes two for a 38 bed unit, that we all shared. What a rude awakening. You can never ask too many questions. Needless to say, we couldn't keep CNA's as some would run them absolutely ragged and at times would have none. Our nursing numbers kept declining also and by the time I left it was nothing to have 12-13pt.'s on weekdays and usually two of us to split the floor on weekends. Talk about unsafe!