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by dekatn

I need some input, I just started new job in hospital on med surg floor about two months ago. I really do enjoy it, I've been out of hospital for many years. Anyway, everybody has been really nice and supportive, there is only one nurse that seems to think she is above and beyond doing any manuel labor. One day during my orientation, I was sitting in a small office just outside the nurses station doing some orientation on the computer, this nurse had went into a pt. room nearby and came back out ranting and raving because the pt had been incont. of bm and it was all over the place, anyway she stated she wasn't cleaning it up, then I heard her ask where I was, called me by name, that she would get me to clean it up, she didn't realize that I was listening to every word she said. She was told that I was doing orientation computer work and couldn't stop in the middle of it. She was really po'd, got somebody else to do her dirty work and didn't offer to help. We do team nursing by the way, yeah right!!
Yesterday morning, I work 7p to 7a, she came in to get report, they all went into the conference room to do report, report started at 6:45a, we only had 8 pt. and you guessed it, one of these is the same little pt. that we had a month ago and made a big mess on himself! A few minutes into report "she" not my charge nurse, came out to the nurses station and stated, so and so is wet, YOU need to go in there and clean him up before we get out of report.
I was so mad I couldn't see straight, but I went and cleaned the pt. up because he didn't deserve to suffer just because I was mad.
At 7:20, they are still in report, on 8 non critical pt., I had walked past the room a couple of times and heard them laughing and talking about non work related stuff while I had to stay on the floor and wait for them to officially get out of report before I could leave. She is always asking me if I did this or did I do that, she wants to make sure that dayshift doesn't have to do anything before 8 or 9 in the morning. It's not the work, I'm used to hard work, it's her attitude that's getting to me, if she had asked me to clean the pt. up I wouldn't have thought anything about it, but she comes across demanding me to do this and do that, and she is the day shift charge.
There are things I could toss out there to her, such as when we come in at 7p we have to pass ice and water before we can even do a med pass because all the pt. are dry. I haven't said a word yet, but the more I think about it the madder I get. Somebody, please give me some pointers on how to deal with this nurse. Thanks

[CHATSDALE]

Re: Need Input

talk with charge nurse and request that you be relieved at the end of your shift..i HATE waiting for a long-winded bunch that are putting their work day off..esp when i was working nights...

write a report as well as give it verbal, when she asks if such and such has been done hand her the report and say i am going to cover that in report here is a written report if you want to peruse it...i have had nurses that could not get through a report w/o interrupting several times..if you stop or appear flustered then that is the green light for them to do it every time

in time she will find someone else to dump on, till then DON'T LET HER SEE YOU SWEAT

[texas_lvn]

Re: Need Input

Girl, stick to your guns. You can not let her run over you now or she will do it until the day she dies. I am having a similar situation where I work. I am a LVN, with several RNs. We went to total primary care a few months ago, and there is on RN that will say "go get one of the lvns to do it!"

She does not ask me to do any of her dirty work. At the beginning she did. I simply stated "I do not mind helping you. Go get the wash cloths and I will meet you in there." She was so shocked that "the little lvn" didn't do it, she actually ended up cleaning him, I was there for team work/support and helped turn and get some dirty blankets out of the way.

Was the pt that had an incont. episode your pt? I understand team work, and I appreciate you not wanting to pt to sit in it. but if it was your pt, then you should have cleaned him up, if it was another nurses pt, I might have said " that is nurse nancys pt. Where is she and I will help her clean him up?" If she was in report, she should have stopped report and helped.

I empathize with you in this situation, but do not be afraid to stick to your guns. If you do not do it now, you will be overloaded with pts, and their needs plus the needs of her pts while she gets to sit down and talk.

I hope all goes well. Good luck and please keep us informed.

Texas

[dekatn]

Re: Need Input

Thanks for listening, our census is down, we had only 8 pt. total so it was just me and the charge nurse working the floor that night, charge nurse went into report, I was left to watch the floor and answer call lights until they got out of report. If she had just asked in a nice way I wouldn't have got bent out of shape. I just don't like feeling like dirt under somebody's feet and that's how she made me feel, like her little peon. Texas LVN, I feel like we are walking in the same shoes here!!! I knew I wasn't in this alone! Thanks.

[SmilingBluEyes]

Re: Need Input

Originally Posted by CHATSDALE

talk with charge nurse and request that you be relieved at the end of your shift..i HATE waiting for a long-winded bunch that are putting their work day off..esp when i was working nights...

write a report as well as give it verbal, when she asks if such and such has been done hand her the report and say i am going to cover that in report here is a written report if you want to peruse it...i have had nurses that could not get through a report w/o interrupting several times..if you stop or appear flustered then that is the green light for them to do it every time

in time she will find someone else to dump on, till then DON'T LET HER SEE YOU SWEAT

Here, here. Great advice.