[RS0302]

Recently on the med/surg floor I work on nights has only had 3 Nurses for 37 patients when they call for 8. Evenings has only had 4 nurses for 37 patients on more than one occasion recently. Usually it is only 1 RN and the rest LPNs. Crazy!!

[aloevera]

No, the LPN's only give meds and take off Dr. orders....they stay very busy as well....if one of them calls out, I have seen one med nurse to 35-40 pts......horrible.......
yes, a lot of us are fed up....if salary was very good, we might could grin and bear it...but unfortunately we are at the bottom of the barrel, I think....we are on the East coast in the beautiful South....we are owned by a Corp. that owns over 90 hospitals....if that tells you anything....profit, profit, profit.....all they care about.....

[Agency41]

Unsafe is my only response. I do know that LTC staffs short & it's only the residents and staff that suffer. & yes, profit. Hospitals are looking to profit as well.

[oldladyRN]

This question is for Aloevera:

By chance, is your hospital owned by PSI?? Just wondering. They're taking over a lot of private psych facilities here in the South.

oldladyRN

[aloevera]

oldladyRN------Yes......are you in this area also????

[oldladyRN]

I am in Austin, Tx. It is a horrendous, greedy corporation that has taken over the private psych sector down here. I worked at one of their facilities and was seriously injured last year due to violent patients (that actually belong in a jail cell, not a psychiatric facility) and severe corner-cutting. It's all about the $$, not about anyone's recovery or safety. Get out while you can still walk, because it's not going to get any better.

[aloevera]

oh no !!!! I believe it, for sure...only problem is that there are no other psych facilities close enough for me to go to...this one takes me an hour to get there.!! (I am out in the country)
They took over about 6 mo. ago., now our CNO is leaving, our Administrator is leaving, and I don't know who all else....they did hire some 14 new orientees last week, but we are all taking bets on how many will actually stay....the popular number is 3 !!!

[PsychRNOhio]

When in doubt, work for the federal government
VA Hospitals have minimum staffing levels--and add additonal staff as needed.

[litbitblack]

Damn I wouldn't even stay if I walked into that. Its get staff or else lose another. Its your license on the line not thiers. We have our managers working the floor to. And then there is safe harbor. Until you take a stand nothing is going to change. I absolutely refuse to take more than 6 pts. I will refuse an admit. Now if there is a bed shortage and someone has to go home or flu season we still only have 6 pts to a nurse. As charge I have taken a few pts and sometimes a full load for the things that never happen. That is few and far between because the management doesn't appreciate you when you do that either.

[SarahJane_AL]

I am a brand new graduate nurse. I am expected to carry a load of 6-7 patients on a busy med-surge floor during day shift. Everybody in this hospital knows this is not safe but because of chronic short staffing, this is what I am dealing with. It's not just a day or two but always and every day. Because of this I am already thinking about throwing in the towel.