[bamboo]

I am a student nurse from HK. Our working environment here are very busy the problem of short staffing that many of you may have encountered also exists here. When the time is short I used to lost myself and couldn't arrange my work schedule. Could anyone give me some tips or share your experience about how to manage and organize your work in the ward? Thanks.

[janqc]

It might help to make yourself a schedule listing every hour of your shift and then fill in the things you have to do at a certain time. The other responsibilities you can plan for in the times that are left over, if there are any on a busy day..This way you are less likely to forget meds, etc.Good luck. There are no easy answers to your question. Are you from Hong Kong?

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[bamboo]

Thank you for your advice. Yes I am from Hong Kong. I used to be so nervous in busy time and all my muscle become very tense. I didn't got the ability to design what is the right thing to do at a specific time so my senior usually blame me that "hey! That's not the thing you should do right now!" I am questioning if I am suitable for this job.

[NightOwl]

Its all about prioritizing your time. There are many ways to do that and you will prolly find that, as I do, you will use many ways.
1. ALWAYS SEE FIRST! The sickee who is unstable, no matter what! Then next is the pt who is RECENTLY stable. The girls report will be, he had a rough day yesterday or last night but he seems a little better now. Dont always believe that go see yourself. This method goes by acuity and pt need. This shows you have thought about your pts needs and are grasping what is important. Once youve seen your sick ones then:
2. You can always go by when meds are due. If someone has no meds, well that one usually gets seen last, or first if I think it will be a quick assessment.
Someone with a ton of meds DONT get seen first. Just my opinion but getting all those meds is very time consuming when you havent seen anyone else yet. This person will usually been seen at least 2nd or 3rd, as long as he's stable. (You know this type stable but tons of work with tons of meds.)
3. I have known people to go in order of room number. If you have room 800-805. This person would start in 800, no matter what and finish in 805. This method does not prioritize nor take into account acuity or pt preference or need. IE you know a certain pt wants sleeper at 10 pm but he is in room 800, so you are there 1st, now youve bought yourself a second trip to his room to give him that sleeper later.
However, this method does get the job done.
I personally use a combination of all three. Organizational skills come with practice over time. Be patient.



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