3 types of shifts

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Specializes in Gerontology.

So here is my theory:

There are 3 types of shifts:

There are shifts when you come home,put your feet up and have a Coke (or diet Coke)

Three are shifts when you come home, put your feet up and have a Rum and Coke (or diet coke)

and then there are shifts when you come home; and stick the straw directly into the RUM!

Lately, my shifts have been the third option!!!

So - how was your shift today????

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

Hey Pepper, I've had a whole WEEK of those Number 3's!! I've had seven falls (all of which were performed by the same two residents), two unanticipated move-outs, no administrator, and one very angry family member whose father has declined to the point where he needs a nursing home, and it's somehow my fault that he has to move.......she's called the State, the ombudsman, and even threatened to slap me with a restraining order to prevent me from overseeing his care while he remains in our facility. Oh, and she's going to have me fired, too. :icon_roll

Today was the second time this week I've been threatened for doing my job---this time by an MD who's upset about all the faxes we send him about his patient who falls every few days, so he demanded that we stop notifying him. Yeah, right, and whose rear end's going to end up in a sling if we DON'T notify? Of course, I instructed my staff to follow company policy (to say nothing of covering our butts), and sent him a note explaining why we do this and have no choice but to continue; he doesn't have to respond to an FYI.

So he called the facility to tell the administrator (who's been out sick all week) to make us stop faxing or he'd take legal action for HARASSMENT. You'd think he'd be more interested in knowing that his patient is falling 2-3 times a week than in making life miserable for the folks who are trying to keep her off the floor......silly me for making that assumption. Meh....and my family wonders why I'm losing my happy thoughts. Friday cannot possibly come soon enough. :bugeyes:

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Specializes in LTC.

I had the day off today, but I still feel like I need a drink now that the kids are in bed since my 3 year old gets bored being home with me all day and gets jealous when I'm nursing the baby so she acts up. I kind of wished I was at work today, at least there I can (usually) use the bathroom without anyone pounding on the door demanding Goldfish crackers and I can delegate the diaper changes to my CNAs!

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Specializes in Gerontology.

This was triggered by my New Year's evening shift- since then I have lost my "good shift karma" which I usually have:

I came in to find that out of 5 nurses/31 pts -

2 were agency nurses - not knocking agency nurses but they are not given access to our computer system, so I had to print out shift report/kardex for them (becaucse day shift didn't think to do this) but I also had to check for blood work/test etc plus write a note saying pt was cared for by agency . One of which turned out to be a no-show for the first 4 hours, leaving us short..

1 nurse from the Float Pool - can access pts records but is not overly famliar with the unit

1 nurse who usualy works nights but got transferred to evenings to cover the holidays. Spend most of her time whining that she would not be able to leave early because we were so busy!

I had to manage the care of my 6 pts - discharge one and admit a new one- without a unit secretary because we were off hours, divide out the no shows pts - deal with the complaints of the other nurses because I was forced to increase their work load, assist the float nurse and agency nurse with their care - agency nurse is limited to what she can access as she is agency- plus deal with all the other issues that a charge nurse had to deal with!

Lets just say= I really earned my pay cheque that night!!

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Specializes in Trauma, ER, ICU, CCU, PACU, GI, Cardiology, OR.
so here is my theory:

there are 3 types of shifts:

there are shifts when you come home,put your feet up and have a coke (or diet coke)

three are shifts when you come home, put your feet up and have a rum and coke (or diet coke)

and then there are shifts when you come home; and stick the straw directly into the rum!

lately, my shifts have been the third option!!!

so - how was your shift today????

unquestionably, we all have days like the ones you have described,:banghead: however, the only way i deal with crazy stress shifts is by taking it out on myself, by hitting the gym!!! but you what i get the rewards physically:yelclap:

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Specializes in Cardiovascular, ER.

My shift today was a 2. I am drinking a mimosa right now at midnight, and it is pretty darn good!

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
Hey Pepper, I've had a whole WEEK of those Number 3's!! I've had seven falls (all of which were performed by the same two residents), two unanticipated move-outs, no administrator, and one very angry family member whose father has declined to the point where he needs a nursing home, and it's somehow my fault that he has to move.......she's called the State, the ombudsman, and even threatened to slap me with a restraining order to prevent me from overseeing his care while he remains in our facility. Oh, and she's going to have me fired, too. :icon_roll

Today was the second time this week I've been threatened for doing my job---this time by an MD who's upset about all the faxes we send him about his patient who falls every few days, so he demanded that we stop notifying him. Yeah, right, and whose rear end's going to end up in a sling if we DON'T notify? Of course, I instructed my staff to follow company policy (to say nothing of covering our butts), and sent him a note explaining why we do this and have no choice but to continue; he doesn't have to respond to an FYI.

So he called the facility to tell the administrator (who's been out sick all week) to make us stop faxing or he'd take legal action for HARASSMENT. You'd think he'd be more interested in knowing that his patient is falling 2-3 times a week than in making life miserable for the folks who are trying to keep her off the floor......silly me for making that assumption. Meh....and my family wonders why I'm losing my happy thoughts. Friday cannot possibly come soon enough. :bugeyes:

And they wonder why we drink..:banghead: and eat comfort food ;).

:hug: If I had a dime for everytime someone told me they'd have my job.....I'd make Waarren Buffett look like a pauper.:lol2: The visual of the outraged MD threatening to take legal action for HARRASSMENT and his beat red face with outrage has me on the floor laughing my butt off....:rotfl:

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Hey Pepper, I've had a whole WEEK of those Number 3's!! I've had seven falls (all of which were performed by the same two residents), two unanticipated move-outs, no administrator, and one very angry family member whose father has declined to the point where he needs a nursing home, and it's somehow my fault that he has to move.......she's called the State, the ombudsman, and even threatened to slap me with a restraining order to prevent me from overseeing his care while he remains in our facility. Oh, and she's going to have me fired, too. :icon_roll

Today was the second time this week I've been threatened for doing my job---this time by an MD who's upset about all the faxes we send him about his patient who falls every few days, so he demanded that we stop notifying him. Yeah, right, and whose rear end's going to end up in a sling if we DON'T notify? Of course, I instructed my staff to follow company policy (to say nothing of covering our butts), and sent him a note explaining why we do this and have no choice but to continue; he doesn't have to respond to an FYI.

So he called the facility to tell the administrator (who's been out sick all week) to make us stop faxing or he'd take legal action for HARASSMENT. You'd think he'd be more interested in knowing that his patient is falling 2-3 times a week than in making life miserable for the folks who are trying to keep her off the floor......silly me for making that assumption. Meh....and my family wonders why I'm losing my happy thoughts. Friday cannot possibly come soon enough. :bugeyes:

VivaLasViejas, i cannot believe how completely unprofessional and uncaring you are. No wonder people are complaining - have you, for one second, considered this doctor's needs? how upsetting is must be for him to continually recieve faxes regarding his clients? the helpless feeling he must get when reading that the same patient has fallen again? the sense of responsibility that must saddle him when he muses 'i really should do something about that..'?

i think not.

that doctor probably has a thread on alldoctors.com describing the three types of shift, number 3 being 'you were required to do your job ALL DAY!'

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Specializes in Med-Surg; Telemetry; School Nurse pk-8.
VivaLasViejas, i cannot believe how completely unprofessional and uncaring you are. No wonder people are complaining - have you, for one second, considered this doctor's needs? how upsetting is must be for him to continually recieve faxes regarding his clients? the helpless feeling he must get when reading that the same patient has fallen again? the sense of responsibility that must saddle him when he muses 'i really should do something about that..'?

i think not.

that doctor probably has a thread on alldoctors.com describing the three types of shift, number 3 being 'you were required to do your job ALL DAY!'

Love it!!! That made my morning. LMAO

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Specializes in CICU.

Mine was a number 1 last night! And, believe me, I relished the entire 12 hour shift!

Actually have my feet up and am enjoying a diet squirt...

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Omg VivaLasViejas that MD should come work for our facility! We have a resident who falls at least twice each day! And thus our MD has faxes coming through all day long! But she hasn't yet complained haha!

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So here is my theory:

There are 3 types of shifts:

There are shifts when you come home,put your feet up and have a Coke (or diet Coke)

Three are shifts when you come home, put your feet up and have a Rum and Coke (or diet coke)

and then there are shifts when you come home; and stick the straw directly into the RUM!

Lately, my shifts have been the third option!!!

So - how was your shift today????

I would say my night into this morning was a 2! Hopefully, tonight it will be more like a 1 :D

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