Is med surg easier than ltc

[Nursebetty1170]

Now that I have your attention, I don't really mean easier! My dilemma is this, I'm 45 and only been RN for 6 years, have only worked ltc. I LOVE working with geriatric population, but I too often feel that I cannot do a safe, efficient, caring, job. I cant give my best nursing care to 25 people at the same time. I get it, this is ltc, unrealistic expectations, but I'm afraid I'm getting "unsafe". And btw my facility is pretty good as far as ltc goes. I also know any hospital job will be difficult to get now that I have been in ltc so long. So should I pursue something else in nursing that might be " easier", what I mean is more realistic about patient ratio and workload, or is it the same in all specialties?

[spiderslap]

I went to home care from ltc. The difference is night and day! From 28 patients to 1 patient.

[NYbabyRN, BSN, RN]

Depends on the facility and maybe manager. I used to work med-surg and my general surgery manager gave us good ratios, usually 4 to 5 patients. Other floors/hospitals can go up to 7 patients. I worked LTC briefly before my med-surg job and can commiserate with feeling overwhelmed and unsafe, managing the care of 30+ residents.

[suzw]

I am wondering the same thing. I am a new grad, less than 3 months into my first job, in a SNF. Our census was down briefly and they reduced from 3 nurses to two, for 56-58 patients (LTC and SNF/ rehab). Now we are back up to 61 or so, our acuity has gone up, and they still haven't put the 3rd nurse back on. It is almost impossible to finish on time without severely cutting corners, and I don't feel it is safe. I realize there are different challenges in med surg, including a higher acuity, more frequent admit/ discharge, more pressure to perform, etc. But I am wondering if it is more do-able.

[kp038]

old post but... the answer to your question is going to depend on the type of acute care floor. I have limited experience in both, but I can tell you that the med/surg floor I was on was absolutely insane, even with typically only 4-5 pts. The problem is you see a ratio of 5:1, except that doesn't account for the fact that you had 3 discharges and 2 admissions. My 7a-7:30p shift most often ended between 8 and 9. The load in acute care is also influenced a lot, I've found, by the support you get from your CNAs. On my floor, there was very very little - so you're being the CNA and nurse if you've got bedbound incontinent pts. LTC you've got the crazy medpass but no wiping butts. just my 2 cents.