Angry Nurse

fergus51 · Nov 12, 2000

It really bugs me that nurses are supposed to cover up the fact that we are shortstaffed. Staffing levels will only improve when the public gets vocal about it. God knows management won't get more staff in just because nurse says they're needed. I hate the politics that go along with this job.

goldilocksrn · Nov 13, 2000

I refuse to deny that we are short staffed at my facility anymore. If my patients ask, I tell them that my patients are very sick, I do my best to give each and every one the best of care, and I am sorry that I cannot meet all of their needs. If they tell me something should be done about it, I tell them if they feel that strongly about it, to write the hospital, their congressperson, the governor, etc. to bring it to their attention. I see nothing wrong with this, as my job is to educate and pass along information. Hopefully some of these people actually do write and get something started.

Daisy · Nov 13, 2000

Our Med/Surg unit recently had complaints from the nursing attendants to administration that no one helps them and they are overworked and their assignments are too much. Can you believe it? Well guess who is filling the water pitchers at twenty plus dollars per hour and telling the families when they are angry how many patients I have to attend to on my shift? If administration wants to pay the RNs overtime to fill water pitchers and do everything else so be it. After 22 years in nursing I'll fill the pitchers. When there is a complaint about care, I get the manager.

erezebet · Nov 14, 2000

where i work, family members come at shift change, and many times it can be unpleasant. Most familys I interact with are wonderful but some are more of a liability than an asset. I had a patients son stop me in the hall to let me know its sad to see that I could not even feed his mother today let alone keep her water pitcher full. And yes, it is sad that the most basic needs cannot be met for my patients. And to all those family members out there, I am truly sorry. I am sorry for struggling through nursing school thinking I could help people when its not always possible. I am sorry that my job demands more than a pound of paperwork a night. I often go home after a shift and think about what I never got to do. I would rather spend time with my patients than standing outside the door at the chartbox. I hate running into rooms to pass meds as I hurry the patients along and practically shove the pills down their throat because I have to hurry to look up labs, finish a surgical checklist, do longhand discharge notes, replace pulled IV lines, hang new solutions before the others go dry, wipe the floor where my patient piddled all the way to the bathroom, assess my new admit and call the doc for 2 pages of orders as his cell phone goes in and out and I miss half of what he said, give that pain shot, call pharmacy about my missing meds, search through charts on 7 patients to discover if any labs got missed because it will be my fault, check blood sugar slips, do chart audits, check the crash cart, count narcs, sign off orders, sign mars, do discharge planning, update cardex,........I could go on but you see the picture.

goldilocksrn · Nov 14, 2000

As an update, I went to our hospital's DON and let her know how upset the nurses on our unit were, and how unsupported we feel. She just smiled and said, "You are doing such a good job". This really angered me because my friend is in management and told me that this DON instructed management to do just that to any angry nurse, and it would shut them up. This angers me that management uses our kind hearts against us. It is time to use our anger for a purpose, and that is to stand up for our patients and ourselves. If you are not already involved, go to millionnursemarch.com and see what you can do to help us take better care of our patients. Help us get better pay that we so much deserve( My garbage man makes more than me). I am tired of being angry....I want something done about it.

OC_An Khe · Nov 14, 2000

If RN's don't tell the patients that the hospital is short staffed then who will? One must be tactful and diplomatic in conveying the message and there are some situations where it may not be appropriate, but the message must be told. The old adage is you get what you pay for. Has anyone ever seen nursing care on a hospital bill?

longforseaair · Nov 15, 2000

Originally posted by erezebet:
where i work, family members come at shift change, and many times it can be unpleasant. Most familys I interact with are wonderful but some are more of a liability than an asset. I had a patients son stop me in the hall to let me know its sad to see that I could not even feed his mother today let alone keep her water pitcher full. And yes, it is sad that the most basic needs cannot be met for my patients. And to all those family members out there, I am truly sorry. I am sorry for struggling through nursing school thinking I could help people when its not always possible. I am sorry that my job demands more than a pound of paperwork a night. I often go home after a shift and think about what I never got to do. I would rather spend time with my patients than standing outside the door at the chartbox. I hate running into rooms to pass meds as I hurry the patients along and practically shove the pills down their throat because I have to hurry to look up labs, finish a surgical checklist, do longhand discharge notes, replace pulled IV lines, hang new solutions before the others go dry, wipe the floor where my patient piddled all the way to the bathroom, assess my new admit and call the doc for 2 pages of orders as his cell phone goes in and out and I miss half of what he said, give that pain shot, call pharmacy about my missing meds, search through charts on 7 patients to discover if any labs got missed because it will be my fault, check blood sugar slips, do chart audits, check the crash cart, count narcs, sign off orders, sign mars, do discharge planning, update cardex,........I could go on but you see the picture.

AMEN and AMEN to that!

goldilocksrn · Nov 15, 2000

bbqchick forgot that you must do all this without racking up overtime, because Lord knows that you should be able to do all of this during your shift. (I was told that if I couldn't, I would have to learn to "budget my time more effectively")

OC_An Khe · Nov 15, 2000

Originally posted by goldilocksrn:
bbqchick forgot that you must do all this without racking up overtime, because Lord knows that you should be able to do all of this during your shift. (I was told that if I couldn't, I would have to learn to "budget my time more effectively")

Golgilocksrn,

I've heard that before, two points to remember. First if the manager budgeted the nurse to patient ratio correctly I wouldn't have to budget my time in an impossible situation. Secondly (if you are paid by the hour) federal law requires the employer to pay you for all time worked whether it is authorized or not. For RN's if you need to work past your shift for legitimate reasons be sure that you get paid for it. You are entitled.

JillR · Nov 15, 2000

I have been told to not tell patients or families that we are understaffed.

I don't think it is nessesary to tell anyone this. I think that they can tell by the way were are running from one room to another. Personally I don't think they really care if we are understaffed or not. They care that they or their loved one gets what they want when they want it and it doens't matter to anyone that the patient in the next room is circling the drain.

The other night the husband of one of my patients asked me to get him a cup of coffee, I showed him where the cafeteria was and told him that he was more than welcome to get some amytime he likes. This man comes in at meal time to eat the patients food!! Even though we have expained to him that this is not appropriate because we need an accurate idea of how she is eating, he still does it.

Some people still look at nurses as handmaidens.

goldilocksrn · Nov 16, 2000

At my hospital, administration has a sign on the kitchen door that says, "employees only". Management is afraid of the liability of someone getting hurt, and family members don't want to go in because of the sign. That is why nurses and aides are wasting time that we don't have sometimes. I think family members can handle getting coffee or water without killing themselves. Can you believe it?

Mijourney · Nov 16, 2000

Hi erezebet and JillR. In home health on each admission, we are required to review and present a patient's rights and responsibilities form. This form is signed and a copy is left with the client/family to refer to. I make sure that I thoroughly review this form on my admits, and the client/family understands that they still have 24/7 responsibility for their loved one even though home health is present. When I am present and there is an able s/o present, I don't get water or anything else for that matter. I make it clear on admission and throughout that my role is to assist the client/family in coping with an illness or disease and learning how to manage it on their own. If ordered, the aides help assist the client/family in managing their ADLs. Believe or not, aides have a vitally important instructive role to play in demonstrating appropriate care for client/family learning.

Facility-based bedside nurses must find a way to not only tell the truth of why things are the way they are but how things need to change. Too many clients/families are discharged from the hospital with no clue as to what, why, when, who, how. The whole basis for utilizing nurses in any setting should be for patient/family education, instruction, and training. These activities can be done even while doing basic tasks. Nurses are in a unique position to provide educational/training opportunities that would improve the short/long term outcome for the patient/family and reduce unnecessary usage of health and medical resources. That is how patients/families distinguish between nurses and aides or tech and that is how patients and families are turned into clients. Two things must happen: availability of aides, attendants, and techs for basic tasks; and, significantly decreased nurse-patient ratio.