When you have a minute

[funtimes]

How many times a shift do you hear these words as a tech?

I think a record was set my last shift with either "when you have a minute" or "I know your busy but..." It usually starts AS I'm getting report and keeps up almost continually all shift.

At one point in the middle of getting vitals I had 2 nurses at the same time come up to me and say this, then on the way to doing what one of them asked, another came up and had a "request", and then another. At one point in between dealing with vitals and glucose checks and ISCs and turns and call lights, I had 5 time consuming tasks different nurses had given me, with each expecting it to be done immediately, and all of them continually asking if it was done yet(on top of asking what peoples vitals were).

Sometimes I literally cannot walk down the hall for any significant distance without an RN asking me to do something, and im someone who doesn't need to be asked to do something that is already expected. In the middle of doing all this I had ANOTHER Nurse come up and ask if I had a minute to help them switch beds from one room to another. I said NO and kept walking, and this nurse complains to the charge Nurse.

This wouldn't be so bad if my sole job was to help out nurses as needed and I didn't have stuff to do myself that doesn't get done if I don't do it, and for which I am held responsible. It also wouldn't be as bad if the RNs who throw this stuff on techs continually were also running their butt off all shift, but that is rarely the case.

This is why I have said many times that every RN should not be viewed as your boss, as I've seen some RNs on here claim. They have no idea what your workload is and what else you have going on, and most have never been techs or CNAs. The level of multitasking a tech on some units has to do far exceeds what RNs experience. Yes they have the final say on THEIR patients, but if you treated every RN on your floor as being in charge of you, you would drown every shift, mistakes would be made, and patient care would suffer. I've seen it happen to new techs.

[funtimes]

If you see a Nurse that assigned you with 5 tasks sitting down in the break room shopping on their phone (while not on break), kindly go up and say "Excuse me, I did not have time to do X, but I see you have a moment, I just wanted you to know so you could handle it."

I can tell you right now that if I said those exact words it would probably go down considerably less well than simply saying no, as it would be seen as accusatory and confrontational. Also, to be fair I didn't say no after being asked to do something, I said no after being asked if I had time to do something, there is a difference.

As for the earlier suggestion that techs shouldn't have to do glucose checks. It would be nice, but good luck convincing them that we shouldn't have to do a simple non invasive procedure that lay people routinely do. Its not the glucose checks, or any other single task that is the killer though, its the countless things that get added to that by patients and nurses.

The single most time consuming thing we do is probably taking people to and from the bathroom and BSC, which inevitably happens as were trying to get through vitals. Gotta love when the confused ultra slow moving heavy set fall risk patient with an NG tube, a couple chest tubes, assorted lines and drains, a nasal cannula, a walker, and a foley, insists on getting up and trying to have a BM at the worst possible time, while the sea of family hovering and getting in your way insists grandma then go for a walk( or better yet the RN suggests it). Try doing that in every 3rd room while trying to get through a dozen or more set of vitals, while several nurses say when you get done I need you to (insert extremely time consuming task here), and wondering aloud where the damn tech disappeared to now.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

Interesting, because in my work place, it's the tech who spends the entire shift watching movies on the computer, playing with their cellphone, chatting with their friends and taking "breaks" from all the stress of the aforementioned. If you ask them to do something (assuming that you can find them to ask them, because every time we discover a hiding place, they find a new one) they'll tell you no. "That's not my patient" or "You can do that by yourself" or "You're singled. You don't need help." We're in the process of a clean sweep -- getting rid of all of these techs and hiring new ones that will be socialized to work first and not play unless all the work is done. It's very stressful.

[duskyjewel]

funtimes, you're giving me bad memories of the 7 months I spent on a tele unit in the hospital. Your posts sound exactly like most of my nights.

To the people insisting this tech has no idea what he's talking about or that he must be exaggerating, we can tell the difference between a nurse who is charting, pulling meds, etc. and one who is facebooking on her phone or shopping for a vacation or the latest Coach bag on her workstation. We do walk through the nurse's station while running around trying to attend to our 13 or 14 high acuity patients, and we can SEE the little blue square with the f in it, or the tropical island and Travelocity logo on the screen. We may be less educated, but we're not blind or stupid.

[SubSippi]

While you are undoubtedly very busy, you are there to help. It doesn't make sense for a nursing assistant to be upset with nurses who are asking for their assistance.

I'm not implying that you're lazy, or that you're not actually overworked. Only that your frustration may be misplaced.

[funtimes]

While you are undoubtedly very busy, you are there to help. It doesn't make sense for a nursing assistant to be upset with nurses who are asking for their assistance.

Here is what people apparently aren't getting. We are held responsible for what isn't done, what isn't charted, and what isn't done right. Our charting is audited. Some nurses seem to think hey we just float around helping out as needed. What's the big deal if they give you more work, that's what you're there for.

Problem is these same nurses saying you got a minute, are the same ones that will freak out at the end of the shift if every little thing wasn't charted. It also doesn't fly to say sorry I didn't chart it because in between doing it and trying to get to a computer several nurses and a patient grabbed me to do something else. Nurses have to deal with constant distractions as well, but with 5 times as many patients its magnified for us. For every time an RNs pager goes off, mine probably goes off 5-10 times.

Guess what happens when something goes wrong and something wasn't charted? The tech is getting thrown under the bus. I've seen it happen to other techs. If one of the patients im assigned to goes south the first thing I usually think is oh crap what didn't I chart or do on this person, because believe me, the RN is gonna make sure others are aware of that. I make sure I dot my Is and cross my Ts, like most experienced techs do. That's how I've lasted this long doing this job. The problem is that it becomes extremely difficult when every shift is this non stop deluge of call lights and "u got a minute"s.

[duskyjewel]

And that's exactly why I ditched the hospital. I hope to never work in one again. People talk about hospital jobs like they are the end all, be all of nursing and you must get one. Been there, done that, burned the t-shirt. Hospice gives me a good paycheck and nurtures my spirit, and I work on an actual team where we all work together to CARE for patients, not just do things TO them.

[funtimes]

We're in the process of a clean sweep -- getting rid of all of these techs and hiring new ones that will be socialized to work first and not play unless all the work is done. It's very stressful.

Obviously there are techs like that on some units, and you get some with really bad attitudes. As you point out they are being gotten rid of, which is what usually happens to techs like that(sooner than later in most cases). I'm all for that, but it should work both ways, especially with the surplus of RNs out there. If an RN doesn't work well with techs/aides, has a bad attitude, doesn't communicate well with techs, or has a snotty im above you attitude that becomes a distraction, then they also need to see the exit(Sorry I just described 1/5 of the Nurses I've worked with and on some units its actually the majority).

I don't care how many alphabet soup certifications they have or whether they graduated top of their class or have two degrees etc. Being a team player is part of the job, if they cant do that, then try Home care I guess.

[tnicnat]

This is one of the reasons we have shadowing....nurses follow a tech and help in the work and a tech will shadow a nurse and help with the work. A lot of tasks overlapped but nurses do way more charting, tons of forms to fill out and having to play phone tag with medical teams. Techs on the other hand do a ton of work and it's not at all menial as some nurses have stated. And i also do cbgs, scans, blood draws, etc, it's part of the tech job description. So I know where your coming from, I've had to say no to some tasks also, but I also tell the nurse that I will try to help out next time, I've prioritized my patients and that task doesn't out weigh the ones I need to accomplish.

[funtimes]

I don't want to sound like too much of a whiner. Ultimately I get that if you really hate being a tech and think being an RN is so much better, you always have the option of going to school and becoming one, which is what a lot of techs, if not most of them are in the process of doing. I'm 3/4 of the way through school for Respiratory therapy and I'll have a lot more responsibility when I'm done, but I still cant wait to ditch the tech thing for good. I cant imagine I'll miss it much.

[Anna S, RN]

I was a CNA for several years, then an LPN, then an RN. When I was a CNA, I mostly worked in med-surg and LTC facilities via agency. I worked many different places and a number of them over and over again.

My CNA work was hard and stressful, and sometimes it was nearly impossible to get everything done- but not even in the same universe of stress, responsibility. and difficulty as being an as being an RN, especially charge nurse...And I take a full pt load.

When a nurse says "when you have a minute...I know you're busy, but..." they are acknowledging that they do know you're busy, and they wish they didn't have to bother you for help, but they do.

As charge nurse, I am responsible for whatever a tech/CNA does or doesn't do, and I have to answer for it.

Sometimes I miss the days of being able to tell a nurse "Mr. Smith's blood pressure is really high." Then being able to forget about it and go on to the next task. A nurse has to assess, decide, act, follow up, supervise, and not only worry about her own work, but everyone else's, as well.

I have a troubling situation w/ a tech I work w/ right now. He's a very friendly and positive person, fun to be around, but his work is way below standard. He makes really bad mistakes and "forgets" so many important things, and just does not understand why some things are so important. He really does try, but no amount of talks, training or come-to-Jesus meetings have helped. He just is not getting it.

I have been directed to document everything wrong he does, so it can be used to fire him. I hate this. I feel awful about it. I don't want to see anyone lose their job, but nothing I have tried has gotten through to him. As a CNA, I never had to be involved in anything like this. There are many stressors nurses have that CNAs just are not aware of.

When the techs miss something or fall behind, I help them w/ their work, catch and fix the mistakes, when they can be fixed, but they cannot do the same for me.

I thank the techs I work with daily.

Maybe your work load is too heavy, but that not the fault of the nurses.

[cdsavannah59, CNA]

I work with a wonderful staff of nurses who are team players. I am only shift tech on 25 bed floor , when the nurses overwhelm me with tasks, I simply let them I'm unable to do it right now that another nurse or 4 or 5 of them are waiting on this or that, I try to prioritize important duties and tell them when I get a chance I will be there to assist if still needed. On most days at the end of the shift several of the nurses always thank me for helping make the day run smoother. It's not a easy job as a tech, but the nurses see that I am trying my best to assist when available. I really believe some of the problem Op is that you don't work with many team players. Team players only slack off and gossip , sit at desk doing nothing, on facebook, etc, when not busy