what should i do?

[mcg1929]

ive been an orientee for like 3 weeks now and m not happy at all at work...at first i liked it but weeks passed,,i started to hate it.....i was in tears 3 days ago and left too late on my shift 3-11...1nurse called out and so theres only 3nurses on the floor,,50 pts,,i got report from the morning nurse,and as soon as i was going to start my meds,,they told me to take 10more pts which i never had before,,it was already 8pm and i wasnt aware that those pts never got their 5pm meds,,(talking about accuchecks,insulin treatment)i know the ration is not too bad for a subacute facility but for a newbee 16pts was a lot for me,,,they left me bymyself without any endorsement from the morning nurse,,,one pt was not stable at all and was in respiratory distress,,good thing one nurse helped out....one nurse there told me to help me with my meds which she told me she did,,,and she wanted me just to sign the MAR,,,im like how am i supposed to do that? i didnt even know if she gave the meds for real???they even gave me 2 g tubes pts which i never did before...arrrgghhh,,i just wanna passed out tht night....i dont know how i did it,,,the 11-7 nurse was kinda upset bec i didnt reaally gave her a good endorsement,,,today ,i talked to my don,,and i just want to quit,,she didnt even ask me what happened...instead she wanted me to stay and give it a try in long term unit,,,coz i told her subacute is too crazy for me,,,i dunno ,,im confused ,,,,ilove the job ,,but my cowokers wasnt reaaly helpful and i didnt get the proper training...tomorrow the other place wants to hire me ,,its a long term faciity,and they want to do the paper work already,,should i stay or not? i unno,,im stressing already,,,sorry its too long,,,,,

[deeDawntee, RN]

I would get out. There should be emergency provisions in place when staff don't show up for one reason or another. There are agencies for this and if not, the managers should have had their butts in there helping out. I can't believe you made it through that shift! You are amazing and deserve to be treated much better than that. Have you already interviewed at the other job? I may ask what provisions they make for emergency staff shortages. In the hospital , we refuse to come out of report and accept our assignments if they don't have safe staffing. It is sooo unfair to you and the patients. (as you are well aware)

This may be reportable. All institutions need to have procedures in place to cover ill staff....and that often includes agency (expensive) or the managers (lazy). They should not be getting away with that!!

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

What type of nurse/patient ratios are being offered by the other facility that would like to hire you? I seriously doubt they'll be any better than the ones being offered at your current workplace.

How long of an orientation will the other facility offer? The average LTC orientation typically ranges from 3 days to 1 week. You were so very fortunate to have received 3 weeks at your current job. My longest orientation has been 2 days as a new grad before being cut loose.

I have to be brutally honest with you, but if you feel you cannot handle 13 to 16 patients in the LTC subacute setting after 3 entire weeks of orientation, then it is probably time to move on to an acute care hospital where you'll have less patients.

I would test the waters at the LTC unit of your current facility before making any major moves. LTC tends to be slower-paced than rehab and subacute. Good luck to you! :)

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

In the hospital , we refuse to come out of report and accept our assignments if they don't have safe staffing. It is sooo unfair to you and the patients. (as you are well aware)

The original poster works in the subacute unit of a LTCF/SNF (nursing home), where 16 patients to 1 nurse would be regarded as very safe staffing.

[mcg1929]

yeah ...i guess that ratio is reasonable,,,i just cant believe why some people had 2-3 days of orientation? how did you guys survive? heads up to you! but im just wondering,,is it ok to have all lpns on one unit without any rn's standing by?

when someone called out that saturday,,the staff coordinator tried to call my other co workers,,but nobody wants to come,,,who wants to work on weekends? =P ,,,

about the other place...i have to find out tomorrow,,,i will keep you updated,

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

but im just wondering,,is it ok to have all lpns on one unit without any rn's standing by?

At my facility, an RN legally has to be in the building only 8 hours per day. Usually this requirement is met when the DON, an RN, comes to work Monday through Friday from 8am to 5pm. Of course, she sits in the office all day to do administrative work and care plan meetings.