this past week i stupidly offered to help out with a day shift need in the long term acute care hospital where i work. i normally work nights, but they were extremely short so with the offer of a bonus, i thought i would help out. welll, to say it was the shift from h*%$ is putting it mildly. i wasn't clocked in yet nor had i had time to check out what my assignment was, when two different nurses told me that i had the sucky assignment. i only had 5 patients but all three patients had g-tubes or ng tubes with three of two of them getting tube feedings and two of them getting tpn. all 5 got their meds via g-tube. they all had bucketloads of meds spaced out all day long as well as several iv antibiotic meds spaced throughout the day. on top of that, i had to take a new admit! if one of the nurses that had an easier load had not pitched in to help me with the new admit i wouldn't have gotten out of there until midnight. i was so overwhelmed all day, that more than once i broke down in tears. it didn't help that the nurse sharing the hall with me had plenty of time to take breaks, lunch and just sit at the desk in the nurse's station, never offering to help me, even though she knew i was drowning. i didn't have time for lunch so i was glad i had taken time to eat a good breakfast before i went to work. i did put in a no lunch time sheet so i would get paid for the time i worked instead of eating. i was so behind all day and felt like such a loser. i haven't had a bad shift like that in a long time. i guess i am spoiled on night shift as there aren't as many meds to be given and they aren't spaced out as badly throughout the shift. not that that particular assignment isn't bad on nights as well as days. needless to say i will never work med/surg on day shift again, i don't care how short they are. i felt like i had been"bent over" even though i was helping out. i got the worst assignment for helping day shift. anyone else ever have a day like that? am i a loser or just being a baby?
Specializes in Education, Acute, Med/Surg, Tele, etc.
I absolutely sympathize! I would never take on a day when I am use to nocs! Oh lordie no way! I work days typically and they are very rough no matter where you are...and wow, if you aren't use to days...that is murder on you!
I work agency and will not work nocs because of family obligations, but I have been in your spot many times (try that shift and not knowing where anything is or that facilities procedures yet! OUCH!), and know if I want days I stick with days maybe swing....that way I keep on a schedule I know well...as hectic as it is.
It was not your fault, but if it happens in the future be sure to go to the charge nurse for relief. If that does not work, go up the food chain. I think staff sometimes gives the sucky jobs to someone from another shift or unit so that you will feel sorry for THEM because they have to take care of those patients all the time. Whatever, it is not right. It is also a good way to NEVER get anyone to agree to help out that shift.
I feel for you so much. Anyone who has had this done to them knows how badly you felt, and a pox on anyone who would sit and watch you drown knowing that you came out to help them.
The next time you are asked to come out and "help" daylight, I would loudly and noisily let them know that you are never going to help them out again and tell them why--that you don't appreciate coming out to help and being handed the worst assignment on the unit, and have others sit and watch while you circled the drain. That is why I am out of bedside nursing, because there are so many nurses out there who would do this and not think twice about it. Best of luck to you.
"it didn't help that the nurse sharing the hall with me had plenty of time to take breaks, lunch and just sit at the desk in the nurse's station, never offering to help me, even though she knew i was drowning."
not bashing you here, but i have to ask: did you ask her for help when you saw her taking breaks? i would have said something along the lines of "well, since you got lunch, can you cover me while i get lunch?"
That falls under the - NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED - creedo. :uhoh3:
If I offer to work for someone else - I get floated.
Me too! I'm a nursing assistant at a LTC. I have volunteered twice to work for other aides on my chronic care unit and both times have been floated to the Alzheimers' lockdown unit instead. BOTH TIMES.
That's enough work for any good nurse to struggle with, let alone a night nurse not used to work days in an unfamiliar unit. Don't worry about it. You did the best you could do given a dreadful situation.
I am sorry for the treatment you received while trying to help out on day shift. Whenever I work an extra day, I clarify ahead of time as much as possible where I'll be working and what my load will be like, or, I don't work the extra shift.
I also have learned to be direct and ask for help...ah, no, insist on it if others are sitting around and I'm drowning in work. In return, I offer to help if I see others drowning rather than waiting for them to ask. It was hard to learn to be assertive asking for help, but it beat feeling put upon.
You are definitely not a loser. And I agree with gr8rnpjt. The next time you hear they are short, PLEASE let them know that you might have helped them out had they not dumped all over you the last time you did. They need to know that they shot themselves in the foot.
I floated to a stepdown unit last week (on day shift) where I was given 6patients to care for. The other staff RN's had 5. Well, wouldn't you know that when I discharged two of my patients, I was immediately given 2 new admits! I overheard the UC saying there's another admit coming...and then I hear another RN say that it should go to me...then giggles....I was so p*ssed! So all day long I fought to keep up with meds, assessments, and paperwork. Jeepers, you would think at least one of those admits could have gone to another RN. I missed lunch and punched out late after giving a cruddy report and having the next shift giving me the evil inquistition. YIKES! No one thanked me for coming to cover the shift or offered to help me out when I was sinking. Can you believe I was actually called today by the dayshift stepdown charge nurse to help out again? Um....let me think about it.......NO!!!!! I told the charge nurse about my horrible shift and she didn't seem to recall the events of that day but assured me today would not be like that. um...let me think about it.....NO!!!!
Some lessons are learned the hard way. I'm glad I'm not the only one out there who feels floating to another unit bites.
You are definitely not a loser. And I agree with gr8rnpjt. The next time you hear they are short, PLEASE let them know that you might have helped them out had they not dumped all over you the last time you did. They need to know that they shot themselves in the foot.
Agreed. That's a great way to get extra to help to come back to your unit.
:uhoh3: 
Antikigirl, ASN, RN
2,595 Posts
I absolutely sympathize! I would never take on a day when I am use to nocs! Oh lordie no way! I work days typically and they are very rough no matter where you are...and wow, if you aren't use to days...that is murder on you!
I work agency and will not work nocs because of family obligations, but I have been in your spot many times (try that shift and not knowing where anything is or that facilities procedures yet! OUCH!), and know if I want days I stick with days maybe swing....that way I keep on a schedule I know well...as hectic as it is.