Are hospitals doing this now? ,(Vent)

[Lucinda4000]

Management have decided to use nurses and techs as transporters. They said we are short staffed in ED . So they want us to work in 6 hr blocks (7-1, 1-7) and transport pts up from the ED to the floor. Not just to our home unit but to two other units as well.

They said the staff member selected will have to log in the system so they can know when they have to transport someone

I think it's crazy. So I have to leave my patients to transport . The poor nurse left behind will have 12 patients to look after. What happens if I am the middle of something. How is that going to improve patient satisfaction scores?

The blocks start at 7. So do I get report on my patients before they want me to transport?

It doesn't make any sense Everyone is upset. There was no discussion. Management just said it will be starting next month.

Also the physical toll it will take is not something I'm looking forward to.

Nurses on day shift barely have time for lunch. Now this!

I think they are too cheap to hire a transporter that's the bottom line.

Sorry for the long vent

[Mini2544, ASN, RN]

That’s awful. I’m so sorry. My hospital has assistant managers from different floors doing this on occasion but never floor nurses. I would look for a new job ASAP!

[vintagemother, BSN, CNA, LVN, RN]

9 hours ago, luv2 said:

This is unsafe. How are you advocating and caring, assessing, and documenting for your assigned patient if you are continually moving patients? Does this hospital have a union? You, nurses, need to organize this is disturbing.

Do you have a union do you could all file ADOs (assignment despite objection)? Or safe harbor?

[Howardhughes, ASN, BSN, RN]

I was of the school of thought that they pulled her off her unit for 6 Hrs to push Meat around...if she still had a Pt load Hell No im not leaving the Unit...Go to the House super..if that wont work demand to have another cover or resign due to a Known unsafe environment. I value my License and Have been involved with a court case involving a death (Aviation related.. a A/C I sold the guy years before crashed). I can assure you its not worth it. In addition any Hospital that would allow such a action is not worthy of your skills...and I would email your states regulators about the issue. Nurses are often very willing to obey orders that can be deadly.

[canoehead, BSN, RN]

I would have to prioritize it with my nursing tasks. If someone needs to go next door for an Xray I can probably buzz them over quick. But if they need to go to the floor, that takes longer, and I'd need to report off to a coworker...it might take me awhile to get freed up.

They wanted RNs to do secretary tasks for a few months where I work, and you can bet some phones went unanswered while I finished charting.

[Lucinda4000]

I found out that there isn't a set policy of who should do the transporting. One unit is using the techs to do it. Another unit has RNs and techs each transporting for one hour at a time. We don't always have a charge nurse so it will be the consensus of whoever is working that shift.

I really don't want to do it at all. Even an hour away from my patients will put me behind. Also I will have to cover the other nurse's pts when it's her turn. I will see how it goes. Hopefully it will be short lived

[Kooky Korky, BSN, RN]

On 10/22/2019 at 6:33 AM, luv2 said:

This is unsafe. How are you advocating and caring, assessing, and documenting for your assigned patient if you are continually moving patients? Does this hospital have a union? You, nurses, need to organize this is disturbing.

Best answer so far. Remember Cesar Chavez? Huelga! That means "strike".

For OP - Stand up for yourselves. All of you get together and make your cheapskate employer hire a couple of transporters.

If you don't stand together, you will all suffer. You must make your bosses see the light. Maybe some of them don't realize how this is wrong, but others do.

Most nurses will either knuckle under or will quit for supposedly greener pastures. Be strong and face this head on. Get your peers together. You need to start informing community groups, your family, friends, acquaintances at your places of worship and all of the other places you go. Let them know what is happening in their hospital.

I'm not saying it's easy, but if you and your peers don't stand up against this, who will? What else will they burden you with?

[JKL33]

4 hours ago, Lucinda4000 said:

I really don't want to do it at all. Even an hour away from my patients will put me behind. Also I will have to cover the other nurse's pts when it's her turn. I will see how it goes. Hopefully it will be short lived

You have to know what motivations are in play so that you can think logically to come up with an alternative (ideally) and/or rebuttal. And sometimes you find out that it just isn't going to play out as catastrophically as everyone imagines. At the very least you are guaranteed to be entertained.

Don't complain. Communicate that you are just wanting to understand the goal of this change.

If it really is that you are going to have to be absent from your assignment for significant lengths of time (which I kind of doubt), keep the following in mind:

1. Always give report if you are told to leave your assignment, and document having done so. "Report given and patient care turned over to A. Nurse, RN."

2. Don't accept anyone else's patients via a mechanism of "I need to go transport, you're watching my patients." They can give you a reasonable run-down/report or find someone else. Also do not use (or let someone else sign you up via) the "watching" mechanism in the EHR (unless you have received report).

3. If someone says they are leaving and you are not able to properly watch or care for their patients, tell them that you cannot watch their patients and call the supervisor immediately and calmly state that your floor/unit will need help so that a nurse can leave to transport.

4. If you are told to leave and you feel it would compromise your patient care to do so or your coworker cannot reasonably watch your patients, do the same as #3.

[Howardhughes, ASN, BSN, RN]

WELL... Some Good Advice and some bad. #1 Yep Document Period. If you go to Court its you're only saving grace.

#2/#3 Receiving Report and documenting will NOT NOT relive you of Legal Action if your Pts go bad AND you have not followed the chain of command ...Here is the Rub... the Hospital there is a Chain of Command. and written policies to support the chain..Follow it..ie.. Told Unit Charge...and House Supervisor... if they Both Demand you push meat without transferring Pts to another RN then YOU make the decision to do so...they are putting YOUR head in the noose because YOU took the assigned task. Unless you Pass off your Pts YOU are still responsible for them. I have been asked MANY TIMES at a Large Hospital in CLT NC to do things Unsafe... just say NO...or take the risks ...me like I said above ... my License is valuable to me.

#4.. You and ONLY YOU make the decision ..like I said...if a Hospital is doing this crap then they can care not 1 thing for you or the Pts... Poor management pushing you to do unsafe things.

1. Always give report if you are told to leave your assignment, and document having done so. "Report given and patient care turned over to A. Nurse, RN."

2. Don't accept anyone else's patients via a mechanism of "I need to go transport, you're watching my patients." They can give you a reasonable run-down/report or find someone else. Also do not use (or let someone else sign you up via) the "watching" mechanism in the EHR (unless you have received report).

3. If someone says they are leaving and you are not able to properly watch or care for their patients, tell them that you cannot watch their patients and call the supervisor immediately and calmly state that your floor/unit will need help so that a nurse can leave to transport.

4. If you are told to leave and you feel it would compromise your patient care to do so or your coworker cannot reasonably watch your patients, do the same as #3.

[JKL33]

54 minutes ago, Howardhughes said:

#2/#3 Receiving Report and documenting will NOT NOT relive you of Legal Action if your Pts go bad AND you have not followed the chain of command ...Here is the Rub... the Hospital there is a Chain of Command. and written policies to support the chain..Follow it..ie.. Told Unit Charge...and House Supervisor... if they Both Demand you push meat without transferring Pts to another RN then YOU make the decision to do so...they are putting YOUR head in the noose because YOU took the assigned task. Unless you Pass off your Pts YOU are still responsible for them. I have been asked MANY TIMES at a Large Hospital in CLT NC to do things Unsafe... just say NO...or take the risks ...me like I said above ... my License is valuable to me. 

The whole gist of what I wrote was to not blindly go along to get along, and to ultimately not comply with what you believe is unsafe.

[Jedrnurse, BSN, RN]

"Management have decided to use nurses and techs as transporters. They said we are short staffed in ED ."

So what are they doing to fix the ED shortage...?

[luv2]

On 10/22/2019 at 2:33 PM, Mini2544 said:

That’s awful. I’m so sorry. My hospital has assistant managers from different floors doing this on occasion but never floor nurses. I would look for a new job ASAP!

Please look for another job.

[beekee]

Oh look! Our nurses can handle 12 patients for an hour, why do they have just 6 now? ?