Being a Charge Nurse

[Chipola]

Hi to all,

I would like to know how many charge nurses out there have to work a station. The company that I work for states that no charge nurse should be assigned a station. A station at my clininc includes four patients 1st shift, four patients 2nd shift, and three patients 3rd shift. I have to take a station because we don't have enough staff (what a big surprise). However, I am still expected to do all my charge nurse duties. I have been told we are fully staffed, and I am the only RN, except my FA who also is not supposed to be on the floor. We have 40 patients and work 16 hour days. Is this common practice in dialysis units.

THANKS

[kdhnursern]

Charge Nurse?? We're not allowed to call ourselves Charge Nurse. We are "team leaders" who can "make suggestions". We have PCTs working under our license, but we have no authority over them. I call myself a "suggestion nurse". And when it comes to dividing up the work, in our clinic of 8 stations, two shifts, and 6 days per week, we take our share. Plus we do all our "nurse duties" in our "spare time" while we're on the floor keeping up with updating and helping fill acid jugs, wash bicarb jugs, make bicarb, restock for next shift,....etc. One PCT who orders our supplies leaves the floor to count supplies almost DAILY and then sits across the hall on the computer, sipping coffee, listening to the radio, and doing whatever it is she does almost DAILY about supplies. The person who used to do that job took about 20 minutes about twice monthly. But she didn't sip on coffee and listen to the radio. She was also the other nurse and had her "nurse duties" to attend to. My extra duty is vaccinations and monthly education which I can get done in my "spare time" while working the floor. The other nurse keeps up on labs in her "spare time". All three RNs also work on going over labs and Epo/Iron changes after labs are done..it's whoever is working that day. The other PCT who works with us is actually a good worker who does her extra duty of water cultures in her "spare time" while keeping up with the floor. She also has never had any problem with "charge nurses"... just the one PCT who used to be an LPN but no longer has her license. (???)

We are one facility manager (who also works the floor as needed), two RNs, and 2 PCTs. The other RN and the ex-LPN PCT are 30hrs/wk and the other PCT and I are 40hrs/wk.

So, in response to your post, welcome to Dialysis Nursing!!:balloons:

[GeauxNursing]

A charge nurse having a station? No way! Our nurses are busy enough without having to take patients. We only have 2 nurses, one of which is our Administrator. She is on the floor working all day MWF, until she can find another nurse. Our other nurse, the Charge, works practically every day. Luckily, she gets some days off when we "borrow" a nurse from another clinic. Our nurses are always busy keeping up with patient appointments, drawing up and administering meds, putting on/taking off all the catheters, doing the weekly station assignments, assessing everyone, etc. They would never be expected to take a full station. The only exception is if we are really full for a shift then they will most likely take one or 2 catheter patients as their own, but that is rare. Sticking patients, monitoring vitals, printing out and making up labs, drawing cultures, water checks, mixing bicarb-all this is done by us, the techs, as I think it should be. You nurses have enough to worry about without all the busy work. I am more than happy to do all these things as it makes life easier for everyone, esp. my boss and the charge nurse, (who really is IN CHARGE! she rocks!)

I love my nurses.

[stellsbells]

The unit I work on has 26 beds/chairs. As charge, my responsibility is #1 - overseeing all patient care, as it is my license on the line. In my unit there is at least one other RN working - maybe giving meds, maybe taking patients (3 is the max for anyone, nurse or tech). This is great because I always have a second RN opinion. Never, is the charge nurse assigned to patients, unless there is an extreme situation which fortunately does not happen often. Besides that, I must implement all standing orders, take all doctor's orders and transcribe them, run the code if it happens, deal with countless transportation issues, and then deal with all the other BS that happens in between. As a charge nurse, you know what I mean. :)

It is very hectic I would worry about my license if I had to take patients and be responsible for every other patient and staff member.

[DeLana_RN, BSN, RN]

All I can say, hats off to those of you who have to do charge (or RN) duties in addition to taking patients... been there, done that, and it's not pretty. No wonder many outpatient units cannot keep RNs!

DeLana (now in inpatient/acutes, and loving it)

P.S. In the clinic where I used to work, RNs/team leaders (which included the "official" charge nurse) had to take a 2-station team in addition to their other duties; the other team members (LPN & PCT or 2 PCTs) had 4 stations each, but the RN also had to do the PCT's assessments and give all meds, including heparin. "Spare time" duties included monthly med checks and progress notes for up to 15 patients. And then they added mandatory acute call at a hospital! (And then they lost most of their RNs... will they ever learn?! )