Charge Nurse

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Specializes in Acute Care.

Did any of you get trained to be a charge nurse or were you just thrown to the dogs like I hear many other nurses were ?

Also, on night shifts (med surg) does your charge nurse have a full group of pts?

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Specializes in Med/Surg.
Did any of you get trained to be a charge nurse or were you just thrown to the dogs like I hear many other nurses were ?

Also, on night shifts (med surg) does your charge nurse have a full group of pts?

None of the charge nurses take patients whether it be days or nights. They don't have the time. I don't see how any charge nurse could unless things are set up differently than where I work. The charge must be at the desk at all times.

I have done charge several times and haven't been oriented to charge yet. One night the charge had a family emergency and I basically said "go, I'll take care of things". I called the super, we divided up my patients among the other nurses and there I was with no clue! But I made it. They put me in charge a few more times and now say they want to orient me to charge. I don't know yet if I like it or not :nurse:

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Yes, I was thrown to the dogs, never, ever received training. I think its called baptism by fire!

Night charge has full pt. load.

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Specializes in medical.

I, too, was thrown one night into being in charge, because I have been on my unit over a year now and most of the seasoned nurses left unit. And of course you, too, have patients. Charge nurse on day shift never has patients, but on night shift we are always short, so charge nurse usually either has full load or less patients which I find unfair. You kind of learn from other nurses what to do as charge nurse. I recently attended charge nurse seminar for 1 day in my hospital. I hate being in charge, but I have no choice when there is nobody else on the unit capable of doing it. And you only get paid a whooping 1- 2 $ more for it!

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Specializes in Neuro ICU and Med Surg.
Yes, I was thrown to the dogs, never, ever received training. I think its called baptism by fire!

Night charge has full pt. load.

Same for me too. I was thrown into charge because I was the only one who could feasibly do it. I had previous experience with being charge but not in the ICU. Everywhere I have been thrown to the wolves when in charge. Funny thing they were going to train me soon for charge but I had to step up and never got formal training.

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Specializes in Med/Surge, Psych, LTC, Home Health.

On my floor, for the most part, the charge nurses for the shift are THE charge nurses; the ones who were trained for the job.

However, for a while recently on day shift, the day shift staff RN's were having to take turns being charge nurse, with no real training behind them, because there was only one charge nurse; the other one had quit and there had not yet been another one hired and trained. They didn't make any brand spanking new nurses do charge though; only ones who had been around at LEAST a few months.

On night shift, every once in a great while, other nurses are asked to fill in as charge if the charge nurse that would normally be working is on vacation or something.

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Our Charge Nurse has it easy. Every unit has a charge nurse assigned. Yes the chg nurse takes an assignment. Same amt as the other nurses. But the chg nurse does not do anything aside from assign beds when the manager is not working or off the unit. All our managers work 8 hr. shifts after they are gone the chg. nurse gets paid a dollar more an hour. The chg nurse only makes out assignments when the manager is not working.

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Specializes in Ortho, Case Management, blabla.
Did any of you get trained to be a charge nurse or were you just thrown to the dogs like I hear many other nurses were ?

Also, on night shifts (med surg) does your charge nurse have a full group of pts?

I got thrown into it. I watched the other charge nurses do it a lot though. I'm a good monkey.

Yes, I/we have a full group of patients (although we have 1 or 2 less when possible).

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Specializes in Cardiac.

I got one shift's training, and I always take a full assignment. Also have to respond to all codes in the house, and emergencies on the floor. And we have staffing meetings. And about a zillion phone calls. And angry people....

Did I mention I have a full load? Yep. Full load.

I work Days.

ETA: Oh, and did I mention that we don't get paid for it? No charge differential...

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Specializes in everywhere.

I was a transition grad from LVN to RN, just graduated, not taken NCLEX yet, and was thrown into charge on day shift. Never oriented to charge, didn't have a clue, was the only one on the floor that day that wasn't a LVN, terrified.... I made the house supervisor come to the floor and do most of her stuff from my floor. I told her that with me not being a RN yet, there were legal liabilities and I wasn't about to lose my license that I didn't have yet. Between the two of us, and yes, I had patients as well, not a full load, but still had patients, we made it.

Took NCLEX about two weeks later, and guess what? The day after my license appearing on BON, my nurse manager made me start charging! I fought it and fought it. I finally left the hospital because of it. Well, that and other issues that weren't being resolved. To me, charging in NOT worth the measly $2/hr difference. I much prefer what I'm doing now, working in CVOR. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise.

Some of the other nurses I have talked to about charging from that hospital stated that they had also been thrown into charging without any training.

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I can only speak of one ward at my hospital. I know that the transplant/short term stay ward the normal ratio is 2:1 well the charge does a 1:1 ratio (that night I was that 1). I have no clue about training, but Ido not feel she should have taken a patient, she did not have time to take care of me. I saw her once. My pulse ox moniter electrode thing was not working anymore so she got a new one, put it down said she would be right back that she needed to take a call, that was fine with me, expected her back with in the hour, never saw her again. She was my evening nurse, when the night nurse came on I had her reattach me to the moniter. It was not a big deal for me, I did not really need anything, and there were no meds to be delivered during that shift, but it was concering to only see your nurse once (especially when they say they will be right back but never return)

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Specializes in Cardiac Telemetry/PCU, SNF.

I was a lucky one and actually did get oriented to the job. When I started being charge, we were a large 46 bed unit, just too much to do as charge without taking patients. We recently split and have 2 charge nurses (half of the unit is on a different floor). Depending on the census and staffing, the charge takes patients.

The last night I worked, we were understaffed and having a nutty night so in addition to the 2 I started with, I picked up an admit. It was a little difficult, but not terribly so. And making assignments is the easiest part of the night...as charge we become a de facto resource nurse, not to mention assigning nurses and beds for admits. I have to say though, I like the different challenge it presents.

Tom

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