DO NOT pass on the poop

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Hi gang! I've been an RN for almost 3 years now. My first two years was spent in a medical clinic and now a brand new ER nurse. My training has been going well and I've been confident with my progress in the ER until I made the huge mistake of leaving poop cleaning for the next nurse on shift. Call me an idiot but I had no idea that doing so was a NO, NO! I'm certain that it was the headline of the day. In the clinic, I was often delegated to deal with enemas and manual disimpactions so it didn't seem like a big deal to me to inform the next nurse 5 minutes before my shift was over that changing was needed. Following that incident, I was told that passing on the poop is not proper nursing etiquette. Call it a case of common sense not so common. I'm thoroughly embarressed and now that I think about it, I can understand that it was not cool for me to do that. I did speak with that nurse and apologized and cleared the air. But still...if I was delegated that task by a nurse whose 12 hour shift was just about over, I would gladly do so with no complaint. I would appreciate any thoughts anyone might have about this and any other common nursing etiquette no-no's that would help me survive my new position in the ER. Thanks in advance!

Wow, sounds like all of you are perfect nurses, have perfect shifts, perfect staffing, perfect policies on overtime...

Of course, it's not good nursing to leave someone lying in poop or to pass on a sh*tty job to oncoming staff, but everyone is railing on the OP like she's the most horrible nurse ever. Every place I've ever worked is usually short-staffed and everyone is crunched for time. My most recent hospital job had an incredibly strict overtime policy too and also forbidden to punch out and finish working. The last "shift change poop situation" I encountered was not even my patient. I was walking on the way to give report to oncoming staff and a pt's dtr came out to say her mom had to use the bathroom. Dtr was irate, call light had already been dinging for 10 minutes. CVA pt, 2 person transfer, aphasic, fully dressed in rehab setting. I couldn't find any help due to shift change, the dtr absolutely refused to wait for me to find help so she and I got her on the toilet. Totally unsafe... 15 minutes later I go out to give report and guess what? The oncoming nurse is mad at me because now she is getting report late and now her shift is starting out bad. And of course I had to stay even later and fill out paperwork stating why I was on overtime...

Bottom line is we have got to be forgiving to our coworkers! Most of us are working our orifices off and giving the best care we can. Stuff is always going to be left undone, it's just the nature of the beast. The job is hard enough without nurses turning on each other.

Amen!!!!

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Our manager is always on our cases about staying past our shifts, or "incidental OT." Other RNs always tell me they love to follow me because I leave a clean, appropriately medicated patient in an organized, adequately stocked bed/station. I am also always willing to stay a bit late if needed because of a patient situation such as this one because I CARE about my patients. However, this ethic isn't valued by our manager at all. She will always tell us that we have "24 hour nursing" and that I should have just left the patient in poop for the oncoming nurse to relieve me, or whatever. So lots of talk about good patient care and putting the patient first, but not in practice. No incentive for our fellow RNs to not "dump" on us like this so THEY don't get yelled at about incidental OT. Very frustrating and discouraging.

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Specializes in hospice.

My own experiences with management and what I read here make me wonder if these nurses have memory purges five minutes after they leave the floor. Do they really, truly, not remember at all what it's like?

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Specializes in NTICU.

Being an ER nurse and ICU nurse yes it is proper to keep your pt out of the poo. There has been many times that when I am giving out going report if the pt has had a BM I will ask the nurse to help me clean up the pt while I give report. There is also many times I have taken a pt upstairs and the pt has had a BM, and instead of dropping the pt and running I will stay and help clean up the pt. If the floor nurse doesn't want to help I will clean up the pt without saying a word (I am here for the pt and not the nurse and I already gave them report.).

If a floor nurse complains that the pt had a BM and they say, "let me guess it just happened on the way up in the elevator? (classic and let me guess I have never heard that before)" I like to say, "no, it happened while I was on hold waiting 15 minutes to give you report."

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Wow. Irregardless IS a word. I've goofed on that word for years. Turns out the goof is me. :laugh:

Don't be too hard on yourself!! For the most part you have actually been correct to goof on that word. If you actually read the whole dictionary post to the end it basically says that it is a word, but only in speech, and it is still not generally accepted. The final sentence in the Merriam-Webster online dictionary definition actually says, "Use regardless instead."

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"Irregardless" is not a word.

Yes, it most certainly is.

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Irregardless is a word.

A nonsensical, double negative of a word, but still a word.

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Specializes in LTC, CPR instructor, First aid instructor..

Several years ago, we had a nurses aide who left her resident dangling in a Hoyer lift because it was time for her to go home. An aide discovered the resident that way, and put her in bed. Needless to say, that incident got spread around the entire building super fast.

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Specializes in Going to Peds!.
Several years ago we had a nurses aide who left her resident dangling in a Hoyer lift because it was time for her to go home. An aide discovered the resident that way, and put her in bed. Needless to say, that incident got spread around the entire building super fast.[/quote']

Yeah. I hope the word got to the powers that be. Dangerous, unsafe, negligent & abusive are words that come to mind.

Sent from my HTC One X using allnurses.com

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