Drinks in the nurses station...

[mcknis]

Hey all,

Are you allowed to keep drinkin your nurses station at work? If so, any mandates around it? I am pushing to be allowed to have drinks in the station and need some info on how to do so.

We have been told continuously by our NMs that JCAHO says no-no to this practice, but I have not been able to find any info regarding this at all. Closest place we can keep our drink is at the other end of the unit in a staff meeting room (about 200' from nurses station). If you can pass on a little bit more advice, please do so.

_________________________________________

Little background on why I am pushing for this...

The other day I assisted the security staff in restraining a combative pt. I felt fine running down to help and even during the whole situation, but I vagaled down after the incident was over. I went to the ER and to our Occ Health specialist, but of whom confirmed the I just vagaled down and had a near-syncopal episode. They mentioned the reason why i probably went down was because I needed to push more fluids and just did not have enough on board.

[dream'n, BSN, RN]

Yes Its our workplace

but yes we are very visible to every pt walking the halls

every family member

every visitor

every whoever else

Personally I would rather have a hydrated, fully functioning nurse caring for me or mine. I wouldn't give a hoot that she sips a water bottle when at the nursing station.

[wooh, BSN, RN]

Personally I would rather have a hydrated fully functioning nurse caring for me or mine. I wouldn't give a hoot that she sips a water bottle when at the nursing station.[/quote']

Totally agree.

What about consuming a beverage looks unprofessional? Are there no beverages in boardrooms and CEO/CFO offices across the world? I'd find more comfort in seeing a nurse drinking a beverage in the nurse station than see no nurses around because they're all hidden in the breakroom with their water bottles.

[Lisa CCU RN, RN]

What's unprofessional about drinking water? They do it in courtrooms, boardrooms, and even in the pulpit at church.

[chadash]

What's unprofessional about drinking water? They do it in courtrooms, boardrooms, and even in the pulpit at church.

Amen.

[XB9S, BSN, MSN, EdD, RN, APN]

Is the nurses station a clinical area? Pts aren't being treated in the station, so how does it become a clinical area? Just curious...

We asked the exact same thing as we are allowed to drink in the sisters office which is actually based just behind the nurses station. Apparently it's because you may be doing a clinical task and stop to take a phone call, therefore contaminate the phone so if the next person uses the phone and then picks up a water bottle / coffee cup they are contaminating themselves.

I know what I think about their rationale and IC has yet to provide the evidence to support thier rationale but as the boss I get my ass kicked it I don't comply so the nurses stored thier drinks in the office behind the nurses station instead

(shhh don't tell )

[XB9S, BSN, MSN, EdD, RN, APN]

I bet if we all wore one of these (after all, it's hands-free), pretty soon the nurses' desk would be declared a non-clinical area.

brilliant, I think I may just try that out, after all it is christmas :lol2:

[locolorenzo22, BSN, RN]

I personally don't see the problem if you leave it near where you are, and it's COVERED! If you know you're making rounds, sip on something between patients or when you're out of sight. Personally, if I'm drinking from a can, I'm taking the 10 mins to make sure I'm finished before I set it down....The other issue I have is that as a CNA on nights, I'm expected to do all those extra housekeeping duties that days doesn't have "time" for....well, if they picked up after themselves, the break room wouldn't look like a jungle with garbage....the last time they pulled that when I showed up, I left it exactly how I found it, cleaned up the trash we made on nights(even had our own garbage bag), and when I left I was asked, "Why does the break room look so bad?" (me: "Gosh, I dunno, that's the way I found it when I came in....maybe yall need to learn how to pick up your own trash? Least that's what my momma taught me...")

[JessicRN]

We used to drink out of covered glasses but the new admin says no. Their reason,"because we say so". We did strech it a bit and have a coffee thermos on the desk and the next day it was gone, permanently. The site director actually threw it out.

[Virgo_RN, BSN, RN]

We have a coffee maker at our main nurses station, and nurses, aides, and doctors frequently have beverages in the nurses station and the satellites. People even bring in treats to share and put them next to the coffee maker on a pretty regular basis.

[BBFRN, BSN, PhD]

I just spilled coffee all over my desk at home while reading this thread. :rotfl:

[namaste_71]

Yes Its our workplace

but yes we are very visible to every pt walking the halls

every family member

every visitor

every whoever else

As a patient or visitor to a hospital, I don't give a flip if I see a nurse drinking something at the nurses' station. I'm more concerned with clinically competent care and handwashing (or at least hand-gelling).

You guys run your butts off ... what's the harm if you're taking a swig of coffee, water, juice, etc. when you swing into the nurses' station? You can bet the folks up in administration are sipping on coffee in the office and boardroom.

[NJNursing, ASN, RN]

When I worked in Maternity (same hospital) we were not allowed to have drinks at the nurses station. Now that I'm elsewhere and we've got multiple nurses stations and much more room we're allowed to keep drinks here as long as they have lids on them and preferably in our own travel cups and not just plastic cups with those flimsy lids which can blow off if a cup tips over. And we have to keep it as far away from a computer and the edge of the desk as possible. I feel far less dehydrated and I have a 64 ounce water bottle with a closable lid on it. It reminds me to get my 8 8oz glasses of water in.