Duties not related to nursing.

[deespoohbear]

I work for a small hospital in Indiana. Besides our regular nursing duties of caring for our patients we have "extra" stuff we are suppose to do. Such as check the extra oxygen tanks to be sure they are full (daily), check the crash cart for outdates (monthly), clean the med room fridge (monthly) and so on and so on. Also, on admission if anyone shows S/S of infection we are suppose to fill out a paper for the IC nurse. We are a med/surg floor and almost all of our medical patients will show signs of infection. (DUH!!). We also have a fall risk paper we are suppose to fill out on each person who is admitted. Some of the questions on there are about gait and changes in gait that are more geared for a PT person to determine than a nurse. Oh yeah, our department is responsible for shredding our own paper (the confidential stuff with patients names and etc). I keep telling the DON and my patient care manager that if I didn't have all these other non-nursing duties maybe I could actually do some bedside nursing. What a novel idea! Of course most of these duties are ignored when the census and/or acuity is high. My patients come first. I think the only "cleaning" duties we should have should be keeping our report room fridge clean and tidying up our break room. Heck, I am no Martha Stewart at home much less at work.

Thanks for letting me vent.

[thisnurse]

WHAT KIND OF NIT WIT WOULD MAKE AN ADMISSION FORM ONE PAGE????

GEEZ WE NEED ALL THAT INFO ....EVERYONE LOOKS AT ALL THAT INFO....

LOL

[night owl]

We used to clean the refrigerator on midnights until we complained enough that no one wanted to hear us anymore and now the kitchen people have to do it. Thank you very much! I'm lucky to find the time to clean my own never mind the one at work...Pa-leeeeeze!

[scrappy]

Yup, all that plus empty the trash:cool:

[mattsmom81]

The paperwork grows weekly doesn't it? Complain and you just get handed another form to fill out...

My biggest complaints about our nursing paperwork is that:

1) administration has changed to new forms before we are proficient on the old ones

2) so much of the paperwork we 'must do' is for other departments' uses, and

3) they have no clue how time consuming it is assembling, stamping, holecutting and keeping track of 18 or so seperate pages of admission and daily papers is...can't they streamline it a LITTLE for us??? A consistent secretary would help too...I get tired of running out of forms and having to chase down originals to copy...every shift.

I do try hard to squeeze a little patient care in between all my 'other' duties...but it's tough some days. :)

[JillR]

I work ER, and I do believe that it is my resposibility to check the crash cart daily. The meds are checked by pharmacy for outdates. We also check the accu check machine daily. I also make sure that the ER is adequately stocked when I come in. There is nothing worse than not having something on hand when needed, expecially in the ER.

I have a belief that I am not housekeeping and I will clean only if needed, or I am bored. I am usually to busy to worry about doing everyone elses job for them. I wonder if teachers are expected to clean the classrooms? The expectation that nurses do the cleaning is outdated and unreasonable. It again comes down to the fact that I may be able to do their job, but they can't do mine.

The paperwork comes with the territory, and no I do not shred papers.

I am expected to do the ordering for the ER on sunday nights, and I would rather do it than have a tech do it, because I have found that many times the techs don't really know what to order and how much. If I don't have time then the day shift will have to do it, but I usually find the time to do it.

When it comes down to it, all else will wait untill patient care is done.

[KlareRN]

Gone are the good old days when the nursing department had to do all the ancillary stuff and other depts focused on limited assignments. Slowly things are changing...s-l-o-w-l-y!

With the nursing shortages and staffing issues; how much sense does it make for nurses/cnas to clean out refrigerators, clean wheelchairs, sanitize showers,etc. These are not nursing responsibilities any more than it is the housekeepers duty to check the crash cart!!! Finally facilities are coming around. It will just take time...

[boobaby42]

Pulling teeth, drawing blood, lab work, emptying trash cans, vaccuming, mopping, cleaning the toilet where some messy ass pee peed on the seat, unstopping the comode after a parent waits to do the morning business at the office, make deposits, deliver the mail, file, medical transcription, and take on the additional chore of Lab manager to keep my tight butt millionaire boss from hiring a lab tech.