Eating at the nurses' station

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Hey my fellow nurses,

I work in the ER and we very seldom get our "30 minute" lunch breaks. Well, one day, I was working day shift and around 2pm, no lunch break and I was starving!! I had a team of 4 patients and all the orders were done, I just had to chart....so I went to the back to get my lunch heated, brought it out, and ate it while I was charting in one of the back corners!! Does anybody else do this??

Brandie

I don't have a problem with people who can't occasionally take breaks, but I do have a problem with people who act like people who do take their breaks are doing something wrong. I also find it funny that people have the whole "screw JCAHO" attitude. I don't agree with all of their stupid little rules, but they do exist for a reason. Is our break room a disaster area? Yes. Is it cleaner than the station? Maybe not. But nobody leaves urine, stool, blood, or other miscellaneous specimens on the table in the break room.

Like someone else said, if you have to take a few minutes here and there throughout the day, do it. But you are entitled to a break. If your charge or manager can't help. call the house sup or administrator on call. If that doesn't work, go higher. Especially if you have the benefit of a union. It is illegal for your job to deny you a meal break. And it's not "imposing" on your coworkers to have them watch your pts. You'll watch theirs for them later. Just make sure you are as caught up as possible, make sure your group doesn't need anything, and go.

If you really truly can't step away, go ahead and eat wherever you have to - just wash your hands and be careful...don't mix up your apple juice with the cup of pee sitting on the counter! :omy: Also, stop spilling your drinks on my charts! I don't know if it's an official JCAHO rule, but I know that OSHA doesn't like it either.

And please don't act like nurses who take their breaks are doing something wrong. Skipping breaks doesn't make anyone supernurse. I see it as part of my job as charge to make sure that everyone gets a break. When I have to take pts and be in charge, I can't help as much, and I do understand that there are things you can't walk away from. But I stand by what I said earlier: missing a break should be an exception, not the rule.

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Specializes in Cardiac Telemetry, ED.
I'm really confused,I thought you had no time to go to the bathroom...well anyway this is what I gathered from your other posts...

It goes in cycles. Some shifts I have enough time to not only get all of my work done, but also to take my breaks and empty my bladder. However, there are plenty of shifts where I have time to do none of the above. What I will not do anymore is work straight through and not claim the overtime. If I am slammed and running for eight hours solid, I'm going to get paid for it.

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Specializes in CVICU.
Hey my fellow nurses,

I work in the ER and we very seldom get our "30 minute" lunch breaks. Well, one day, I was working day shift and around 2pm, no lunch break and I was starving!! I had a team of 4 patients and all the orders were done, I just had to chart....so I went to the back to get my lunch heated, brought it out, and ate it while I was charting in one of the back corners!! Does anybody else do this??

Brandie

I did this all the time when I worked in the ER. There isn't as much room at the cubbies next to the patient rooms in the ICU, or I'd probably do it more often there too!

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Specializes in CVICU.
I did this all the time when I worked in the ER. There isn't as much room at the cubbies next to the patient rooms in the ICU, or I'd probably do it more often there too!

Oh, and I forgot to tell you that we don't really have a "break" room in our ICU. It's quite ridiculous, really... our med room is the only place we can sit and eat.

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Specializes in Ortho, Case Management, blabla.

This thread is absolutely ridiculous. You all need to stop and take your breaks.

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Specializes in IMCU.

Hmmmm....

I was reading posts from another thread and I had a question for the nurses. Are you permitted to eat at the nurses station? I see this ALL the time at work. Pizzas lying around in the box, chips and salsa, home baked cookies on a plate, birthday cake etc.

At first it made me do a double take but now I just ignore it. I am just a nursing student working as a CNA and this is the only hospital work experience I have on a dept.

Is this really OK? I mean it does look dreadful but what about infection control?

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Specializes in Med/Surg.

IF we have food at the nurses' station, which isn't often, it's in the back charting room....so I don't feel infection control is an issue.

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Specializes in IMCU.

Nope this is food just sitting in full view of anyone walking past. Patients. visitors, other staff or whoever.

Wouldn't that be an infection control issue?

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Specializes in Critical Care, Capacity/Bed Management.

We normally try not to eat at the nurse's station but sometimes when you cant go to he back room for your break due to how busy we may be you have to eat at the nurse's station, we try to do this during "quiet time" where visitors are not allowed in the ICU

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Specializes in Med/Surg.
Nope this is food just sitting in full view of anyone walking past. Patients. visitors, other staff or whoever.

Wouldn't that be an infection control issue?

I am still not really sure how, I guess. As long as people are washing their hands before patient care, which they should be doing anyway?

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Well, JCAHO would not approve of it, but you will probably see food of some type at the nurses station at any hospital you work at.

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Specializes in IMCU.

Ooops I just found an almost identical thread so I asked for it to be merged.

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