ED night staffing

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Specializes in ER.

I work at a critical access hospital. We average about 15-25 patients a day some clinic type and some critical. We currently staff 1 RN and 1 LVN at night and have a tech off and on. Admin wants a 10% cut accross the board of all departments. There is talk of cutting the LVN to a 11am to 11pm shift. Our Docs work 24hr shifts and are sometimes hard to find at night, we do not have a RT department, some nights I am the only RN in the building, EMS has been encouraged to bring all pts to our facility no matter the accuity by our Cath lab director (Cath lab is scheduled diagnostic only, non-emergent). we have no security or even locking doors.

I am seriously considering looking for a new job. Am I over reacting?

Thanks Traci

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.

Nope, you're not overreacting.

Make your concerns known - plainly paint the picture of the presentation of an emergent patient at night with just you - an absent doc and no RT. Use the phrases that get attention - emergent ... delay of care ... etc.

Good luck to you.

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Specializes in ER.

Thank you Altra, I wrote a letter to the DON Wednesday and have not heard a thing. I just need a little feed back from other ED nurses. I keep hearing "we use to have one nurse back in the day" from other hospital employees. I am not comfortable with the proposed staffing change.

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Specializes in ER/ float.

This sounds all too familiar, I also worked in a small ER where I was the only RN on duty, and one LPN and a tech. The tech would make ambulace runs and be gone for hours on end. the LPN was transferred from med surge and did not want to get her hands into anything for fear of screwing up. The physicians were temp docs and good luck finding them as they covered med surge also or slept on the other end of the building.:uhoh3: Then management decided they would eliminate the unit clerk and have the Nurses learn the admitting process also. Can you imagine having to learn all the insurance and billing information and coding and admitting patients, then taking them back and treating them, then try to find a doc? I feel for you and my advice :twocents: would be also to run while you can. be sure to give plenty of notice and do not burn a bridge like I did and you will be fine. I would have sworn in reading your post we worked at the same hospital. tim

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Specializes in ED, Med-Surg, Psych, Oncology, Hospice.

Are you dedicated to the ED only? We are a small rural hospital and we are responsible for the ED and the floor patients. If inpatient census allows we have 3 nurses for the entire hospital. Possibly one RN and two LPNs. If census is low we have 2 nurses for the floor and ED. Can be chaotic to say the least!

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Specializes in ER.

Update just heard from the ER director. We will keep 2 nurses at night, days will have 1 nurse and 1 tech at least for now.

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Specializes in ER.

15-25 patients a day and a cath lab?? Can we say overkill?

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Specializes in ER.
15-25 patients a day and a cath lab?? Can we say overkill?

Yes, thats what I thought too. It opened in March of 09. Diagnostic only, they see about 10 cases a week.

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