Emptying linen and garbage bags. ..part of a Nurses jobs description?

[Giveheart]

So I think most nurses do help cleaning staff by emptying linen and garbage bags if they are full. Especially on the night shift where there is less cleaning staff. Some even dispose of them down a chute. But what if you injure yourself while lifting these?...are you covered? Are you concerned about your own safety and refuse to do it?

[Kooky Korky, BSN, RN]

We dont wear backbelts at my job, only the cna does, but this one man in cancer had morophine drip for under the tounge, and my co worker went to help him transport to bed, after he got the morophine drip... while they were walking he fell and she tried to not catch him but just stepped in to so he could catch his balance, well my cowoker ended up falling with this man who was 200 lb. ontop of her and really hurt her back, workers comp denied her for 1) not wearing a back belt and 2) trying to catch someone...

freaking rediculous, because backbelts dont stop your back from getting hurt, they just remind you to lift properly...which in this case she wasnt lifting!

and also, if a pt was falling i know were not suppose to catch them, but REALLY?! i think anyones instinct would kick in if they saw someone falling, I wouldnt just let them fall over

Was the coworker a CNA? If so, and if she was not following policy, WC and the employer and their lawyers will definitely give her a hard time. tell her to get a lawyer herself and fight them to the death. Not literally, just give them a run for their precious $$$.

[purse]

nope we are pcas... never given back belts, or told we needed them!

[tewdles, RN]

As an RN I have (over the years) been responsible for trash, laundry, cleaning tubs, and stocking cupboards (not inclusive). None of the tasks required a nursing education and certainly not a BS degree. Many shifts I was able to accomplish these things without much difficulty. On those shifts where completion of the tasks was not possible, I utilized my nursing education and delegated those tasks to others.

When working a particular weekend that was crazy busy and I had dirty tubs for our OB patients, I notified the house supervisor that I needed someone to either care for my high risk patient or to clean the tubs and empty the trash...she was more than happy to provide a staff person to take care of the housekeeping duties.

[Katie5]

if being injured by emptying a linen bag is a major concern, i think it would be good to consider a less physically demanding job. if you can't lift a linen bag safely how can you lift patients? scary.

Wicked:D

[Katie5]

while they were walking he fell and she tried to not catch him but just stepped in to so he could catch his balance, well my cowoker ended up falling with this man who was 200 lb. ontop of her and really hurt her back, and also, if a pt was falling i know were not suppose to catch them, but REALLY?! i think anyones instinct would kick in if they saw someone falling, I wouldnt just let them fall over

1. While walking to bed? Patient's on morphine drip, and he's walking. What was the distance from chair/stretcher to bed for a TRANSFER?

2. If you weigh less that the person who's falling, please don't attempt to catch them,break the fall if you can, otherwise pls step back while removing object from their path of fall.

3. Not everyone,some people's instincts say, safety first.

[DeeAngel]

injure yourself? really? maybe it's just me, but i have bigger things to worry about than getting hurt dumping a linen bag.

Have you lifted any linen bags lately, do you have any idea how heavy they can get?

[Katie5]

Have you lifted any linen bags lately, do you have any idea how heavy they can get?

I won't argue this point with you- it's true,but you can always get back up, or at worse scenario set it neatly in laundry, out of the way.

[belgarion]

At our facility, housekeeping won't clean up bodily floods. I find it really annoying. At burger king, if there is vomit on the table or poo in the toilet or pee on the floor, housekeepers clean it up. So I think it's silly that housekeeping won't go near bodily fluids. If they worked ANYWHERE else, they'd have to have contact with bodily fluids.

For the rate that I make, verse what a housekeeper makes, it doesn't make any financial sense to have nurses do this.

Exactly how many workers have you seen at a Burger King or Mcdonalds whose job title is "housekeeper" or "janitor" or "sanitation tech", etc. Having a daughter who paid her way through five years of college working at McDonalds I can tell you that the person who was cleaning the restroom when you went in is possibly the same person who puts your burger together a few minutes later (think about that your next trip). Even the managers and supervisors have to mop and clean. It all depends on the time of day and who is free when the mess is found.

We don't have housekeepers at night. I empty trash in rooms and hoist linen bags every night I am at work. For some reason or another I never wondered if it was part of my scope of practice. I'm in a patient's room, the waste basket needs emptying, I empty it, put in a fresh bag, toss the full one in the big can in the dirty linen closet, and go on. Takes a total of about a minute. Same with a linen bag. If I fill it, I change it out. Why let it pile up?

[purse]

1. While walking to bed? Patient's on morphine drip, and he's walking. What was the distance from chair/stretcher to bed for a TRANSFER?

2. If you weigh less that the person who's falling, please don't attempt to catch them,break the fall if you can, otherwise pls step back while removing object from their path of fall.

3. Not everyone,some people's instincts say, safety first.

Yes OUR NURSE said it was ok to sit him in his chair while he had his hospital bed put in..and she was transferring him into his new bed

[purse]

And also, while someone is falling within that 3 or 4 seconds it takes for them to hit the ground i will just jump in front of them to move the huge dresser their about to hit.

[BluegrassRN]

And also, while someone is falling within that 3 or 4 seconds it takes for them to hit the ground i will just jump in front of them to move the huge dresser their about to hit.

You're such an amateur. In those three to four seconds, I run to the gym next door, grab a trampoline, saw the legs off about 8 inches from the ground, and place it in the path of the falling patient. They just bounce right back up, no harm done.

[Katie5]

Yes OUR NURSE said it was ok to sit him in his chair while he had his hospital bed put in..and she was transferring him into his new bed

Okay, calm down, I don't want to start anything here. If OUR NURSE says so, then it's okay:clown: