HAve you noticed an increase in your coworkers on facebook, or texting CONSTANTLY on their cell phones?
So much that when you have a pt. going bad, and in front of your coworkers ( who are on the computer, giggling and texting too) and you are asking the unit sec. to place orders for a STAT stuff while you are on the phone with the doctor....that these coworkers ignore you, only to ask you later " You had a pt going bad, why didn't you ask for help??" The same coworkers who have no obligation for teamwork, and are too busy to help you when they seem to have PLENTY of freetime to help out? What is the appropriate way to handle this? I have already mentioned several times that they are too loud at the nurses station, and suggested they are on facebook way too much. Now I am the bad guy because I reported above incident to my supervisor, and now one of the nurses is playing the "i'm-not-talking-to -you" game. I feel bad she got singled out, and yes it should have been handled better, but spending 4 hours a nite on facebook is ridiculous. And it sets an example for our new staff! Plus I am so embarrassed when pts family members come to the desk and my coworkers are watching you tube and laughing loudly. And my favorite, texting while in a pts. room. Sigh......
I worked near a guy who would bring in his music with speakers! I would turn it down, shuffle his music, and sometimes turn it off when he was gone. haa!!!! He was strange - how that was ever tolerated for as long as he was on his travel assignment, I don't know - but as long as he was next to me, I wasn't going to hear it - distracting me from hearing monitors/call lights, etc. What is WRONG with people??? Also, as a side note, why do some nurses come onto a shift and start shutting lights off??? It's not nighty night, people! Some of us need to see at work!!!!!
Well, actually it is nighty night time for the patients on night shift.
In the ICU all the big glass sliding doors with no light blocking curtains can really p i s s off a patient.
some nurses hide out in the supply closet to text haha... i've even seen potluck parties thrown in empty patient rooms, nurses napping in empty patient rooms, watching tv in empty rooms.
I use my iPod touch because I use the Nursing Central app from Unbound Medicine. It's the equivalent of lugging in so many reference books, and I would be screwed if I couldn't use it. I use it now as a student, and will continue to use it when I finally get my license.
If you see my iPhone out at work - I'm using MedCalc, or on Taber's, or ePocrates, or Davis', or looking up a lab value, or one of a thousand things I used to use my Palm tungsten for until it died and I discovered the iCrackpipe.
:lol2::lol2::lol2:
OMG OMG OMG - ROTFLMAO!!! The iCrackpipe!!! LOVE IT! It's so true!! I cannot remember my Life Before iPhone. In the Air Force you can get access to a bunch of amazing drug programs for FREE - so yes, there's an app for that.:yeah:
They'll be hard pressed to ban smartphones for RNs because so many docs use them now.
I think texting while in a patient's room or during rounds or whatever is clearly inappropriate but the check it at the door suggestion? No way. My sitters and my husband have always texted me with small, non-emergent questions so they don't need to call me at work. They know I will check my phone every so often and get back to them. It's an easy way to maintain contact with home without having to get personal phone calls at work. People just need to learn how to use it appropriately.
This is a problem where I work also. Not only with the younger nurses but some of the older nurses also. I have my phone in my locker at work, and use it on my bread or lunch (when able to take one). My family also know not to call me at work unless it is a dire emergency. I feel my patients need my time and attention and not taking a back seat to texting or talking on cell phones. Just my opinion
The text craze is out of control where I work. Like, last year it was the bring your own laptop or netbook craze and spend half the night online. There were nights where we couldn't check our work email, with the actual work stuff on it, because of people playing games and such on the work computers. Forget getting help, even if you asked for it. "Hi I have 3 patients sitting in poop, can anybody help?" Yeah right. That bunch didn't even look for a tech!
There was a big hooha about the laptops so people concentrated for a while on the work computers for the internet thing. Yippee. Then along came the smartphone craze and now people are doing almost everything they did on their laptops, only on a smaller machine, and still ignoring the patients. My shift starts with organizing the papers, sign all the papers, take vitals and hurry the heck up to get meds and put some folks to bed. Their shift starts with cleaning the desk, ordering dinner, eating dinner, play on the iphone... I'm too busy working to be able to figure out when the actual patient care is done for the rest of the patients. There are times when the nurse station is host to a concert when someone decides their music and the iphone speakers are appropriate for all of us. HELLO Y'ALL, NOT EVERYBODY LISTENS TO HIPHOP. I barely know what Beyonce looks like and I thought eminem was candy, come to find out it makes my blood pressure go up.
So. I have always been a big book person, I normally have a paperback in the bag wherever I am at and it's a downtime thing you can easily pick up and put right away again. My dilemma is this: I bought an e-reader. It makes sense to me, if I wasn't in the mood for what I was reading yesterday I can change to another book in two seconds. It's also got the pickup/put down fast quality that I like. BUT it's electronic and thus people want to nag me (oops sorry, talk to me) about what it is, ooh how does it work, etc. It's like I got an iphone type thing that's got the interest of the cool folks. Except, of course, that it's for reading and I can't effing read when people who already annoy the snot out of me, talk to me and get in my face while I'm reading.
My question is, have I crossed the line and put myself in the exact category of doing that which I despise? It's a book, just in different format, and it's not more engrossing, to me, than the paperback I had last week. It's not noisy, and is too large to carry in a pocket, and it won't text or play games (that I am aware of). I'm actually sort of hoping the kindle will not catch on in my current work environment.
Well, at the risk of routing myself out as an old foagie -- I will say -- that I feel the use of handhelds in society in general is out of control.
It seems every young person under the age of 30 just walks around w/ their heads down looking at these things. Every single one. Do any of them look UP anymore to observe the world they live in? I have to wonder -- the whole practice just seems totally self absorbed. Do they notice people around them? Do they notice anything anymore? The beauty of nature? The needs of others? What is going to happen to their eyesight I wonder??
I find it really odd. I love Facebook as much as anyone -- but honestly, why do people need to be in touch w/ friends and family every single freaking second of the day??
I worry that many of your young, and even older folks now just live in a cyber limbo world. Eventually, they will be unable to function without these things in their hands -- what does that bode for folks being able to be self sufficient in a crisis -- for survival skills? I'm just not sure. I find that it creates impatience -- they are literally like addicts when they have to be without them for any length of time.
I don't know what they policy is at our work. I think the relaxed them for the snowstorms and all of a sudden, everyone had them. I love it when I'm talking to someone and I think they're paying attention to me, yet they've got their handheld under the table and are looking at it while they're talking to me. ...
Again -- I just don't see why everyone has to be in touch ALL THE TIME. They would have never survived in my day when the best you had was a dime and a telephone booth!! LOL
After we got a new department manager, she had the entire internet blocked on our computers. The hospital had already blocked FB off the computers, & warned everybody to quit posting pictures, remarks, or whatever about the hospital on FB. Two longtime nurses did not abide by this, & were terminated. I hope this woke everybody up! I still have a proboem with ward/clerks, nurses, & anybody staying on their phones constantly with family, friends, & signficant others about personal problems, or whatever. I have had them be on their phones for 20 to 30 minutes, when they need to be doing other things. At the same time, if U said anything about this U could get an attitude that is hell to deal with! What can u say though, when Department Managers, DON, & physicians are on their phones, too. Is it a necessary evil???
And some of those "texters" would claim that even if they talk about their patients in their posts, they didn't mention their workplace. Really? What about the work info listed on their profile page? Lately, I came accross pictures of a nurse with several patients...I doubt that those patients knew that they would be facebooked!
Oh, man!! I can't believe people would even try something like that!! Our facility would not even let the door hit us on the way out! That's a big no no.
After we got a new department manager, she had the entire internet blocked on our computers. The hospital had already blocked FB off the computers, & warned everybody to quit posting pictures, remarks, or whatever about the hospital on FB. Two longtime nurses did not abide by this, & were terminated. I hope this woke everybody up! I still have a proboem with ward/clerks, nurses, & anybody staying on their phones constantly with family, friends, & significant others about personal problems, or whatever. I have had them be on their phones for 20 to 30 minutes, when they need to be doing other things. At the same time, if U said anything about this U could get an attitude that is hell to deal with! What can u say though, when Department Managers, DON, & physicians are on their phones, too. Is it a necessary evil???
Wow that is not even realistic to block the entire internet. Does that include PubMed and other related sites? Our hospital does a lot of cutting edge type stuff and its helpful to be able to get online and learn more about it. Also helpful in teaching a student or families. The MedLine website has great teaching material. I think blocking FB, YouTube, etc makes sense but the entire internet? Overkill.
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:lol2:
:yeah:
nancy324
19 Posts
Texting is a huge pet peeve on mine. We are there to care for our patients, not conduct a social life.