First day of Orientation?

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I know I have yet to start my orientation in the LTC, but I was curious about how it works out. Do you start passing meds on the first day itself or do you get to shadow an RN and see how the shift works? I mean LTC can be overwhelming with 30 pts and being a new grad, I am just a big mess right now; anticipating my nights shifts ahead. I have read nurses first day experiences but I have yet to experience one of my own. I wish I knew it all but life doesn't work out that way....you have to crawl and fall before you start to walk :(

I don't do good with these phases (being anxious kills me!) but I guess being hard on myself to learn and beat this phase works too.

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Specializes in LTC.

I am a LPN and I had my first day about two months ago.

My first night I shadowed a nurse, watched her do a med pass, got blood sugars, blood pressures or pulse needed for meds, basically learned how a shift flies.

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My first week I shadowed a CNA to get to know the patients. Then I shadowed a med pass for a few days. After than I started passing meds a few residents at a time working my way up to a full med pass. If you are going to be charge, after training on the med pass, you will start shadowing a RN. We also had one day with the unit secretary to see how to do all the paperwork. We had 16 weeks, so it was a good orientation.

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All I was told that the least they could give me was 3 day orientation, and its a night shift. I hope I am not the only RN and the charge, but they said that it would be heavy medpass, which probably means I'm not the charge.

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Wow..even our "seasoned" nurses get 10 weeks of orientation.

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is it a hospital, kcochrane? i know hospitals give a long orientation but ltc is a whole different story. plus, with the bad economy lately, all they can afford is 1 weeks worth of orientation at max.

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It was my old job at a LTC facility. The hospital is only giving me 10 weeks as a new RN.

I can understand the economy reason, but three days is pretty short. Anyways, good luck to you. It is great experience and I loved my residents. It was hard work, but worth it.

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Specializes in Subacute/Rehab, Surgical.

I was given a 10 day orientation at my LTC facility.

My first day I followed the nurse that I was with to get the feel of how the day would go. I didn't do the med pass that day but I did do assessments so I could learn how to do Medicare charting.

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Specializes in Professional Development Specialist.

I watched for a bit my first day, and then jumped right in and started passing meds. I knew I needed to get myself ready asap because if I wasted 1 of my 3 orientation days watching it wouldn't help me in the end. That day my preceptor went home at about 11am because she works the night shift and had to come back that night. I got 2 more days after that and have been on my own just over a week now. It's hard, morning meds take me about 4 hours to pass between tracking people down in therapy, at breakfast, running all over the facility. It isn't the job I imagined but I'm doing it. Good luck, mine is a horror story and not the norm. But so far it still isn't the worst job I've ever had.

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Thats great! I will be starting mine soon. And I thought 4 pts were overwhelming during my clinicals at the hospitals. I hope I survive! I loved the hospitals during my preceptorship but oh well, I cant be choosy when I have no experience under my belt at the moment. I am just glad someone gave me a chance...so new grads, don't lose hope!!

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Specializes in Geriatrics, Med- Surg.

I had 8 weeks of orientation and started doing the med pass on my during my 3rd week for 30 pts. I think what takes so long is learning all the paperwork in LTC. We are almost all paper charting so you are doing alot of repetition. I'm the charge nurse and med pass nurse on my floor and being 2nd shift I have to do my own treatments as well. Needless to say I'm never bored! It's good time management experience, I've been on my own for a month now and haven't had any major issues. Congratulations on the job, they are hard to come by!:yeah:

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If you are an RN and on nights I can guarantee that you are the supervisor.

Three days is not enough. I got more than that and I have LTC experience.

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