I am feeling overwhelmed!!

[SALLYSMG]

Hello,

Well, I have been having a difficult time with my job as a tele nurse, I have been a nurse for 7 months, and have not felt like not wanting to go to work until recently. I just need to vent, thank God for this place> The other night i got to my night shift and before i even had the time to clock in the ER is on the line to give me report on my new patient (happens all the time.) I also at the same time have four other patients that i havent even gotten report on. I tell them to call back later and that i need some time to get report on my current patients first. They say o.k., but the evening nurse picks up the phone and calls the ER and takes the report. Well by the time im in the middle of report, the patient is up and there is no bed in the room he is going into. I am by now getting very upset, since my resource nurse in in her report. The ER nurse is mad and says that he has to go, what should he do leave the patient in the hallway? Im like, wait we have to find a bed. I stop what i am doing to find a bed, and find the aide to take initial vitals, ect. Well I neglect my current patients to care for this new patient, and then once i get him settled in and give him any meds that he needs now, im told that my patient on 1a thats not on tele will have to be moved upstairs to a surgical floor, since we will need to take my patient female out of her private room and put her in the three bedroom, and have a room available for a male patient, (postcath). Moving at the same time is being done on the other side. Now I am down to 4 patients and guess what, i am getting a new admit from the er. Everyone else has five patients. Well by now i am just super stressed, my resource tries her best, but its still frustrating. In addition, i have to prep my female patient for her morning cardiac cath, and guess what i did, i shaved her and marked her pulses, wrapped the supplies that i used in a towel to discard, and i forget them in the room, for the morning nurse to find, with the shaver (with the pub hairs on them still) I felt so bad, i just went to the breakroom and cried, because i dont usually do things like this. I care about my patients so much, but sometimes feel like i am in a position that can possible make room for serious error. I feel so overwhelmed right now. My floor seems like this more and more, and i feel for the evening shift that had some 6 discharges and 10 admits. Do you have any suggestions? p.s. the other day my nurse manager, whom i never here from called me at home because she asked my if i left my patient on 2 liters of o2 when her sats were 95 RA, documented, i didnt but maybe someone else did. Plus this patient was suppose to get weighed (CHF pt) and that i did forget to designate to our nurse aid. My fault. I guess, what happened was that she was suppose to be discharged that morning but because of the 02 and weight she had to stay another day. Help me please, what should i do because i am seriously dreading going to work.

[pattymac]

1. Deep breath.

2. Second deep breath.

3. Smile

4. Know you are in a crowd of thousands with similar thoughts on any given day.

5. Be kind to yourself.

6. Pat yourself on the back for caring so much.

7. Call a friend

8. Get your mind and body ready BEFORE you get to work and always assume that each shift may start out the way this one did. Prepare yourself mentally for anything that might happen so you are ready to hit the floor running...then if it doesn't happen, you feel better!

9. It will get easier as time goes by....

10. Make a list of all the positive things you like about your job and being a nurse and post them on your mirror so you see them before each shift.

Take care of yourself....lots of us out here are behind you!