How Do You Manage To Clock Out On Time?

Nurses General Nursing

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I am having a heck of a time clocking out at 1930 hours when I'm suppose to be on my way home. :( Perhaps you all could share with me some time saving tips and things I can do to get out on time.

How does your shift usually go from start to finish so you end up getting lunch and clocking out on time when your shift is over?

Thanks for the time management tips nurses. :nurse:

Specializes in Telemetry, Case Management.

My day:

Get report.

Check labs. Most unholy values have been called to night shift by the lab, and calls made to md already.

Check Mars for who gets meds at 7, 8, & 9, usually everybody.

Fill out my personal cheat sheet. Has lines with boxes (homemade), with pt name, dx, diet, dr, rm #, telemetry, chart checks, I&O, meds, iv & ivf. with lists underneath for labs, dressing changes, procedures and accuchecks.

Go to each pt, do assessment, give meds. Repeat.

Sit down, chart assessment, ours is on computer only.

IF somebody calls, say I'm busy or take message or have the charge nurse take it. If a doc is right in the station wanting me I will say tell him to hold it a minute, I'll be right there, and come when I am finished with the pt. If they call out for pain meds, etc, tell them 10 min and I try to get there before that. Pts being d/c'd, I tell them half an hour to an hour, depending on what's going on and try to get there before hand, that way they think you're doing better than you said you would!!!

If you get that first six items done, you're good for the day.

It helps that I have transferred to a hospital that isn't so freaking customer oriented that it makes you want to shoot yourself!!! I don't know who came up with that crap, but they need to get over it. Customer satisfaction is one thing, but writing people up for not jumping to get grandma's visitors a coke when the grandma in the next room is having an MI seems a bit much, and yes I have seen it happen!!!!

Originally posted by SmilingBluEyes

DO I work off the clock???? Heck NOOOOO---no siree!!!!! If I have to be there, I am ON THE CLOCK and believe me, it's legit!!!

Same here.

Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

Thanks everyone for your responses. There's a lot of excellent advice here! I especially like Ken's solution to running low on items for the patients...........stock everything needed in each patient's room so it's there when it's needed. Thumbs up to this idea! :)

Also, the phones ringing to the nurses when the calls should be directed to the assistants for non-nursing matters each patient wants is a great idea.

I, too, prioritize each patient's need based on the urgency and emergency of the matter.

Be back tomorrow. Falling asleep now :zzzzzzzzzz

Time management.

As sjoe says--setting limits, enforcing those limits, "just say no" when work is clearly being shoved off on you.

Prioritizing--there are other shifts that come behind you, that is why they are there--you can't do it all. There will always be more to do than you can get done, so prioritize and do what you can in your allotted time, when time is up, pass on the baton to the next shift.

Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

Ainz...I agree wholeheartedly with the "pass on the baton" statement because "there are other shifts that come behind" us. Now, if the other two or three shifts would keep this truth in mind, a smoother transition between shifts could occur...at least from this standpoint anyway. :nurse:

Specializes in MS Home Health.

Dang are we supposed to get out on time LOLOL-shoot I missed the boat on that one......................

renerian

I found that a lot of my time was being eaten up during med pass, walking back and forth from the rooms down long hallways to the med cart. So I went out and bought some ziplock baggies and one of those plastic school boxes with the handles. I pull all the med sheets and put them in my binder that has a divider for each patient. Then I insert pills into baggies that I have threaded through a binder hole in each divided section. In the little plastic box, I put IVPBs, saline flushes, and plastic med cups. That way I can truck from room to room without having to walk all the way back to the nurse's station for things. Even though this helps tremendously, I still rarely get out on time due to this or that happening.

Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.
Originally posted by John Coxey

All:

- I am still in school - getting started actually.

- Question: If you clock out late - do you get paid for the "extra time" - or do you work "off the clock"?

- How does management view this? I would assume that if you are working over 40 hours a week - that this would be "overtime pay" and that management would be pushing you to get done on time.

- Any one care to comment?

Thanks,

John Coxey

We get paid for being there when we are late. For 12 hour people working three days this doesn't mean overtime. But for 40 hour workers it does. "Incidental overtime" apparently eats up a big part of management's precious budget and they don't like it. If we are chronically late getting out we are "counseled" to see if there is anything that can be done to help us out.

Management seems to be particularly harsh on travelers and contracts, even though they work 12 hours. But I think they get OT for anything over their contracted hours.

Specializes in Community Health Nurse.
Originally posted by Brita01

I found that a lot of my time was being eaten up during med pass, walking back and forth from the rooms down long hallways to the med cart. So I went out and bought some ziplock baggies and one of those plastic school boxes with the handles. I pull all the med sheets and put them in my binder that has a divider for each patient. Then I insert pills into baggies that I have threaded through a binder hole in each divided section. In the little plastic box, I put IVPBs, saline flushes, and plastic med cups. That way I can truck from room to room without having to walk all the way back to the nurse's station for things. Even though this helps tremendously, I still rarely get out on time due to this or that happening.

Good for you girlfriend! Great ideas you present here. I think it's great to bring all these ideas of "time management skills" together on a forum for nurses. We ALL could use the extra tips to get us through the long tedious shifts we work day after day.

I need a system such as you have established for yourself. I'm going to do some brainstorming, jot down my ideas, and implement them specific for my unit so I can test drive what I come up with, then get back to you all here. Wish me luck! :nurse:

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