I can't stop crying... need encouragement...

Nurses General Nursing

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I work at a long term care facility on the 11-7 shift, and tonight's shift has been a nightmare. I am the only RN in the building with 156 residents and 5 LPNs. Any emergency or crisis is my responsibility, and tonight has been nothing but. I'm at work right now and I only have aminute but since I don't want to leave my office until I can stop crying, I wanted to go ahead and post (I also don't have a workign computer at home so please forgive if after 7am or 8am I don't respond again until Sunday night...

We have had SIX falls tonight. Count 'em, SIX! Including one where the poor man broke his hip. Another sweet LOL fell asleep on her bedside commode (she never called for assistance to get on it or we would have helped her on it and stayed in the room with her until she was finished) and pitched forward, striking her forehead on the floor and opening it up. The other four were minor, all cases where the resident did not call for assistance before getting up, and the alertmates went off when they fell. In addition to that, I went into one of my favorite little lady's room (she was recently put on Hospice care d/t failing health) and found her with a pool of blood next to her head where it was running out of her mouth, I called her hospice nurse and family and she doesn't look like she's going to make it through the shift... I am so overwhelmed right now and I can't let my staff see me crying, I have to keep it together somehow... the most falls I have ever had on my shift was two.

I don't know what to do... I feel so incredibly sad right now...:crying2:

Specializes in LTC, CPR instructor, First aid instructor..

Oh sweetie,:kiss

I'm sooo sorry. Sounds like Satan is working overtime against you. Here's a big shoulder to lean on, a bended ear for you to speak into, and a great big hug, hon. :icon_hug: Remember, we are a caring bunch. It's what we do. And if we don't care for and support one another, than nursing has gone down the tubes. You can PM me any time you'd like.

:kiss Fran:redpinkhe

All I can add is "BLESS YOUR HEART". I worked LTC for three months and the reason I quit was because of no help and admin not willing to get any. You said that you called your DON and asked for help, PUT IT IN WRITING!!!

If something goes wrong, it will be your work against hers and you will lose.

If that doesn't work, I agree with other posters, get another job. There are plenty out there.

"This too shall pass" I have no idea who said it but these words have gotten

through a lot.

Specializes in Utilization Management.

:icon_hug: :icon_hug: :icon_hug:

WAY too many patients, WAY too much responsibility for one person!

I don't understand how these facilities get away with it.

I hope the situation's better by now.

Thank you so much... I can't tell you how much better I feel. It's tough to be the supervisor and to still want to be told everything will be alright. The resident I referred to in my original post did pass away that morning shortly after I left. I had called in her family and they were by her side. This was a comfort to me simply because I thought maybe she knew her loved ones were there. Unfortunately, these were family members who have not been caring at all, would not let me send her to the hospital a month ago when this illness started (they said at first that she was faking it, then said the hospital would make them pay for a sitter so they wouldn't let me send her). After she passed, one of my CNAs expressed her condolences to the daughter who said "Well, at least she got it over with now so we won't have to deal with this closer to Christmas." :angryfire It's a darn good thing I wasn't here at that point. With the mood I was in, I woulda responded in a very unladylike manner!

"This too shall pass" I have no idea who said it but these words have gotten

through a lot.

"It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent him a sentence to be ever in view, and which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words: "And this, too, shall pass away." How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction! ~ Abraham Lincoln"

http://www.weeks-g.dircon.co.uk/quotes_t.htm

----

http://www.hillsboro.org/BBBtext/67/040967.pdf

"Well, at least she got it over with now so we won't have to deal with this closer to Christmas." :angryfire It's a darn good thing I wasn't here at that point. With the mood I was in, I woulda responded in a very unladylike manner!

Ugh. Some people are unbelieveable. That poor woman. :crying2:

I am so sorry to hear you had a rough night. You did the best you could and that is all that matters. Take care. A hug to you.

Dear Lori, sorry you had such a hard time. What I want to know is why it is all your responsibility for everything??? Don't you have five Lpns in the facility also? Were you in charge of your own floor or are you the acting supervisor. Seems that the other nurses should also be helping you out instead of having it all fall on you. Maybe you can mention your concerns to the administrators and see what they can do for you so that you can handle your job without feeling like you are going to burst into tears. Best wishes...............

:balloons:

Dear Lori, sorry you had such a hard time. What I want to know is why it is all your responsibility for everything??? Don't you have five Lpns in the facility also? Were you in charge of your own floor or are you the acting supervisor. Seems that the other nurses should also be helping you out instead of having it all fall on you. Maybe you can mention your concerns to the administrators and see what they can do for you so that you can handle your job without feeling like you are going to burst into tears. Best wishes...............

:balloons:

I want to thank everyone again for your support... yes, I do have the LPNs here. They each have a hall, and handle the meds, normal assessments, etc. If there is a fall or a worsening of condition, I am called to assess the situation and make the decisions based on what I find. Usually it is bearable, but with six falls that night PLUS my sweet lady hemorrhaging, I was so overwhelmed. I try to take things one moment at a time, but if twelve things are happening during that moment, it gets horrible. I also have my own "normal" duties, such as paperwork, RN assessments, incident folders, evaluations, matchbacks, call bell audits, med pass reviews, total care cards, turn schedule random checks, grand rounds, regular rounds, schedules, call-ins, finding people to cover the callins, preparing the shift report, admissions that aren't done during the day, following up on resident complaints, creating and giving inservices... I feel a lot like that guy on stage spinning plates on top of sticks and running from stick to stick to keep them from falling.:o

Lori

Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

I guess it's just the supervisor and manager in me, but did anyone else pick up on the fact that the OP mentioned that she was doing all this posting and lamenting about her job while she was on the job? What's with that? Not only that, but had also made a post a couple of hours earlier that same night--guess that was before all the falls occurred. When I'm at work, I work. I don't play around on the computer, particularly if it's the facility's computer. One press of a button and the boss can find out when you were on the Internet and where you surfed to. There is always something that can be done for a patient or to help out the nurses and nursing assistants. I'd love to know how the people the OP supervises would feel knowing she was in an office messing around on a computer. How busy could it have been if someone can see through their tears and sniffling well enough to type out a fairly long message on a computer? I've been a night supervisor in LTC and I'm not persuaded to provide encouragement where I don't think it's been earned. Sorry. Wonder what a boss would say to the request for help knowing that the person was finding time to go online for personal reasons? :nono: Go to an internet cafe or the library after getting off duty.

I can trump 5 patient falls in a night with 2 back to back code blues on a medical unit on the same night within minutes of each other sans hanging out on allnurses.com looking for sympathy.

Specializes in Utilization Management.
I guess it's just the supervisor and manager in me, but did anyone else pick up on the fact that the OP mentioned that she was doing all this posting and lamenting about her job while she was on the job? What's with that? Not only that, but had also made a post a couple of hours earlier that same night--guess that was before all the falls occurred. When I'm at work, I work. I don't play around on the computer, particularly if it's the facility's computer. One press of a button and the boss can find out when you were on the Internet and where you surfed to. There is always something that can be done for a patient or to help out the nurses and nursing assistants. I'd love to know how the people the OP supervises would feel knowing she was in an office messing around on a computer. How busy could it have been if someone can see through their tears and sniffling well enough to type out a fairly long message on a computer? I've been a night supervisor in LTC and I'm not persuaded to provide encouragement where I don't think it's been earned. Sorry. Wonder what a boss would say to the request for help knowing that the person was finding time to go online for personal reasons? :nono: Go to an internet cafe or the library after getting off duty.

I can trump 5 patient falls in a night with 2 back to back code blues on a medical unit on the same night within minutes of each other sans hanging out on allnurses.com looking for sympathy.

Yanno, Dayt, you might want to reconsider drinking that morning cup of coffee. It tends to make you a tad irritable.

;)

I agree. How can you have sooo much to do,but have time to be on the internet???? If you needed encouragment why didn't you call the DON? Did you ask the other nurses to assist you??? What about calling someone from AM shift in early??

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