Picking up my pace. Need advice

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Hello to All,

I am a first time poster. To briefly introduce myself, I am 45 yrs young, mom of 4, homemaker and homeschooler for 13 years and became a nurse 2.5 years ago after putting my career goals on hold for many years. I am proud of being an LPN. I worked hard for this and still do alot of research on my own about various topics about nursing and medicine. While I have a goal to receive a master's degree in nursing, I'm not rushing. So often I hear LPNs almost apologize for just being an LPN and quickly follow up with "but I hurrying up to become an RN". While I can spread my wings more by becoming an RN, for now I'm LPN and proud. Here's my dilemna: I'm very good at what I do, get many compliments, I'm very thorough, very detailed and work well with doctors. Problem is no matter how quickly I move, I always seem to be behind the 8 ball at the end of my shift. I find it embarassing and insulting to the next nurse coming on to leave her/him with work left over from my shift. I usually stay over to get caught up and still never get it all done. How can I do my job at a faster pace and not compromise quality. What organization secrets can any of you share with me to pick up the pace and finish it all before my shift ends. Some nurses are patient, some not so patient.

TIA,

AshestoBeauty

You "prefer to get my own supplies". They're not your supplies - they are the docs'. IMO it is not your responsibility to get them. If the procedure is delayed, it's their fault, not yours. Sorry, but I have enough to do in my 12 hour shift for my own job, let alone do the doc's, too.

We do have one doc who gets his own supplies. Also puts in foley caths when we are busy and actually prefers to do the male caths, using lidocaine, btw.

One surgeon drives me crazy - we have to go get his supplies and then he does his thing and leaves the whole mess for us to clean up.

The first doc is more popular . . . go figure. :chuckle

steph

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU, nutrition.
Many of you have talked about getting supplies together for docs, but why can't they get their own? They know where they are.

:rotfl:

You've got to be kidding, right?

Seriously, as someone who goes to different units and does procedures (placing small bowel feeding tubes at the bedside), I can't possibly know where everything is in every unit. The places I go to most, usually I can find what I'm looking for, but not always. It helps if the nurses or ancillary staff get me the supplies I need, since they know where things are.

Konni

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in rehab and LTC, some psych.

I feel like we're all in the same room having this thread-conversation. I appreciate the feedback. Learned alot. Looking at myself, I guess I am a bit of perfectionist. Nothing wrong with it but it needs to be kept in perspective. Also, the organizational skills I used being at home don't may not be as effective when it comes to nursing skills. So there's alot I need to rethink and I thank you all. I had to laugh about the look CNAs give. I could ditto that.

Ashes

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in TCU,ICU,OHRR,PACU,5Solid Organ Transplan.

Good luck

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Acute rehab/geriatrics/cardiac rehab.

Hi AshestoBeauty - Welcome to allnurses. I was a stay at home mom for 17 years and went back to school in my 40s (age 42) to become an RN and I am now in grad school. I've been a nurse also for 3 years in August. (I never homeschooled...just hungout with a lot of moms who homeschooled for play groups, etc.....with my 5 kids tagging along wherever I went......).

Re Organization skills. It will come with time. An idea I received from another nurse was to make a check list of all the documentation needed on the job (for example FC=Flow Ch=notes in Chart, CP= Care Plan, Assess = Assessments needed) and then placed these abbreviations at the bottom of my shift report notes under each pt's names. Then I check off what I have done. Kept me from having to go back and recheck to see if I'd done the Flow Chart, the Assessments, the Care Plan for each of my 7 or 8 patients). I don't know how many patients you have or if that would work with your place of work.....

Again Welcome

Hello to All,

I am a first time poster. To briefly introduce myself, I am 45 yrs young, mom of 4, homemaker and homeschooler for 13 years and became a nurse 2.5 years ago after putting my career goals on hold for many years. I am proud of being an LPN. I worked hard for this and still do alot of research on my own about various topics about nursing and medicine. While I have a goal to receive a master's degree in nursing, I'm not rushing. So often I hear LPNs almost apologize for just being an LPN and quickly follow up with "but I hurrying up to become an RN". While I can spread my wings more by becoming an RN, for now I'm LPN and proud. Here's my dilemna: I'm very good at what I do, get many compliments, I'm very thorough, very detailed and work well with doctors. Problem is no matter how quickly I move, I always seem to be behind the 8 ball at the end of my shift. I find it embarassing and insulting to the next nurse coming on to leave her/him with work left over from my shift. I usually stay over to get caught up and still never get it all done. How can I do my job at a faster pace and not compromise quality. What organization secrets can any of you share with me to pick up the pace and finish it all before my shift ends. Some nurses are patient, some not so patient.

TIA,

AshestoBeauty

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment