Turning your patients

[redwinggirlie]

As a nurse, do you make sure your patient is turned? Do you leave it for someone else? Do tell.

[Quickbeam, BSN, RN]

I never worked anywhere we had LPNs or aides so yes, I always turned my patients or made sure they were moving themselves. I worked pediatrics/nights most of my career.

At one hospital, we had open visiting, parents slept at the bedside and often in the bed with the child. Unfortunately that often meant people bringing very inappropriate things into the bed. When I'd turn kids I'd find packs of cigarettes and McDonald's bags under them from the parent's late night snack. It was important to make sure that Mom or Dad's movements at night hadn't pulled out the kid's IV or skin graft.

[Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN]

Always turned mine.

[MandyInMS]

We usually have 1 cna on our night shift and she's GREAT :)..25 pts..most of which are usually total care..we help each other..we HAVE to or the pts wouldn't get the care they need..if I'm busy with a bad pt she turns the ones she can herself and I help with the heavy/'hard' ones..and if she's busy I do the same...but ultimatly it's MY responsibility to make sure they are repositioned,ect...gotta have teamworkkkkk :)

[hollyster]

We only have RNs in the unit. It is our responsibility to turn them every two hours. If the pt is on a rotation/percussion bed we must still perform skin assessments(along with all systems assessment every two hours.)

[redwinggirlie]

Thanks all for responding. I'm in a position where I go to all the units on our hospital to perform my job. There I find people not being turned, in the same position for hours and no one seems to care ... for the most part that is. If I hear one more person say, Oh, I was just going in there to turn him/her, I'll scream! (I do wound/skin care). Thanks to all of you for being responsible and keeping your patients comfy.