Getting everyone else to sign their books

[MrsStraty]

how the heck do you do it? As you know I am on day 5 of my new job as a new unit manager at a LTC facility/Sub Acute Rehab and the biggest issue I see are the gaps. How do you get the nurses who give meds and do treatments and the CNA's to make sure the accountability sheets are signed? This is very frustrating. Of course this is a new month and I am sure that the nurse manager who was there before me did not do EVERYTHING because she couldn't of. How do you not get behind in ALL of the rudundant paper work? How do you deal with CNA attitudes? :uhoh21: I have tons of questions but this is all I feel like typing now. LOL:nurse:

MrsStraty

[marjoriemac, LPN]

Remind everyone the documents are legal and could be the difference between keeping their job in any complaints against the facility. I also gave all my c/a's a pen once as they kept telling me charts were not filled in as they didn't have a pen on them. I tried leaving pens in the rooms where charts needed filled in but the kept getting pinched!

[caliotter3]

kellsc

You were probably watched because the individual was going to do this function and the manager picked you because you are new. I wouldn't take it personally unless your med adm practices have been discussed before. Were you given a critique? You can expect an individual assessment or a general session where all the nurses will be warned about the proper ways to do things.

At facilities where I worked, there was a nurse who was assigned the med pass on purpose because she always was able to impress the surveyors. As a matter of fact, the surveyors knew her by name. It was kind of a standing joke that when the med pass was going to be checked during a survey, this nurse was scheduled to work.

In another situation however, a newly hired RN was set up to be watched for the med pass when the scheduled nurse called in sick. Her colleagues were laughing about how they deliberately set this nurse up. Unfortunately the nurse was fired. The persons bragging about it acted like they were quite proud of themselves. As I was relatively new, I learned to be wary.

Our supervisors on night shift checked our paperwork and lists would be made for people to go back and fix things. Then the lists would be given to the DON. Nobody liked to be reminded that they had left holes and a lot of people would fill in holes and sign for their friends. I never agreed with falsifying signatures or initials.

[stamper52]

Huge problem in most facilities. I think just knowing that someone is counting the missed initials has helped in ours. Then you have a goal to have fewer missed next time. When we first started counting we really discovered a lot of med errors. Nurses "thought" they were just forgeting the initials but often were forgetting the med as well.

[dizzejan]

at our facility we pass meds and treatments on the computer .we have to scan a barcode for every med we pass and for every treatment we do.everything is electronically signed.no paper mars or tars.