short staffing rant

Cattitude · May 4, 2007

So I don't have the only supervisor that takes it easy on employees that come after me!

Hmmmm, I got thrown to the wolves. Now it seems that any nurse gets hand held and babied until they are practically spoon fed! HA! Did I get any of that? NO way. I drowned until I was so backed up with paperwork that they had no choice but to give me some help.

So, I feel your pain. It sucks. She needs to show her the darn OASIS already. The only way to learn it is to do it and get it over with..

steelmagnoliaRN · May 5, 2007

amen! I came in the office yesterday and saw the new nurse doing crossword puzzles at her desk while I had 3 charts with sticky notes stacked on mine along with 2 labs results that needed faxed, a discharge summary on a patient that was to be admitted first thing in the morning and 3 messages from patients that needed to be returned:angryfire . I have been working there for 2 years but I think it's time for a change. I was racking up overtime by 0900 this morning due to the massive amount of paperwork and patients! Thanks for letting me get all of that off my chest.

BNThere · May 5, 2007

...be assertive - tell 'em NO!! if you keep doing all that needs to be done, they'll never get the message. unless you're the supervisor, it's NOT YOUR PROBLEM!

DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN · May 6, 2007

I was racking up overtime by 0900 this morning due to the massive amount of paperwork and patients! Thanks for letting me get all of that off my chest.

I feel your pain but also count your blessings, we don't get paid for any office time, zip, nada, really suxs.:angryfire

I am now strictly PRN, no call. Woo Hoo!

steelmagnoliaRN · May 6, 2007

wow! At least we do get paid if we are at the office. I have gone to the supervisor and told her that there is no way that everthing can be done in eight hours and her reply was "well just do what you can and don't worry about the rest". Well that's fine and good until the administrator gets word that state is in town and we are expected to have everthing completed and filed in the chart. Paperwork is like laundry it piles up on a daily basis so if I just "don't worry about it" it won't be taken care of. We have only 1 LPN at our agency and she handles the PCA patients. The RNs are responsible to make all the SN visits as well as recerts, admits, D/C and post-hospitals and fill out all the paperwork that goes along with it. We have two QA nurses that review the charts for missed orders ect. but they are not responsible for making visits.The other nurses are up to their necks also and the supervisor is TOTALLY clueless. Our call rotation is my biggest complaint though. Is there any agencies out there that have their nurses on QOW call? Now granted, we do have 2 nurses on call at a time. One makes visits and the other takes the in coming calls but usually both of us make visits because there are so many and they are geographically spread out. It's just a mess!

caliotter3 · Sep 22, 2007

Mighty cheeky of the new nurse to sit doing crossword puzzles first thing in the morning at a new place of employment. I sure wouldn't try to pull that one. I can't really believe that she thought those charts with sticky notes were sitting on a desk for environmental enhancement purposes. If she had any initiative she would have been hounding everybody to be shown how to do things. It is impossible for her not to have been told by now that she is going to have something to do with the OASIS. Why isn't she showing any interest? She seems to be looking for an easy ride. Hope that you have managed to convey to her that there are other things that she could get paid for other than completing puzzles.