hospital policy on Facebook, cellphones= suspension

SmilingBluEyes · Aug 11, 2009

Put the cellphone down and get to work. It's 12 lousy hours; you can live without Facebook and Twitter for those hours. Really.

Indy, LPN, LVN · Aug 11, 2009

At my facility the policy is to fire the person who's on facebook, or who brings their own laptop to fiddle with it at work, or who is texting at work. They have actually fired one person for doing this. People have quit bringing their own computer to play with, that's progress. Cellphone and textmessaging does continue. I make sure people know the thing in my pocket is a PDA and NOT a phone, and it's my drug book, calculator thing so that I don't get any flack. As for the downtime thing, there aren't many nights with downtime but I pack a paperback in my bag. Can't go wrong with just a book.

diane227, LPN, RN · Aug 11, 2009

At our hospital you cannot use your cellphone except during your break time. In addition, you can use the computers out in the work areas for work related issues only: to look up reference materials, drugs reference, etc. You cannot play on these computers. We have one in the employee lounge that you can use during your break. Things like facebook are blocked so you can't get access to them from the hospital computers.

If you get caught doing this stuff out in the work area, you will be disciplined and this includes suspension. It is a work rule and the hospital has the right to make this rule. So if you can't do the time, don't do the crime.

Scrubby · Aug 12, 2009

Another RN friend posted some of her 3 AM ICU toga party pictures a few months ago. While I got a kick out of them knowing that some things never change (I always had fun working nights there), I would be concerned if I was a patient or family member and saw pictures of the nurses at work goofing off. I mean, you can't deny it if there's a picture!
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I seriously think you need to lighten up on this one and stop being so judgemental. So a few nurses have a life and like to have fun and party. Who cares? I have facebook pictures of me wearing a naughty nurses uniform with my similarly dressed fellow nurses out on the town. If a patient saw it and somehow managed to recognise me well I couldn't care less because it was outside work hours, not on work premises therefore not my workplaces business, nor was it a criminal offence. I wanted to be a nurse, not a saint.

As for mobile phones and taking pictures at work, I agree that it should be restricted but that should also apply to doctors as well. Every photo I have of me working has been taken by surgeons.

I carry my mobile with me at all times but it is on silence and when I have a spare minute I check on it. I have a seriously ill sister with cancer undergoing chemo and it's important for me to be contacted if something goes wrong. I see no problem with anyone carrying phones as long as they are set on silent and checking the phones does not interfere with their tasks.

DLS_PMHNP, MSN, RN, NP · Aug 12, 2009

The biggest problem? Know how patients think that all that time we spend charting is just us "wasting time on the computer" instead of catering to their every need? This kind of unprofessional stuff adds fuel to that fire, because now they see nurses doing JUST THAT. Patients don't want to see us get a lunch break, they sure don't want to see that nurses have time to blow up gloves.

So very true....

shiccy · Aug 12, 2009

My guess is that it is not so much a HIPPA thing as it is a not stealing from your employer thing. As in- being on your cell, FB, and the internet during your work time is stealing time from your employer because that is time you should be productive. As charge nurse I can't tell you how many times I have to go and tell the staff to put their phones away and quit texting!!! C'mon people! Seriously?

Our floor just went to a "no text messaging / cell use at work" rule, and when it came out I was like, "THIS IS STUPID - WE DON'T TEXT *THAT* MUCH!" ....... then I started looking around. It's amazing what can happen and you don't think anything of it. Being a person that checked txts but didn't really respond to them, I was offended, but after seeing how many txts/etc are being sent by others, I can completely understand this position now.

Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP · Aug 12, 2009

I seriously think you need to lighten up on this one and stop being so judgemental. So a few nurses have a life and like to have fun and party. Who cares?

Methinks the pics were taken at work, in which case it is indeed a problem. If not, you're right - no issue there.

Scrubby · Aug 13, 2009

Methinks the pics were taken at work, in which case it is indeed a problem. If not, you're right - no issue there.

If they were taken at work then yes it is a cause for concern (your being paid to work not have a toga party).

transkat · Sep 24, 2009

I work as a staff nurse (36 regular hours) on a med/surg unit and volunteer to pick-up prn 12h shifts from time to time. Yesterday when I picked up my assignment sheet for a prn shift I noticed that I was given the extra admission and one of the larger teams of patients. I didn't think twice about it at the time. I like to stay busy and didn't complain.

My first admit was at 7:30 and my second at 9:30. One of the four other patients needed 2u PRBC to be transfused, 2 IV antibiotics to hang, tube feeds started and dressing changes. (All orders were written on the previous shift. There were no supplies or pumps in the room.)

I worked as fast and efficiently as I could. When I would pass the nurses station I noticed no less than 3 people at a time (a mix of RNs and CNAs) using the computers for FB and other non-work related sites. I did "interrupt" my assistant several times for patient assistance.

By around 2:30 I was caught up on passing meds. and treatments and began to chart. A liver patient started with bleeding problems. I placed a call to the doc and received several stat orders that would require much of my time to carry out. I talked to the charge nurse (also a FB user) and asked if anyone was available to pick-up a device that was needed from another unit. She got up and walked away from the area and said I could send one of the CNAs. I "interrupted" an RN's facebook time to ask for assistance. She said one of her patient's was receiving blood and declined to help. I then asked the RN beside her (also on FB) and she agreed to help. All orders were carried out by 6:30 and all patients were in good condition. I sat down to gather my thoughts to give report and realized I was exhausted. (I made the mistake of slipping off my shoes and my feet were so sore and swollen I could barely get them back on.)

By 7:30 I was the only one still on the floor from my shift. It would take me an additional 1.5h to complete charting and paper work after report. I received a call the next day from my manager asking if I would pick up another shift. I declined.

Patient care is jeopardized when the staff chooses to use computers for personal business. My concern is that even new graduates (May '09) feel a sense of entitlement to computer play time at work.

My thought . . . if an employee logs into FB or uploads to FB from their cell while on the clock . . . it should be viewed as their resignation. Harsh? I don't think so. Nursing is serious business where people are entrusting their lives to us. I wouldn't want to tell a family member that I'm sorry their loved one passed while I was updating my status in FB.

wooh, BSN, RN · Sep 24, 2009

Sorry about your crappy shift transkat. Thing is, it's not facebook that's the problem, it's that the people you were working with were too lazy to help. If they weren't on facebook or somewhere else on the internet, they wouldn't have magically started working, they'd have been reading a magazine or sitting around talking.

BabyLady, BSN, RN · Sep 24, 2009

and uploading pictures from your phone to facebook while at work? I ask this because my best friend just got suspended for three days for uploading a pict of two of her other co-workers blowing up glove balloons while at work. There was NO pt, pt names or other HIPPA violating info. I saw the pict myself. She was not on FB itself she did a mobile upload. She was told it was because she did it at work. PERIOD. There is a cell phone policy about limited use in pt care areas. She said she expected a written warning, even probation, but not suspension. She said they are very lax on cell phone usage because everyone even the administration uses them constantly. I think this is WAY overkill. I told her to spend her 3 days off investigating the policies and disciplinary actions to see what the norm is for this offense. If she cannot find anything outlining this behavior can she dispute her punishment? What are her options?
Thank You!!

The reason why, is the hospital cannot pick and police which pictures are in violation and which ones are not.

They shouldn't have to...their job is to protect the privacy of the patients.

The easiest way to do this is to ban all of it.

I 100% agree with the policy. There is NEVER a need to have a cell phone by your side 24/7...children or not. That is why the hopsital has phones and a receptionist to deliver messages.

RNKPCE · Sep 24, 2009

I am all for no texting, cell phone use or internet while on duty, however you should be able to do all of those on your breaks. Meal breaks are off the clock and you should be able to text all you want.

We have one person who is always texting or on the internet. I gave her an admission and of course she complained and I called her on it. You weren't too busy to be on the internet buying airline tickets. Then I finally got the guts to tell her that she has a reputation for being the worse on our shift for texting, internet . The next time I worked with her she didn't know what to do with herself during her "down" time.