How many of your facilities do this?

boggle, ASN, RN · Aug 14, 2002

Gee huggietoes, that sounds like the same nursing model that my facility strives for. I am teamed with a patient care technician, but we both run our tails off!! The tech does most of the personal care. (Boy, I miss having the time to do that). Neither of us has time for many of those precious moments you have described. It's so sad.

Ours is a med-surg floor, and it's always busy. I could spend most of the day just passing meds, and giving prn meds!! Interactions are short, and I always know I need to be in two or three other places at the same time.

But on the bright side, most of the folks I work with have learned how to squeeze those great interactions and moments of support and humor, into our frequent short times with the patients......during assessments, dressing changes, walking folks to the bathroom, ...any time at all!

I work with a wonderful crew, from the unit managers to staff nurses, techs, housekeepers, unit clerks...

I guess we have bonded through adversity!!!:)

You sound like a real caring nurse. Hope you find a place to work that fits you better.

Furball · Aug 14, 2002

Originally posted by huggietoes
As much as I despise the facility that I am at now, I do respect the nursing model. One UAP assigned to an RN, the UAP doing fingersticks, vitals, I&O, basic personal care, etc. It really frees the RN up to be at the bedside more, I even had time to sit and share ice cream with a young woman dying of cancer, which is what I love to do, take time to spend with the patients. I was wondering how many of you have the same nursing model, or do you have to do all of your pts personal care as well as meds, paperwork, assessments, etc.?

Ever see the movie "Wit"? There is a scene of an RN sharing a popsicle with a dying cancer pt discussing DNR status. It's a great movie....highly reccomend it.

Repat · Aug 14, 2002

We use that model, and when it works it's wonderful. However, when 5 out of your 6 patients are total care, and 9 out of the UAP's 14 patients are total care, not many of those 'precious moments' have a chance of happening!

dawngloves, BSN, RN · Aug 14, 2002

That's how nursing should be! But there are not enough of UAPs, LPNs, RNs. *sigh*

P_RN, ADN, RN · Aug 14, 2002

How many patients are in each "pod, group, team" ?

We did 10 patient teams each one with RN/LPN/tech. It worked pretty good. On occasion that was increased to 15 which was AWFUL.

Momma_Penguin · Aug 14, 2002

You mean you have someone to help you with that stuff??? Get outta here!! :eek:

I wish we could use the some staff that had been trained to do those things. Nope I get to do it all....not that I mind but there are times when I have ti hurry through doing things because I did take time to sit or just listen to one of our residents vent or just be there for them and I get frustrated b/c sometimes that is more important than paperwork and things. And sometimes that is the hardest thing to teach a new nurse, it's not always meds or tx.... it's the time you give them ( or can't )

Laura LPN

Trauma Columnist · Aug 14, 2002

I'm an ER nurse. I do everything for pt - respiratory treatments, IVs, O2, monitoring, charting, etc.. The only thing tech does is EKGs.

tiger · Aug 14, 2002

if we have a cna it is one for the whole floor and you get to have more pts to accomodate her in the staffing numbers. i work in rehab. it is off site from the hospital so we have no support services. the only cna hired on day shift now works 3 days a week and the other 4 we have no cna. we have a charge and unit secretary to call the docs and take off orders. anything other than that we do. rns and lpns do all pt care, svns, ekgs, meds, iv starts, all dressing changes,make beds, pass water, try and get your meds and supplies you need from the main hospital, etc. we have to have all the pts up and dressed, push them to dining room(sometimes with o2 or iv in tow.) bowel and bladder training(no bed pans or foleys on rehab ya know). it is physically hard work. can't ell you how many transfers i have to do in a day. and alot are max assist. you are lucky to find someone not busy to help you transfer someone. many times by the time you find someone the pt. has already soiled themselves. that is sad. recently they changed the "rules" and the lpns cannot do any assessments. so now the rn gets less pts. than the lpn cause they are stuck with all the paperwork. in the midst of all this the families have questions and you are supposed to teach them things. ya right!

monkijr · Aug 14, 2002

What does UAP stand for. not familiar.

tiger · Aug 14, 2002

i think it is unliscenced assistive personel

midwestRN · Aug 14, 2002

We have ICU "pods", that is scheduled for 3 RN and 1 UAP. That works well. But these days, if someone take a vacation or calls in sick, we do not get replacement help. The pods have 8 rooms. I was wondering what the staffing ratios laws in Calif. are. I have never heard specific numbers. Did it go into law or are they still working on it?