How do nurses work with headphones on?

[Googlenurse]

How is possible? I'm sure patients are getting ignored. At two different places I've worked, nurses, aides,  and respiratory therapists  had earpieces  in their ear or headphones on  and were talking on their cell phones while handing out medication. It was their own personal cells and they were having full fledged conversations. Others were listening to music( and I know because I could hear it) about three had no earpiece in but were playing the music loudly on their cellphones while walking down the hall and on duty. 
 

I know it isn't for emergencies either. I could understand if it was for that. I've witnessed a nurse who was on her cell talking the whole time during med pass. 

I want to go as far to say this is unprofessional. 

 

Is this normal where you guys work? 

[subee, MSN, CRNA]

JBMmom said:

If you're at work, being paid, then outside of the legally required breaks- you're not on your own time, or free to act as though you are at home. I understand the challenges of working night shift, I've been doing it for six years now. I don't micromanage, but when I'm in charge of the unit, I'm partially responsible for the appearance projected by the nurses and techs working on my shift. If people are sitting around on their phones, watching movies, etc- we have family members in and out of the unit, alert and oriented patients that can see staff members, coworkers from other departments we work with, and projecting an unprofessional attitude is not okay. 

There are MANY things that could, and should, be done if people are actively working on patient care. And it starts with developing a thorough understanding of the patients. Nurses should know the labs, the pending and completed tests, the course of treatment and plan of care. Things can get missed in the busier day shifts and so night nurses should be making a concerted effort to ensure that orders are all accurate, are there recommendations in consult notes that weren't carried out? When the provider arrives in the morning, those are issues that I as a nurse should be bringing forward to improve patient care.

Beyond that there are literally hundreds of things that could be done to improve the overall appearance and organization of any unit. Checking the lab vials to make sure they're not expired, organizing the cabinets in patient rooms or back closets, that are full of unnecessary or disorganized supplies. These are things that I spend many hours of my nights trying to get on top of. I have NEVER sat around and watched a movie, or talked on the phone, when there were things that could be done to improve direct or indirect patient care. Not micromanaging, doing the job I'm paid for. 

The last place I saw this happening, the hospital developed a no tolerance policy.  It only took one OR nurse to get fired to solve the problem.  Anyone who is watching movies at work can be considered to be stealing from the employer.  Geeze, I am so glad not to have to supervise morons anymore.

[JKL33]

JBMmom said:

If you're at work, being paid, then outside of the legally required breaks- you're not on your own time, or free to act as though you are at home. I understand the challenges of working night shift, I've been doing it for six years now. I don't micromanage, but when I'm in charge of the unit, I'm partially responsible for the appearance projected by the nurses and techs working on my shift. If people are sitting around on their phones, watching movies, etc- we have family members in and out of the unit, alert and oriented patients that can see staff members, coworkers from other departments we work with, and projecting an unprofessional attitude is not okay. 

There are MANY things that could, and should, be done if people are actively working on patient care. And it starts with developing a thorough understanding of the patients. Nurses should know the labs, the pending and completed tests, the course of treatment and plan of care. Things can get missed in the busier day shifts and so night nurses should be making a concerted effort to ensure that orders are all accurate, are there recommendations in consult notes that weren't carried out? When the provider arrives in the morning, those are issues that I as a nurse should be bringing forward to improve patient care.

Beyond that there are literally hundreds of things that could be done to improve the overall appearance and organization of any unit. Checking the lab vials to make sure they're not expired, organizing the cabinets in patient rooms or back closets, that are full of unnecessary or disorganized supplies. These are things that I spend many hours of my nights trying to get on top of. I have NEVER sat around and watched a movie, or talked on the phone, when there were things that could be done to improve direct or indirect patient care. Not micromanaging, doing the job I'm paid for. 

Agree with all of this. Another task I would do in days gone by when there used to be a little downtime is work on the never-ending educational compliance/competency things.

But I will say, I have seen some bias regarding the larger issue being discussed. I have seen (many times over the years) people making out shopping lists, writing holiday cards/addressing various invitations, planning parties, knitting, reading a book, lots of participation in racing to complete the crossword puzzle after the paper was delivered (copies made for everyone) and much more. But then that generation encountered the newer gen who would rather watch something on YT and it's like that is somehow heinous but none of the other stuff is. Pretty much all of it is inappropriate use of work time.

[CommunityRNBSN, BSN, RN]

We had some MAs doing it at my work, but administration shut it down quickly. It was during a time when we were doing endless, interminable Covid testing at an outdoor site that had been set up in our garage. It was miserable work and I felt badly for them; I'm sure they were listening to music to try to stay sane. 

[Googlenurse, ASN, BSN, RN]

That's why I opted not to supervise.

Coupled with being the only RN on the floor, and I know it will turn into "she thinks she knows everything because she is an RN" argument. 
Right now at the nurses station, I heard the Lpn's talking about how RN's and doctors don't know anything while I'm sitting here writing notes. Just counting down the days I start my new job in a month

[Delia37, MSN]

JBMmom said:

If you're at work, being paid, then outside of the legally required breaks- you're not on your own time, or free to act as though you are at home. I understand the challenges of working night shift, I've been doing it for six years now. I don't micromanage, but when I'm in charge of the unit, I'm partially responsible for the appearance projected by the nurses and techs working on my shift. If people are sitting around on their phones, watching movies, etc- we have family members in and out of the unit, alert and oriented patients that can see staff members, coworkers from other departments we work with, and projecting an unprofessional attitude is not okay. 

There are MANY things that could, and should, be done if people are actively working on patient care. And it starts with developing a thorough understanding of the patients. Nurses should know the labs, the pending and completed tests, the course of treatment and plan of care. Things can get missed in the busier day shifts and so night nurses should be making a concerted effort to ensure that orders are all accurate, are there recommendations in consult notes that weren't carried out? When the provider arrives in the morning, those are issues that I as a nurse should be bringing forward to improve patient care.

Beyond that there are literally hundreds of things that could be done to improve the overall appearance and organization of any unit. Checking the lab vials to make sure they're not expired, organizing the cabinets in patient rooms or back closets, that are full of unnecessary or disorganized supplies. These are things that I spend many hours of my nights trying to get on top of. I have NEVER sat around and watched a movie, or talked on the phone, when there were things that could be done to improve direct or indirect patient care. Not micromanaging, doing the job I'm paid for. 

...It kind of amazes me that this need to be explained to trained professionals. 

[JBMmom, MSN, NP]

JKL33 said:

But then that generation encountered the newer gen who would rather watch something on YT and it's like that is somehow heinous but none of the other stuff is. Pretty much all of it is inappropriate use of work time.

You make a good point, I have a colleague with 30+ years experience who was known for knitting, paying bills, making Sunday school copies, on nights while at the desk and that was always snickered about but not quite as vilified. I think the one difference, which also depends on the person, is the distraction level. People completing small tasks, which I admit I have also done on occasion, tend to stop immediately when something needs attention. But when people are watching a video or talking on the phone, sometimes they are not engaged in work at all or to a much lesser extent. But again, you're right, it is still work time regardless of the non-work activity involved.