I didn't finish med pass :(

[LittleCandles]

So, I have written and inquired before about first job advice. I was kind of desperate for a job and took a position at an agency. I am a new nurse with no experience outside clinical. Well, I had my first assignment yesterday for 3rd shift at a dementia unit. It went okay. Obviously no training, kind of thrown out there, only nurse on the floor with 60 patients and 3 CNA's. The CNA's were super helpful and everything. I had med pass at 6am. I started at 5am and didn't finish. The first shift nurses came at 630 and just offered to do the rest of them (I only had like 3-4 patients left to pass on and two blood sugars) but I was so upset. Ugh.. I think if I wasn't rushed out the door a half an hour before the end of my shift I would have gotten it done. However it is what it is. I think I have a plan for tonight to be a little more organized. Ughhh...

Could have been worse though I guess.

[wanderlustnurse88, RN]

I work a lot of night shifts and I try to prepare for the 0600 morning med passes which are for my facility are pain pills, changing fentanyl patches, nitro patches, puffers and blood sugars. I will try to have my cart organized before 0500 so that I'm ready to go. I pull the patches and puffers, as well as the blood glucose meters (each resident has their own). They are all labelled so I'm good to take the out of their drawers. Since I'm familiar with my residents, I organize my med pass so that I'm going down one hallway once. You will get quicker once you are familiar with the facility and residents and their meds.

[cowboy up]

You'll get the hang of it. Give it a week and you will have a pretty good grasp on your residents and you'll have your routine down. Those residents are lucky to have you. Keep your head up

[lifelearningrn, BSN, RN]

At the last facility I worked at, most nurses started the 0600 med pass at 0330, in order to finish by 6am. No, this isn't within the "1 hour before, 1 hour after" rule, but that's how it was. :/ Same goes for the 9am med pass, and the HS med pass.

I do want to add that part of the hall is scheduled an hour earlier than the other, so that some rooms were scheduled at 5am and others 6am, 8am/9am, 8pm/9pm so it wasn't too far off the "hour before" window.