I am new to nursing, it is my second career, so I am ancient. I don't even have 6 months into the field and I'm having trouble.
I work in hospice...when I started I raved how much I loved my job, since then, three wonderful nurses left the company. I am now the only LPN there. I work full time and that is even more rare for my area.
I went to one of the facilities this week to do my routine wound care. I also look in to check on the other patients. They are all dementia pt's qualified for hospice and for the most part pretty much stable.
the door to my wound care products was locked. So I started my rounds. I knocked on the door for one of our pt's. I cracked it and was waved to come in by the DON, a man was sitting in a chair next to the pt with his back to me. I looked at the pt, he was in distress, gasping for air. I looked to the DON who was kneeling at the foot of the bed doing nothing more and (donned in a serene - how wonderful the progression of death is.... smile on her sick face).
I immediately went into OMG, this pt is in crisis, not knowing who the man in the chair was, I bent to her and whispered, do you need me to do anything ? does the pt need continuous care ?. she replied she wasn't sure yet and then introduced me to the man, who was the pt son, I shook his hand and greeted him...... do you see what I did wrong here ????
then she said to the son, the pt needs to be turned, we are going to find the HHA. She ushered me out the door and blasted me for not announcing myself. I apologized and agreed it was wrong. I said I understand the facility policy and will not do it again. She did not stop there ( by the way, I'm old enough to be her mother ). She continued, and said, it is not about policy, it is about being human and you are not being human !!
I was shocked, hurt and tried to deflect the conversation. I already made my sincere apologies. Then she demanded me go back in the room to turn that pt, stating it is my job as a hospice nurse to do so. I am not stationed at this facility for the day, my company wants the nurses to do visits and move on to the next pt. So, the company has HHA's stationed at these facilities and this is part of their function. I told her I would find our HHA to help (feeling I should be out of her site and hair until she calms down). Well, this infuriated her even more, with more harsh words.
I called my case mgr, who was on her way to do her daily check on this pt. I called my DON to give her a heads up a complaint might come through. My DON was very understanding and told me not to cry, she understood.
Well, the next day, I am asked to repeat the episode, this time my DON was not so understanding. She said they must have taught you in school about entering a room. This was a one time episode and situational, I do announce myself, however, I was more concerned about the pt condition then an introduction when she knew me already.
Did this really need to go to a level of considering me not human ???
I feel it was a hostile attack, I feel if I went into that room to turn the pt, she would have blasted me for something else.
So...all of this has caused a big meeting, my DON and this facility DON and it is sometime today. It will not be in my favor because the facility brings our company business. I'd like to say, just find another hospice job, but they don't hire full time LPN's just perdiem continuous care in my area. I can't push a med cart, because ethically I feel it's dangerous when you can't pass all the meds on time and working in a dr office you get paid little money.
I worked 36 years for one company and now I can't even make it 6 months in nursing !!! honestly haven't been happy since the 3 nice nurses left
