JCAHO....They're Here...

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Jumping hoops, begging everyone to come early, managers looking like they have seen ghosts, the clinic hallway is so quiet that you can hear a pin drop. All of the doors are closed, employees arranging secret knocks, cell phones going off with warning calls of "They're turning the corner to your area..." housekeepers scaling the walls like Mission Impossible peeking before turning the corners (because if they see them, they go the OTHER way)...it is hilarious. Doctors peering from their doors and if they see the auditors, taking a looong time with patients just to avoid running into them. Like a college hazing. I don't want to speak to these folks either, but to be honest, I am glad they are here. It is like knowing that they may pull your tooth without anesthesia...just get the pain overwith. I have to start welcoming these people because their presence brings on the entertainment of a reality show nightmare:bugeyes:.

Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.
if you have the misfortune of running into them could you hand them my letter asking them when they will undertake the patient safety task of safe staffing? I still haven't received a response.

Only if you let me deliver it in a spit ball...:yeah:

They are not really interested in what we have to say. They have been reaking their havoc for the past two days. I suspect they'll arrive to my clinic tomorrow. RIght now, they have been skirting around us, trying not to be too predictable. I saw them in the clinic next to us, and then one floor above and below us, but have not graced themselves yet. I want to call pest control.:down:

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Only if you let me deliver it in a spit ball...:yeah:

They are not really interested in what we have to say. They have been reaking their havoc for the past two days. I suspect they'll arrive to my clinic tomorrow. RIght now, they have been skirting around us, trying not to be too predictable. I saw them in the clinic next to us, and then one floor above and below us, but have not graced themselves yet. I want to call pest control.:down:

Tell them to bring the big guns and all available exterminators.

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Specializes in Ortho, Neuro, Detox, Tele.

They keep saying they're coming any day in the next few weeks, cause they just had a conference call.....I can't wait to see the exciting changes that they implement for 1 week.....whee....they actually had the nerve to ask me to go around and "label" everyone's belongings....sure, I'm not doing anything important, like providing care.....I'll be happy to go label deodorants and mouthwashes, and toliet hats......geez.

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Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.

A post meeting was held on the findings for the past two days (and these folks are not even finished, yet). Right now, they are finding that the physicians are not doing the medication reconciliation, and even if it is done, the nurses are not able to find them on the computer. We can't create it ourselves. However, there is an area in the computer chart that lists all outpatient presciptions prescribed throughout the hospital. If they come bugging me, I can pull that up and review the medications that way, but it won't show consistency. A few environmental discrepencies were discovered, I heard. This has really been he!! week, and they have not arrived at my clinic, yet.

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This topic brings back so many fond memories....not.

I remember one year, while working in SNF. Not JC, just the lovely state inspection. I do not like to swear but..I think some of it is a crock. We failed, from what I heard on care plans. Triggered a full survey audit. There were many floors in the facility,so this is what I heard. Mind you the care plans- dust collectors were being done, the same way they guided the year before. It went to full audit. Two wonderful weeks of the state working with us.

I really did not care as I killed myself all year. 240 charts were tied up with them day after day for hours. As you know now it is just a witch hunt. Some of the teams were just really nice and some of them were just short of harassing.

I just kept working on as usual...bullwork.I had nothing to hide patient care wise and could really care about the dust collectors. For the amount of patients I had, with the amount of nurses aides, who broke their backs, God I thanked them everyday, to me they had some nerve, They saw day in and out, how we worked with the patients. They could not do it.I was so annoyed with some of the mindless things they would come up to me with in a chart and try to site it. I questioned their nursing skills. I was not backing down, with the effort and dedication I poured into those patients, along with my staff. We were like family...staff and patients on our unit.

I remember one who kept it up about one patient, post -op, whose chart and notes were the most detailed and complete. This patient had post-op problems but the doctor and surgeon asked me to try to manage her at our facility. Reason the care was better at our place. I worked at least two hours a day over everyday with this one case. She did fine. This one inspector was trying to say there was not enough documentation on this chart. This chart was like stack of bibles. Every issue addressed blah, blah, blah. Surgeon on unit, seeing this and said to the state..go away, we do not need you here. I wanted to kiss him. Oh boy this was not a good thing, he could care less. It went back and forth, till I blew. This inspector was on my phone at the desk making arrangements to go to the theater.That's when I lost it. I told her to come with me to go look at this patient. My ADN was flipping out. Not me, they called the head of the team up, who was lovely.

If I had to bust my tail 365 days of the year, no breaks, lunches, working over, there was no way in Heaven I was putting up with it. Well after my ADN nearly arrested, I spoke with the head of the team and point blank said, don't you see that we need help? If you are here to ensure the care these patients need, then why don't you mandate it? Response, we can only advise, administration.:uhoh3: On the other hand though they can mandate a crummy piece of paper. I won, they took this inspector off my unit. It was a witch hunt.

I have seen administrators wanting patients names marked on a toothbrush, with a drill was ones thought.

I got thrown out of the meeting from laughing so much. They slapped on extra staff, another joke during survey and the dopes didn't think that inspectors asked. I fell out when one aide said, oh I got pulled over this morning from across the street. They know and yet some of their guidelines must of been something someone woke up at 3A.M. with this idea.

I wish I could write a book one day...nobody would believe it.

So when JC or the State comes to terms with what they know is the real problem,,,well what do they want. They know about administration, cut backs etc. bit just keep piling on garbage they takes away from patient care.

After this one survey, out everyone came from exit interview, looking like they had just lost a loved one. This one inspector heard what I remarked and said ...oh dont worry, it is meant for them, not you. Meaning floor staff. I said to her, oh no, it is meant for us. It will fall right back on us, the floor staff, with even more to do. She just looked sad, she knew exactly what I was saying. Did staff increase that year. Oh no............

So PS I guess that is why you never got a response to your letter. Good luck to those going through survey now and in the future. You need it.

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They are not really interested in what we have to say.

I'd agree, but wouldn't it be fun to corner one of them and take them to task, like they do hospital staff, over truly adressing patient safety--just to watch them squirm like the worms they are?

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Specializes in Telemetry, Med-Surg, ED, Psych.

Survey time, The most transparent time you will ever see with administration. We recently passed out JCAHO survery (opps, I said JCAHO - I meant to say Joint Commission, We all need to be Politically Correct [sarcassm]), and I thank my higher powers it is over. Patient care now suffers cause of the endless amount of charting and documentation required with all the national patient safety goals.

Its interesting that JCAHO (Opps... I did it again Joint Commission, lol) seem to look the other way and fail to listen when it comes to proper safe staffing. Nevermind that you didn't have time to document patient response to Incentive Spirometer education - CAUSE WE ALL RUNNING to get basic patient care done.

JCAHO (who cares about the dumb proper names) needs to focus all of its NPSG propaganda into NATIONAL SAFE NURSE STAFFING - that will be the day.....

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Specializes in Mostly: Occup Health; ER; Informatics.

Another poster asked whether surveyors ever worked the bedside.

Here is an excerpt of the minimum qualifications:

"Qualifications for surveyors include: Five years of recent health care experience including three years of direct clinical experience in the appropriate health care setting and two years of senior management experience. ... Nurses must have graduated from an approved school of nursing and a Master's degree in an appropriate discipline. "

Want to get on the other end of the regulatory stick? See http://www.jointcommission.org/AboutUs/CareerOpportunities/surveyor_jobs.htm for details.

:)

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Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.
Another poster asked whether surveyors ever worked the bedside.

Here is an excerpt of the minimum qualifications:

"Qualifications for surveyors include: Five years of recent health care experience including three years of direct clinical experience in the appropriate health care setting and two years of senior management experience. ... Nurses must have graduated from an approved school of nursing and a Master's degree in an appropriate discipline. "

Want to get on the other end of the regulatory stick? See http://www.jointcommission.org/AboutUs/CareerOpportunities/surveyor_jobs.htm for details.

:)

Looks like I don't qualify...I am an LPN and I happen to care...two bombs already. Not enough education to join their stupid ranks...:no: no thanks...:lol2::lol2:

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