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is it just me?

Mar 16, 200818 yr

Hi all. I am so confused right now. I'm a new RN that graduated in May took boards, passed them, worked at large hospital for 4 months, went through pure hell in a toxic environment and am currently working in LTC. sigh....I hate my job in LTC. I don't feel like a "real nurse", just a pill pusher. I have 20 residents and 2 med passes per shift. I'm to have my med pass done in 1 1/2 hrs. I'm getting there.........this is my second week on the floor and only my 3rd day on the cart myself...still orienting but theyre giving me as much responsibility as I want but there's always my preceptor if I need.........I do treatments after med passses..........anyway...I seem to be struggling with how laid back LTC is......Last eve I was passing meds and a resident dropped her pill cup and they spilled onto the floor. I picked them up, took them out to the cart and went to throw them in the sharps. My preceptor asked what i was doing. I told her they were on the floor and I was disposing of them and would pull new ones. She grabbed them and said no, they're fine. I said they were on the floor. she said theyll be fine. I refused to give them so she did! I think that is terribly wrong! Do you knmow how dirty the floors are???????? She also told me things here are different than in the hospital...... Then...she decided to double team so we could get done sooner and go over other stuff. So...she does a few med passes to help. an hour later, its now like 6 pm the family of a resident came running down to nurses station and said her mother was unresponsive. I ran down to dining area and assessed her. She was sleeping! I did a full set of vitals including a CBS. all were WNL. I looked at the MAR to see if she was on anything new. Turns out, the preceptor who helped get done quicker, gave her her ativan 0.5 and seroquel at 5 PM but they were schedule for 9pm. I asked her why and she said she goes to be right after dinner anyway!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The poor resident was completely snowed! Is it just me or is this common practice to give all meds in one pass. I can understand if the only meds at 9pm were like senna or prilosec or something....but seroquel????? wrong wrong wrong in my eyes! I think I am a hospital nurse!!!!!!!!! Before this, I got a call from local hospital Ive been trying to get in. I have an interview this tues! I'm so excited and pray i get it. i may stay on casual where i am if I get the hospital job. so what do ya all think????????

Mar 16, 200818 yr

I just ran from a job myself. Sounds like you need to decide how much you want your license. I only did 9 shifts, in my case, the documentation was staring me in the face. I'll risk any potential problems down the road for not working out my two week notice (the HR director said no problems) but I have learned the hard way that I can trust no one with my license but me.

I recommend that you consult a trusted mentor, perhaps a former instructor for an opinion / reality check.

Mar 16, 200818 yr

Experts

If you have a chance to get on at a regular hospital and feel you would be happier there, than by all means go for it and stay on at the LTC facility as a fill-in. Otherwise you will get stuck in the LTC "mold" and it will be 12 years later and you'll just be like everyone else. As far as the practices that you see that are not kosher, if I were you, I would just do it the way you know it should be done and try to say as little as possible to the others so as not to cause animosity. I always did things the way I was taught in school and developed a reputation for "doing things the right way". Believe me, it was not a compliment the way my co-workers said it. It is better to do things the right way and be able to sleep at night than to take shortcuts that could be dangerous and then have to explain your actions during an investigation. Good luck to you. Hope you get the position at the hospital.

Mar 16, 200818 yr

Sounds like the job you have right now is also not a good fit for you--plus it's unsafe and endangering the residents AND your license. I would advise you to keep looking!

Dont give up!

Mar 17, 200818 yr

I would question first whether this is the unit that I would want to be working on - your preceptor is making decisions that are affecting her license - not yours (and not to mention affecting her patients)

At the end of the day, it's important that you're working on a unit that you feel both capable to take care of your patients and part of a team.

Our jobs are too demanding and long to be unhappy, :uhoh3:

Hope your interview goes well:yeah:

Mar 17, 200818 yr

Author

Thanks guys. I am praying I get the hospital job. I believe at this point that the hospital is where my heart is. The first hospital I worked at was not a good fit. My old unit I hear is pure hell. I was the 6th RN to leave in 2 months and 2 more have quit since! the problem is management...hope admin sees that finally! I really miss the hospital environment. If I get the hospital job it will be like going home...i did all my clinicals there so i know the facility, unit, charting, and type of patients on that unit! Another grad from my clinical group is also interviewing same day for same floor. hoping they have more than 1 position open!!!!!! thanks for the good wishes! Ill let ya know how it goes. hope i hear soon!

Mar 17, 200818 yr

Experts

Thanks guys. I am praying I get the hospital job. I believe at this point that the hospital is where my heart is. The first hospital I worked at was not a good fit. My old unit I hear is pure hell. I was the 6th RN to leave in 2 months and 2 more have quit since! the problem is management...hope admin sees that finally!

It's good that you've made a plan and set it in motion. I hope you are successful at getting in to the hospital again. As for your comment about "administration getting it" I wouldn't be holding my breath. Our unit has been bleeding nurses to just about any other department for at least three years, and the trickle has grown to a hemorrhage now. Some nurses have insisted on exit interviews and laid it all out on the line... and NOTHING changed. One of my best friends has been gone nearly two years, now holding a management position in our hospital; she was one who was interviewed and she was very blunt about her reasons for leaving. Since taking the management position she's been talking informally with the administration types she works with now and when they ask why she left our unit, she tells them the truth. They say they "had no idea" there were so many deep-seated problems in the unit. To top it all off, the health region gave the person most responsible for the woes in our unit a regional leadership award! How's that for a slap in the face!

I really miss the hospital environment. If I get the hospital job it will be like going home...i did all my clinicals there so i know the facility, unit, charting, and type of patients on that unit! Another grad from my clinical group is also interviewing same day for same floor. hoping they have more than 1 position open!!!!!! thanks for the good wishes! Ill let ya know how it goes. hope i hear soon!

Please do tell us how you make out and whether you're reconnected with your classmate. That would be a great place for you to start out, with a built-in support system! Good luck.

Mar 17, 200818 yr

goodluck! i am in a similar boat. i left a unit that was a tough situation; i really likedthe people i worked with and i know that is very important but so is finding the right fit. what kind of unit will you be interviewing for? glad to see you had the courage to leave a bad fit and now are moving forward. this gives me hope! soundsl ike things are looking up please keep us posted!!

Mar 19, 200818 yr

Lorabel i remember your earlier posts where you were having trouble previously. It's sad to hear that your not happy in your new place. I would never give a patient pills that dropped on the floor either, and agree completely with your refusal to do so. It can be really heartbreaking working in aged care, some of the things that happen to these poor elderly patients is disgusting.

I wish you all the best for your interview and hope this place will be better!

Mar 19, 200818 yr

Author

Well.....The interview went well at the hospital. The problem now is that I was told that student nurses at the community college where I went are considered employees of the hospital and they get the job offers first. there are 3 positions open...2 approved and one more pending.......I was told there are 8 students interested. I was told, however, that alot of times the students change their minds or stay there to learn and then move on and not to give up if the students take the openings...not in those exact words. when asked why I left the other hospital job I told them I wanted something closer to home and i rook the job because this hospital wasnt hiring at the time i graduated. Said they heard that from others as well and that hiring or openings goes in spurts. Also told them I learned alot...which i did. the toughest question was how do I feel about leaving those jobs after a short time. told them I have learned from each job and that sometimes you find what you want by learning what you DONT want..and LTC is not for me. I did my clinicals at this hospital and know the charting system, the type of patients, etc. That would be a bonus for them I think. I didnt tell them that! I'm not feeling very optomistic. Its a bad time for me trying to get in there with the new grads coming. I have some pull there but if policy is to offer to GNs first it might not help. I was told I they will let me know the end of next week after they finish interviews and check references. I will kow either way. At least I wont have to keep wondering...it took them over a month to contact me for the interview! Asked why i took the job in LTC I told them I needed a job and there were no openings posted for this hospital...truth. They dont accept paper applications. You have to wait until an opening is posted online and apply that way. Still crossing my fingers. I'll let you know what I hear next week. Thanks again for your support. This site is wonderful!!!!!!!

Mar 20, 200818 yr

Whoa. Sounds like you have good reasons for leaving (and also for staying, but mostly leaving). This is your license and career. If you don't feel comfortable with the environment and situation, start looking elsewhere. You will find many other nurses (myself included) who did not remain in the first, second, third, or fourth jobs... you will eventually find your niche. As long as you remain honest with the interviewers you will finally find a good place that will support your nursing skills and integrity.

Best of luck to you!!!

Mar 21, 200818 yr

She also told me things here are different than in the hospital...... Turns out, the preceptor who helped get done quicker, gave her her ativan 0.5 and seroquel at 5 PM but they were schedule for 9pm. I asked her why and she said she goes to be right after dinner anyway!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The poor resident was completely snowed! Is it just me or is this common practice to give all meds in one pass. I can understand if the only meds at 9pm were like senna or prilosec or something....but seroquel????? wrong wrong wrong in my eyes! I think I am a hospital nurse!!!!!!!!!

It's true things are different in LTC. But the proper way to handle this would be to get the times of the medication changed if the patient truly goes to bed right after dinner (and in LTC, many times they do). There is nothing worse than trying to wake someone up at 9PM to give these meds or omitting them. Seroquel is an antipsychotic, not a sleeping pill.

It takes a special person to work LTC. It's definitely not for everyone!

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