Long Term Care or From Hell to Eternity

allevi · Dec 21, 2000

I work in ltc. I do mainly the alzheimer's unit which is staffed with a nurse and cna to 13 residents. this i find truly enjoyable and love working there. When I work on the floor, I have 30 residents and I do all the po meds and treatments. Would also do the feeding tubes and IVs if they were any. The other nurse also has about 20 to 25 residents and is responsible for their meds and treatments. We also will help each other out with treatments. I guess I would always like to see just a treatment nurse, since I hate those the most.

momangel29 · Dec 23, 2000

I work in long term care. I have thirty residents and do everthing you described. I have been working on one hallway unless I am needed elsewhere and have to float. What I wanted to say was I am quite happy working in long term care and I enjoy bringing smiles to people's faces. It seems to be the norm down here to have only one nurse and this many patients but you get used to juggling.

Tim-GNP · Dec 23, 2000

When I was an LPN, I worked an 'intermediate care unit' with 48 residents on the 3-11 shift by myself. If I was lucky, I had 4 CNA's to help [usually only 3].

When I became the R.N., I had 26 skilled residents, plus house supervisor of a 108 bed facility. It wasn't because administration was 'cheap' either, [my NHA was also an RN], but we just could not find nurses [RN, LPN or CNA] for love or money.

tinkertoys · Dec 31, 2000

I work 7P to 7A in a 102 bed center, where the majority of our beds are skilled care. 1st and 2nd shifts have 4 nurses and one Team Coordinator, and an average ratio of 1 CNT to 9 patients. 11-7 has 3 nurses (no TC), and 5 CNT's. Because of the divisions within our center, it works rather well. I am very proud of our center, and the care we are able to give to our patients. I am becoming more and more frustrated, though, because it is so hard to find staff who are truly dedicated to the welfare of our patients. Most of our newer "team members" see this only as a job. They don't have any qualms about calling in at the last minute (forget asking them to get someone to work for them!), and refuse to stay over and help out if problems arise.They can't be bothered with call lights, teamwork, or making sure the job is done right. Those of us who have been there a while care very deeply for "our people", and take up the slack for THEIR sake. Like I said, we see to it that our patients receive excellent care...It would just be so much easier on us all if everyone did their part!!!!!

Sylvia · Jan 2, 2001

No, one nurse for 40+ patients is NOT reasonable and the number of CNA's for that number of patients is really pushing it!

I, too, work in the South and I find that most "good" LTC facilities expect one nurse to handle everything (meds, treatments, flushes, catheters, charting, family members, supervising staff, etc) for about 30 patients and that is hard, but it can be handled by an experienced nurse. However, the number of patients you describe is ridiculous. I know. My very first nursing job was as a charge nurse on a wing with 38 patients and 5 CNA's (if we were lucky). I handled all of the above, plus wound care for yet another wing. The job was supposed to be 7-3 but it was more like 7-6. I loved my patients so much that (I realize now) I really ignored just how much a patient load like that jeopardized my beloved patients, not to mention the nursing license I had worked so hard to obtain.

I finally left when the management decided that on top of everything else, the nurses should help the CNA's feed patients because they were tired of us sitting around on our lazy butts!