Long term care

[katmai]

:(I know this is probably a pretty common post. I work in a long term care facility on a skilled unit. I administer my own medications, chart medicare charting on 18-20 residents and seem to be the only one that can answer call lights and the phone. I work weekend doubles at the present time. I dread going to work every Saturday and Sunday. The facility has a weekend RN that spends most of Sunday in front of the TV watching the football games. I have also caught him sleeping in rooms. The problem that I have is that the facility does not seem to care and retaliates against the person making the complaint. I just expect others to do their work so I don't have extra tasks to pick up. Every weekend, I say I am not going to go back. I spend my breaks calling my family and venting my hostilities. I have tried to get into the hospitals but have had zero success. I am working on my RN and will complete it within the next year. I know I cannot wait that long at this job. My CNAs last weekend thought that after 6pm there job was done. They spent the remainder of the time on the sofa watching the game. I listen to resident's complain about getting yelled at by the staff. I used to report these things until during a staff meeting we were told the person making the complaint would suffer the repercussions. Any advice out there? I had an opportunity to travel to Alaska last month, I'm not sure if it is still available. Oh , by the way, I went for my paycheck today only to get told we had to wait and maybe not get paid due to their sprinkler system freezing and bursting. The facility had limited electricity and floods in several locations. We eventually got paid but only due to the CNAs complaining and threatening not to work. What a place????:selfbonk:

[bobbielvn]

It sounds like the LTC I work in... I have worked in a variety of medical scenerios, but LTC has caused me to rethink my career path.. What I did was contact the Dept of Health services, anonymously, filed a complaint with the CNA board anonymously. I figure if I am there on the job working to provide care to these unsuspecting patients then those who aren't working and collecting a paycheck needed a wake up call.. I take care of 47-50 patients at night, and I feel that if I need to be there, then my co-workers need to be there as well.. I am not sure of the laws in Tx, but I do know that documentation goes a long way here..:) best of luck to you Katmai.

[rebel_red]

Graveyard is quiet because the residents are asleep......giggle giggle....try they can't sleep, are trying to get oob without assist and falling unless they have a bed alarm, then 15 bed alarms are sounding at once, oh and the residents on pain meds who call q 1 hour....and the adorable lol who parks at the station to chat.....oh and those residents that were "stable" all day and throw a PE or go into active gi bleed or develop a wheeze you can hear down the hallway and the perpetual insomniac who sleeps all day has enough prn meds on board to knock out a rhino but rings q 15 minutes because they can't sleep...I could just go on and on.....not to mention all the "house stuff" you get to pick up cause no other shift has time...(not trying to start a shift war I work all shifts all days and each has its particular and sometimes peculiar challenges..)

And as to it being the charge nurse's job to keep on everyone's butt to see they do their job.....nonsense, they are all adults....I am here for my residents not to play romper room/prison matron with the other employees. With the changing of CMS and a fresh inundation of redundant paperwork, that leaves one wondering "gee what is more important to admin....the paperwork or the patients?" I say to the OP run like the wind....I too have worked back to back weekend doubles and understand how tiring and frustrating they can be.

Good luck....

Tres

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Graveyard is quiet because the residents are asleep......giggle giggle....try they can't sleep, are trying to get oob without assist and falling unless they have a bed alarm, then 15 bed alarms are sounding at once, oh and the residents on pain meds who call q 1 hour....and the adorable lol who parks at the station to chat.....oh and those residents that were "stable" all day and throw a PE or go into active gi bleed or develop a wheeze you can hear down the hallway and the perpetual insomniac who sleeps all day has enough prn meds on board to knock out a rhino but rings q 15 minutes because they can't sleep...I could just go on and on.....not to mention all the "house stuff" you get to pick up cause no other shift has time...(not trying to start a shift war I work all shifts all days and each has its particular and sometimes peculiar challenges..)

And as to it being the charge nurse's job to keep on everyone's butt to see they do their job.....nonsense, they are all adults....I am here for my residents not to play romper room/prison matron with the other employees. With the changing of CMS and a fresh inundation of redundant paperwork, that leaves one wondering "gee what is more important to admin....the paperwork or the patients?" I say to the OP run like the wind....I too have worked back to back weekend doubles and understand how tiring and frustrating they can be.

Good luck....

Tres

Thanks. Your post was, in my honest opinion, insightful.