LTC/Rehab Facility... Many Nurses at my Facility are planning on Leaving.

[nurseburst, ASN, BSN]

Hello all,

I've posted before about being mentored and I am about 30 days in now. I wanted to talk and maybe get some thoughts from more experienced Nurses or even new nurses like me about the situation.

I don't have anything to compare this facility to because I didn't work as an LPN or even a CNA prior to getting my ADN and then my RN license (which was due to being laid off and job sent over seas and getting the ability to go to school paid for due to that, blessing in disguise.) I've recently switched from the 11p-7a shift because there wasn't really any support for someone like me to 3p to 11p and I am finding it to be better.

However, I think we have some MAJOR understaffing issues at our facility. There is just about no day that goes by that I'm asked to come in early or to work on my day off. And I'm just not sure if we're having a TON of bad days in a row or if it's because we're still recovering from Hurricane Matthew (We are fine but a lot of people couldn't make it in for various reasons of course!) but things just seem insanely crazy.

The one Nurse that I REALLY look up to because she takes the time to try to explain to me how she runs her shift, helps me create a brain for my shift before leaving, and etc told me today that she was probably going to be leaving the facility. She apparently came in this morning to find one of our residents with a HUGE skin tear that wasn't addressed over night and had to send him out. Granted, I don't know the full situation at all but I also know her previous day was a mess (because I was her relief and my day was a NIGHTMARE.)

I question if this is a good environment for a new Nurse like me who feels like they know nothing! The unit managers have been wonderful, I mean absolutely fabulous, but they are absolutely WORE out and over worked and it SHOWS.

Is this a standard for a lot of LTC/Rehab facilities or am I just in the wrong place? I had another Nurse there tell me that the facility is nothing like their sister facility in a different city near us and that we should be getting training on X, Y, and Z. I barely even see the Nurse Educator.

Learning how to do admissions, discharges, sending a patient out, etc is so far a learn as they come but when we're slammed like we were Sunday I don't even get the opportunity to see EXACTLY what paperwork needs to be done, etc.

I absolutely love my residents here and enjoy so much of the staff but like I said I don't have anything to compare it to. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't take a single 15 or 30 minute break because there is literally zero time.

Any thoughts, words of wisdom, tough love... whatever you feel necessary is SO very welcome. I just want to be a safe, amazing Nurse for my patients.

[Libby1987]

You'll get a lot of recommendations to run but if you're considering how to stay, as other nurses are submitting their resignations I would give my manager the stipulation of sending me out to the other facility for some admission training. And insist on a plan for giving me a reasonable break time to eat.

I would certainly consider how wonderful your managers are before leaving the devil you know, at least until I obtained a marginally marketable and useful skill set to take to the next huge learning curve.

[purplegal]

Sounds just like the place I work at...

[nurseburst, ASN, BSN]

I apologize for not replying. Been incredibly rough... it's gotten worse. We've had a lot of Nurses quit as they stated they would... some shocked me that they would. So everyday we've pretty much been insanely short. Yesterday, I was the only floor nurse on my wing with 60 beds. The unit manager took half a set and thankfully another nurse came in. But I still was pretty clueless on how to do the admission that came in so I did my best with what info was given to me and was there 3 hours past my shift! Lol

Thanks for the suggestions @Libby1987 I am really trying to make it work even though everything tells me to run/quit but my patients especially keep me there.

@purplegal God bless lol give us strength everyday and pray it gets better!!! I wish they'd use more agency nurses for the days we are incredibly short!