Ok so the latest mandate at my job: Hourly rounding. To be checked by the nurse manager. She will be making rounds, on all shifts, to patients rooms to find out when the last time they saw their nurse. She said PCT's can also help but come on, our pcts sometimes take over an hour to get the vitals. And they are not responsible, we--the nurses--are if something goes un done.
Its like kindergarten.
We have gone from 4 to 5 couplets, and in that mix can also be gyn surgeries on top of c-sect and vag births and antepartums with issues.
We are mandated to increase our satisfaction scores.
So now we have more patients, and must see them all on a very frequent basis. I will have about 10 minutes/hour with each couplet. Meaning that anything I do, will have to be quick because I will have to see them all within an hour, and then start again. As it is, assessments and vitals on mother/baby couplets take 15 minutes if I rush it, so I am already late.
Getting someone out of bed for the first time post-surgery can take up to half an hour.
When c-sects come, they need vitals q30min X3, and hourly respirs etc. How am I realistically supposed to round hourly when I have to do this??
I am feeling so pressured. The last few nights with five mother/baby couplets have been brutal. I round on my patients frequently but not each patient every hour. They sometimes get bothered if you go in too much. We were told in school to check on your patients but minimize interruptions if at all possible. Moms and dads and babies need uninterrupted periods to bond and my personal belief is that after the first 24 hours, they NEED to begin to figure things out on their own, in the hospital and in the environment where we can help if they need it. If I am constantly coming in, they will be asking me to change the diapers, help the latch etc...which I am fine doing, but not if I am going to get written up for not seeing all my patients every hour.
I might just be tired but this an overwhelming thing to do to our already over-stressed and under-staffed floor. We can't hire more nurses d/t budget, we are not allowed overtime--must leave all undone tasks for next nurse(who ripped me a new one when I tried that once), and now its more patients and see them even more frequently. Oh my god. I am SO WORRIED that its unsafe. I am so worried that in my haste to do what I am told to do I will miss something, hurry thru an assessment or something and miss something. What about the time to fill out charting and stuff????
I am sorry. I feel like I am going to lose my mind at work these days.
Specializes in Telemetry, Oncology, Progressive Care.
I agree that this hourly rounding is a huge PIA. Some patients just don't want someone in the room all the time. There are several people in and out of the room on a daily basis from the nurses, aides, dietary, housekeeping, doctors, etc. that it is just disruptive to the patients.
I haven't seen a reduction in call light usage either. You have some patients that are always on the light and no matter how often you go in their room they will still use the call light to excess. And why is it that the younger patients who are the most independent can be the neediest?
But anyways we alternate hourly rounding. The nurse rounds on the patients on the even hours and the aides on the odd hours. Oh, and I don't mutter that stupid phrase about how I have time and can get them whatever they need. I ask them how they are doing and if they need something but I'm not about to tell them I have the time for whatever they need cause I'm not going to lie to them.
Some patients are just tired and ill and trying to sleep. I'm not about to wake them up unless I have to. How about we interview some patients and publish our own study that patients think this hourly rounding is ridiculous. Besides we are in the room often enough that the rounding is overkill.
rn undisclosed name
351 Posts
I agree that this hourly rounding is a huge PIA. Some patients just don't want someone in the room all the time. There are several people in and out of the room on a daily basis from the nurses, aides, dietary, housekeeping, doctors, etc. that it is just disruptive to the patients.
I haven't seen a reduction in call light usage either. You have some patients that are always on the light and no matter how often you go in their room they will still use the call light to excess. And why is it that the younger patients who are the most independent can be the neediest?
But anyways we alternate hourly rounding. The nurse rounds on the patients on the even hours and the aides on the odd hours. Oh, and I don't mutter that stupid phrase about how I have time and can get them whatever they need. I ask them how they are doing and if they need something but I'm not about to tell them I have the time for whatever they need cause I'm not going to lie to them.
Some patients are just tired and ill and trying to sleep. I'm not about to wake them up unless I have to. How about we interview some patients and publish our own study that patients think this hourly rounding is ridiculous. Besides we are in the room often enough that the rounding is overkill.
Kelly