New Hospice Admission RN

[Missyjill82]

Hi everyone! This is my first job as a Hospice admission RN and 2nd week off orientation. This is also my first job in the hospice world, with previous background of home based palliative care RN CM for 2 yrs and bedside med-surg tele nurse for 11 years. Any tips for admission nurse time management? I’ve come to find out Palliative and hospice are almost similar but operate very differently as far as Medicare guidelines for both programs and documentation guidelines. In our agency, we work 8 hour shifts, but they expect us to do 2 admits in a day, which becomes a 10-12 hr shift that day to admit and finish up documentation. SNF admissions are very time-consuming with care coordination and SNF and agency paperwork/documentation. I feel that I’m soo behind, but need to be on point with care plans, plan of care and other documentation since leadership does look at every nook and cranny of the admission. I understand it’s a process with a huge learning curve, but any tips getting ahead/finishing up on time and having realistic expectations from experienced nurses standpoint are appreciated?

[AriRN36]

I use an admissions checklist that lists every step of what needs to be done. I check it off as I go, so if I need to switch gears and come back, I know exactly where to pick back up.

I also made a section on my checklist for a To-Do list for those miscellaneous things pts bring up that need to be addressed later on.

If you do home admissions, I also find that self-made templates help speed things along. For instance, I have a template for my clinical note/plan for next visit, Admission Email to the team, and a list of care plan issues/goals. Copy and paste, and make small adjustments to fit the patient.