New Job PCT Float Pool (needs advice)

[cnabeauty]

Hello everyone,

Im a new pct with no experience. I recently got hired at a very large hospital (float pool) I start my orentation Monday which will be 6 days long. Im very nervous. i just wanted to know if anyone could give me a heads up on that should I expect to do and see. i will be working 2nd shift. I was told that i would have to pass two written exams and a skills test before i get the chance to get on the floor..... I just have a few questions and i would be forever grateful if i could get some answers.

1. what kind od material will be on the written test?

2. is six days of orentation enough time for some one who floating and has no experience?

3. What will a typical day be like for me?

4. Are all or most of the units typically ran the same way?

[runner25]

I think the most important thing to remember for written tests is that if you see something out of the ordinary, notify the RN. If you see a patient with low blood sugar or they are having difficulty breathing, notify the RN. If you have a question and need something clarified, notify the RN. If you have two RN’s telling you different things, then get them to talk to each other.

As a tech, someone told me that nurses aren’t usually going to be yelling at you for helping them. Try not to be nervous. Even if you are one floor and do not see the same staff again for several months, they will probably remember you.

Most floors have routines. Each floor may feel like a different hospital though! Some floors have 9 am vitals and then every 4 hours. Some floors have vitals at 7 and you take them right when you get to the floor. When you get a floor, ask if they have an assignment sheet (where you write down patient room numbers). Then, you usually go in to see each patient and then talk to the RNs after they do report. With call lights and blood sugars before meals, you will stay fairly busy. There may be other end-of-shift tasks each floor may do.

A lot of floors are similar, but usually on ICU floors you do not take vitals. So most of the time, you make yourself available where nurses can see you. You ask them at the beginning of the shift and look at the patients’ charts – you may be turning them or positioning them every two hours. Some patients may need a finger stick blood glucose every 15 minutes for some diabetic situations. If you do know what to do on ICU floors, sometimes they have certain times techs empty Foley catheters. They may do morning baths and a morning linen and supplies round.

Good luck!

[cnabeauty]

Thank you so much your post was so helpful.... I got hired.. And I started two weeks ago

[jchilds]

The most important thing for you to remember as an aide is to remember the limits of your scope of practice. What you can do and what you need to report to the patient's nurse. Aside from that being an aide is about patient interaction and being there for them.