New Rule: No work bags allowed in ER

[DarknTwistyERRN]

At work (busy ER) while moving a coworkers bag off the counter in the nursing station, a nurse was cut by a scalpel which was in the bag. Now, my first question was, "Why did she have a scalpel in her bag?" I then wondered, "Why did he have his hand in her bag if he was moving it?" Regardless... moot points to this discussion.

The knee-jerk reaction of our ER Nursing Director was to implement a new rule effective immediately - no nursing bags on the floor. At all. We cannot put them in drawers or in cabinets. They cannot be under desks or out of sight. They cannot be on the floor at all.

I am livid. I have a myriad of resources and tools which I don't need with every single patient but I do need to be able to put my hands on not to mention educational material I keep for cardiac drips, TPA, NIHSS, eye charts, etc. There's no way all of it would fit in my pockets.

Is anyone else facing something as utterly asinine as this at work? I literally don't have time for it.

[carolinapooh, BSN, RN]

Our facility is switching to these spiffy clear bags. Girls get clear handbags, guys get clear backpacks.

I can't begin to tell you the things I'd put in that clear bag should a facility I worked in switch to such an asinine policy. I have zero shame in that department.

Plus, I'd want a backpack - both for convenience and because to assume I want a clear purse is ridiculous.

If one's employees are that untrustworthy, perhaps one should reconsider one's background screening and pre-hiring procedures.

[carolinapooh, BSN, RN]

Wait. WHAT? No way do I want my coworkers to see all the things I carry in my bag. That is such a patronizing overreach.

I would never leave a personal bag in a public area like a nurses' station- too many opportunities for my stuff to disappear. We had the no phone/no drink rules at the hospital I worked at as an RN, but they were just quietly ignored.

And I do not use printed resources to guide my care, because there's just no way to verify if the information is up to date. I've always railed against no-phone policies; they are outdated and do not reflect the reality of modern medical practice; the body of information we have is so vast, and best practice guidelines change way too quickly. The human mind is not physically capable of storing all this information, and IMO all facilities should provide their staff with a service like uptodate. An external brain is critical, IMO. Students and staff should be encouraged to use their phones appropriately to assist their learning and nursing process. Sure, some people will slack off, scrolling facebook instead of doing their work. But those people will find a way to slack off, phone or no phone. If we embrace mobile technology and implement secured wireless access for internet use while at work, then it would probably be easier to catch the slackers because use could be monitored in the same way computer use is monitored and moderated.

What cracks me up are no phone policies that are forced upon everyone but the MDs. And yes, I've seen that.