Nurses leaving in droves...

NurseFirst · Nov 2, 2004

Your post almost made me fall out of my chair, thanks for the laughs. That unit manager with the bread machine idea needs to come up with some better ways to help the staff and patients.If I was one of those npo people with the fresh bread baking, i would be looking to put that machine over her head! Yes, all hospital nursing sucks......

I'm wondering if it wouldn't help those poor abd post-op patients get their digestive tract working quicker... ? (But yes, the poor, poor, npo folks...)

NurseFirst

Trauma-tizedRN · Nov 2, 2004

Your post almost made me fall out of my chair, thanks for the laughs. That unit manager with the bread machine idea needs to come up with some better ways to help the staff and patients.If I was one of those npo people with the fresh bread baking, i would be looking to put that machine over her head! Yes, all hospital nursing sucks......

Bunch of idiots running hospitals. I DO know how the nurses accepted the bread making assignment....DO IT or your fired.

Yeah, nurses have alot of say about what goes on, don't we?:angryfire

zenman · Nov 2, 2004

Bunch of idiots running hospitals. I DO know how the nurses accepted the bread making assignment....DO IT or your fired.
Yeah, nurses have alot of say about what goes on, don't we?:angryfire

I could see this one in court. "Yes, your honor, I was fired for not baking bread in the hospital. And your honor, I have never been trained in how to bake bread." :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Q. · Nov 3, 2004

Is baking bread a specific competency, I wonder? Nurses should have competencies on file for certain skills/tasks...

:wink2:

SmilingBluEyes · Nov 3, 2004

love your new nick, suzy.

lyceeboo · Nov 3, 2004

Trauma-tizedRN - I'll never be able to read one of your posts without picturing you holding an IV bag in one hand and kneading dough with the other. I can't stop laughing!!!!

I had one ortho/med/surg NM who instituted the "Caring Model" of nursing. After 7 am report, before doing anything else, we were required to go sitdown for at least 5 min in each our pts rooms. During that time we were to address and resolve any issues they had. Before I could get to my 6th pt. I'd get a new post-op or a new order to run in 2 units PRBC's before a 9am discharge, and set-up CBI, restart 2 IV's that infiltrated on night shift etc,ect. TOO MUCH WORK to have to worry about "showing them that you care."

Same NM insisted we do walking rounds at one point. You had to give the oncoming RN the hx and shift report in the room (with a roomate, family members, visitors and the pt. listening in.)

Thanks for the laugh!

Anyone been exposed to the "Fresh Baked Bread" therapy?
One assignment I took as an ICU traveler (the one where I worked everywhere in the hospital BUT ICU....another story...) had an ortho unit manager that read somewhere about this great therapy and instituted it. You would get your assignment and if it said BM after your name....you were also the breadmaker for the day. Yup, breadmachine on the unit. The aroma of fresh baking bread was supposed to give the patients a sense of well being and returned appetites hence quicker healing. If your name had an S after it, you guessed it...you were the server for the day. Bread and jam. Cute, huh. Ran my butt off on that unit. NPO patients went crazy wanting some, and the rest pestered you for more all day. Clever, huh. How the NURSES were assigned to this and accepted it, i'll never know.

Trauma-tizedRN · Nov 3, 2004

Trauma-tizedRN - I'll never be able to read one of your posts without picturing you holding an IV bag in one hand and kneading dough with the other. I can't stop laughing!!!!
I had one ortho/med/surg NM who instituted the "Caring Model" of nursing. After 7 am report, before doing anything else, we were required to go sitdown for at least 5 min in each our pts rooms. During that time we were to address and resolve any issues they had. Before I could get to my 6th pt. I'd get a new post-op or a new order to run in 2 units PRBC's before a 9am discharge, and set-up CBI, restart 2 IV's that infiltrated on night shift etc,ect. TOO MUCH WORK to have to worry about "showing them that you care."
Same NM insisted we do walking rounds at one point. You had to give the oncoming RN the hx and shift report in the room (with a roomate, family members, visitors and the pt. listening in.)
Thanks for the laugh!

"Sooo, i'm your serva taday, is it gonna be the white, wheat, (smacking gum), sowadough or french? And you gonna be wantin' that like before or afta I remove da staples and pack that nasty wound honey?" :rotfl:

Mona Mona, BSN, RN · Nov 3, 2004

"Sooo, i'm your serva taday, is it gonna be the white, wheat, (smacking gum), sowadough or french? And you gonna be wantin' that like before or afta I remove da staples and pack that nasty wound honey?" :rotfl:

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Love the accent!

Like another poster said, reading these sorts of threads make me also wonder if it's worth it going into nursing!

I can only hope that I will learn a lot by volunteering. The hospital I am at is showing none of these "signs", but, I've only been doing it a few weeks. I have a few years to make up my mind--the waiting list keeps getting longer and longer!

nursegoodlove · Nov 3, 2004

undefinedundefinedgetting "out" of nursing is something i have been seriously considering for the past two years. i have been nursing for 12 years. it's not the "nursing" aspect that i so desire to leave (as that is a true love & no doubt kept me going this long...)it is the politics/corporate destruction all around. the lack of staff, lack of appropriate staff, the downsizing, closures, gridlock, crushing workloads, nurses working excessive amounts of o.t. (i.e.: 20 out of 24 hours) in order to shore up the system, the lack of internal supports, management that are fabricated from "the peter principle"(i.e.: managers of community nursing running maternity units, managers of food services in one district...overseeing on call issues on an acute care surgical floor in a completely different area. management/admin. that do not back up for nurses when critical issues arise. "walls"that keep moving...no accountability. and the worst part...no one seemingly caring for anything but the financial "bottom line." fear for the safety of your patients and your license because of workload issues. costcutting measures, no functional contingency plans in place, no designated code blue or code white teams and it goes on...

what else to do...maybe homecare...enjoy the people on a more one to one level. i have started a list...everything from homecare opportunities to taking courses via correspondence so that i can possibly make a complete change of profession - while continuing to work/pay bills. i think there has got to be something else out there much healthier than nursing has become. i really feel bad about it...but it is a sad reality.

Trauma-tizedRN · Nov 3, 2004

undefinedundefinedgetting "out" of nursing is something i have been seriously considering for the past two years. i have been nursing for 12 years. it's not the "nursing" aspect that i so desire to leave (as that is a true love & no doubt kept me going this long...)it is the politics/corporate destruction all around. the lack of staff, lack of appropriate staff, the downsizing, closures, gridlock, crushing workloads, nurses working excessive amounts of o.t. (i.e.: 20 out of 24 hours) in order to shore up the system, the lack of internal supports, management that are fabricated from "the peter principle"(i.e.: managers of community nursing running maternity units, managers of food services in one district...overseeing on call issues on an acute care surgical floor in a completely different area. management/admin. that do not back up for nurses when critical issues arise. "walls"that keep moving...no accountability. and the worst part...no one seemingly caring for anything but the financial "bottom line." fear for the safety of your patients and your license because of workload issues. costcutting measures, no functional contingency plans in place, no designated code blue or code white teams and it goes on...
what else to do...maybe homecare...enjoy the people on a more one to one level. i have started a list...everything from homecare opportunities to taking courses via correspondence so that i can possibly make a complete change of profession - while continuing to work/pay bills. i think there has got to be something else out there much healthier than nursing has become. i really feel bad about it...but it is a sad reality.

same here. it's not the patients or the patient care i dislike (well, ok at least not 90% of em'....) it is all the things you mentioned to the t.

equity · Nov 4, 2004

EquityWell, I am sort of surprised to hear this from seasoned nurses, but fortunately, you are the ones that have stayed and endured what I am just finding out! I graduated last year as an LPN and already am feeling the brunt of horrendous inconsideration by administration and the public. Wow! I never thought nursing was so hard and entailed so much more than patient care (which is hard enough as it is). Administration wants us to clock out on time, but also have everything done. And it is just not possible. So us dumb-dumbs will clock out, :angryfire go back to work to "finish up" to protect our licenses. Anybody else have to do this? When you look at it, the pay rate is actually much lower!

nursegoodlove · Nov 4, 2004

EquityWell, I am sort of surprised to hear this from seasoned nurses, but fortunately, you are the ones that have stayed and endured what I am just finding out! I graduated last year as an LPN and already am feeling the brunt of horrendous inconsideration by administration and the public. Wow! I never thought nursing was so hard and entailed so much more than patient care (which is hard enough as it is). Administration wants us to clock out on time, but also have everything done. And it is just not possible. So us dumb-dumbs will clock out, :angryfire go back to work to "finish up" to protect our licenses. Anybody else have to do this? When you look at it, the pay rate is actually much lower!

Hi Equity, I'm not sure where you are located? Our LPN's (in British Columbia, Canada) have been mandated by this government to become "full-scope" by the end of this year. If the LPN's do not become full-scope, they cannot practice so there's little option. Schooling is one day a week for ten weeks, they receive 2 days for medications, are responsible for up to 9 patients during practice (and in the real work setting - up to 25!). The acuity level of the patients have soared (as I am sure...is the same everywhere) and the LPN's are finding it a struggle to just get their medications out never mind charting, wound dressings, assessments and so on. Our government has also rolled back their wages (all hospital employee union members) by $ 3.00 hour. More responsibility, more work and less pay. They are decreasing the RN's - which means there is less support for the LPN's. I can well imagine that your work load feels insurmountable. :uhoh3:

Do you belong to a union (if so - working overtime is $$$ after 15 minutes beyond your clocked time). Can you go as a group to talk to your supervisor about the problems? I feel badly for you - here is a prime example of someone brand new, someone we need so badly in nursing...being thrown to the dogs and ready to run for the hills! I will be anxious to hear how you make out - there is strength in numbers. Document the problems and pursue!

And most importantly...something nurses often neglect (or forget) is to look after yourself...because if you aren't well...you can't reasonably look after others.