One day?

[bay09]

Hey everyone! I'm Bay and I've been creeping on this site for a long time now, and finally decided to make an account. I've been out of school for right at a year now. I worked on a Med Surg floor for about 8 months up until last week. Today, I started a job in a family practice. And their system is A LOT different than what I am used to. Well, at the end of the day, they told me that tomorrow I would be on my own. When they asked if I could handle it I was honest and told them I wasn't sure, their computer system and their processes were a lot to learn and I'd feel more comfortable being with someone else tomorrow, too. And they did not think that I needed to be. Has this ever happened to anyone else? Oh, and it doesn't help my nerves about tomorrow now knowing how this place is known to be difficult to work at, and they are kind of "fire happy".

[loriangel14, RN]

Yeah I would be pretty uncomfortable with that too.One day is definitely not enough orientation.

[netglow, ASN, RN]

Op, the best advice is to keep it moving. Doctors want patient's roomed and hx taken and drugs rec'd (usually) and extras dependent on specialty. If you do that too. It's like a comedy act you in one door then out, point the doc in the door you left with a little report even though you charted the EMR while in the room, and you go right into another one, etc.

Triage, you have to keep going to your phone and checking messages and best to take a notepad and just keep rifling through it with name, phone and c/o off the message system page for each one in order. That way you can find a moment and get on your computer to e-refill, or chart patient c/o as you are waiting for them to pick up the phone when you return their call. Chart live as they speak, handle them right there or see what you need to ask the Doc about and quick jot it on your notepad so you can get him/her on exit of a room if the doc has a memory... so you can call the patient back with orders etc. It's wild and fast and you're gonna need a ice cold coke, and snacks to grab because you won't get lunch :)

Yes you will get behind. You have your notepad of your calls that you can cross off when put to bed, so that's like your brain. Also you should print out a schedule of the day's patients to keep with you so you can cross those off too as you go. Good to remind yourself as well what patient you put in what room, etc.

Edit: I saw 56 patients one day, and 33 phone messages. 10 of the phone messages were chest pain - 5 post procedure. Yahoooo! And all that with a crappy EMR that crashed if you looked at it.