Pass meds & chart!!! Well, when i get a chance i will!!!

Specialties Geriatric

Published

Specializes in Geriatrics.

How can I possibly pass ALL my meds( X2) and chart on every person thats on isolation, abt, falls, new admits, readmits, behavior, medicare, medicaid. And inbetween all of that I have to Follow up behind CNA's to make sure their feeding, drying, repositioning, bathing, tolieting, and changing linen for my residents. Keep the nutrition room, and linen closets tidy. make sure insulins are not expired, check temps on fridges. get rid of expired meds off the cart then reorder them cause they arent within their 30 days. Make rounds , pray that my 30 residents are alive and well. Then get interrupted by all department heads for a 30-45 min stand up meeting @ the nurses station. To inform me of what I didn't do or didnt enforce my staff to do. squeeze in a 30 min lunch, that half the time i dont even take. Oh did I mention call in labs that should have been taken care of the day before. pray a md call me back in a reasonable amt of time. take, write and carry out T.O.'s. Kiss family members butts about resident missing clothing items. that i have no controll over. Then at the end of the day.my supervisor has the nerve to ask me if I charted and passed all my meds. while tapping her foot looking at her watch telling me no over time. punch the clock on time or else. well to me, my patients come first I have and always will make sure my people are well taken care of. so maybe I miss a multivit or two. Or miss an entry for a isolation pt.Thats what late entries are for. But I love my residents and safety comes first.So I prioritize my meds and charts. So yes I will pass my meds and chart, When I get a chance.

NO KIDDING!!!! I'm sitting here worried because I left my 8 hour shift after 10.5 hours without doing most of my charting. It took me all 8 hours just to pass the pills, do IVs, and give PRNs. Not to mention all the Assessments, Treatments, Charting, Medicare, Labs, POs.... oppps, I didn't get to most of it. I swear, they have 5 days work for me I have to do in 8 hours. I go as fast as I can the whole time I'm there and feel like I'm not gaining any ground. I'm waiting to get fired for missing something.

Hey sounds like my job! LOL yeah, if something goes wrong, they immediately blame nursing, especially the department managers, instead of helping nursing. My patients come first and if I had several COC's, discharge, admission etc, and no help from my supervisor....i'm definately not clocking out. I clock out at times and continue on my charting just so i don't have to hear them whine about overtime, but not when I have all those changes. If they want to see less overtime they can help us. Just sayin

Specializes in Hospice / Psych / RNAC.

Ouhh I feel for both of you. I cut my teeth in a place such as the one you describe and it was a pure nightmare every second I was alive and employed at that place.

It's physically impossible to do all the stuff to finish the shift in those types of LTC facilities. I don't recall walking on water during the interview when I was hired at that place but the things I was responsible for was a hysterical joke for 1 nurse to do.

I feel your pain.

Specializes in LTC.

Wow, did I type that?? LOL That sums up how I feel also where I work. It is literally impossible to do everything they expect out of you in a timely manner. Also, not to mention the orders that the previous nurse left on the med cart and did not bother to tell you!! :mad: I guess for now we have to keep trucking along until something else comes up. Good luck!

Specializes in Assisted Living nursing, LTC/SNF nursing.

Oh, and it's only going to get worse and worse with the economy and medicare/medicaid reimbursements. Do more and more with less and less I'm afraid. Supervisors are forever adding to the list of tasks and then tell you to delegate. Delegate to whom you think?

Specializes in LTC, rehab to home, PACU.

I hear you :( I have been there and done that and am still doing that about 75% of the time. At least about 25% of my days are manageable now. The other 75% of the time I question myself as to why did I go into this crazy profession. I think most would say to help people but most days it feels like I can barley keep my own head above water.

Unfortunately that IS the new norm. I used to say the same things over and over. My husband must have thought I was a broken record. I was always so afraid of missing something. I usually stayed for 1-2 hours over to chart. I just let them fume about overtime. It was MY license and I'll be damned if I'm going to risk it by not charting or doing something required of me. I figured they could just lump it! I am no longer in long term care but do have alot of stress with my new job....just a different kind!

Specializes in drug seekers and the incurably insane..

Yep....I do the same song and dance at work. I've always said that if you want to get your *** kicked everytime you work by management, residents, and families then go work in a LTC. And management is getting so "in your face" about things....our management has no problems with telling the nursing staff that they have stacks and stacks of job apps so if a nurse has problem with how things are to be done....then....well...there's the door. It's sickening, really. I have never been so excited for karma to pay a visit to certain individuals!!!:spbox:

Same here! That's why it bothers me when i hear people say that all we do in LTC is pass meds! So not true! You handle 45 residents, attend to their concerns and their family's as well, do charting, book appointments (because the unit clerk is gone for the day), then get lucky when someone falls or needs immediate attention...our unit has 2 nurses-one for paperwork and the other for med pass- and even with that, there's still a lot to be done! LTC is not how it used to be...and because of funding, we get heavier residents now...feels like acute care to me!

I feel your pain! i just started at a SNF & we have to be the nurse who: assesses, passes meds, charts, makes appointments, follows up, calls the other members of the HC team who work w/ the patient, etc. The amount of stress is incredible!!

That is why I left LTC. When in a too-short orientation, I was told the short cuts to doing your job were necessary or you would never finish, etc.... I still would clock out late (I refuse to work for free)... Finally, when they threatened us with legal action (arrest for "theft of time" (no such crime)), I decided that this was BS and quit. God Bless the nurses and aids in LTC, I couldn't do it.

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