Picking up slack from coworkers?

caliotter3 · Apr 8, 2018

After four months of this, you have not spoken to your manager yet? Write a log of discrepancies for the next three or four encounters, then present this to her when you have that talk.

allnurses Guide · Apr 8, 2018

Why aren't you filing a report regarding this poor practice? An arm swollen because infiltration is so severe and has been ignored? This is not something that should be kept to yourself.

freckles23 · Apr 8, 2018

I have recently been in his district alot more and figured since he was new I would put up with it for a little longer. we were also in the process of changing managers so we have had a new one for a month or so now but he has been on vacation as well. I just feel these nurses are very careless and he left me with a potassium of 3.2 the other night as welll. They drew the blood around 11am and I asked him why it wasnt addressed and he told me he never even thought about it. It actually happend to be for my lady that I wrote about in my previous post today. Im not sure if I should be approaching my manager in a specific way. What do I say to him? "I am concerned with whoevers practice because of the following reasons?"

Crush · Apr 8, 2018

I usually understand if something is accidentally missed. This seems like an issue since you mentioned it has been going on for four months now. I would say something.

Approach this as a safety concern.

Wuzzie · Apr 8, 2018

I have recently been in his district alot more and figured since he was new I would put up with it for a little longer. we were also in the process of changing managers so we have had a new one for a month or so now but he has been on vacation as well. I just feel these nurses are very careless and he left me with a potassium of 3.2 the other night as welll. They drew the blood around 11am and I asked him why it wasnt addressed and he told me he never even thought about it. It actually happend to be for my lady that I wrote about in my previous post today. Im not sure if I should be approaching my manager in a specific way. What do I say to him? "I am concerned with whoevers practice because of the following reasons?"

Even a new person should be written up for an infiltrate that is so bad the entire arm is swollen. IVs are supposed to be checked hourly. All of the things you mentioned are worth writing up. He's a danger to his patients and if it has been noticed but not addressed you could be considered complicit. Event reports with just the facts, no editorials, every single time should take care of this.

Ruby Vee, BSN · Apr 8, 2018

Document, document, document. And then speak to your manager. Your manager cannot do anything about the situation without documentation.

JKL33 · Apr 8, 2018

I have had this nurses district several times and it turns into a crappy load and I am on the verge of tears because of what is left behind for my shift. Am I being unreasonable?

No, you are not being unreasonable but hear me out. First, I agree that genuine safety concerns need to be written up. Beyond that, you can make this situation more tolerable for yourself/your emotions by examining why you are on the verge of tears. When I have been in situations like this I felt similarly and it was because I was angry about me being dumped on. I took it very personally. But...since I ultimately can't control what others do, and even if I report them I can't control what will be done about it, I had to find a way to not send the whole shift south by being indignant about the situation in which I found myself.

I got past that by utilizing a little bit of an "it is what it is" attitude, which put me more in the mode of making a plan to get things back on track step by step. Another related idea is not taking responsibility for the actions of others. For example, if an antibiotic is now going to be "late" because I've discovered yet another subq IV - - well, I can fix the IV; as for the lateness, it truly has nothing to do with me - therefore it's not worth getting more angry about. I don't need to take personal offense to finding a bad IV.

Not getting emotional about others' shortcomings (or dumps, or laziness or ineptitude) is how you can make a plan and whittle away at it until things are back on track.

None of it is "right." Should you have to do this? NO. But when you find yourself in the situation it's literally no use thinking in those terms.

Staying calm also helps with being as objective as possible when it's time to discuss this with your manager.

Good luck ~

Wuzzie · Apr 8, 2018

When I have been in situations like this I felt similarly and it was because I was angry about me being dumped on. I took it very personally. But...since I ultimately can't control what others do, and even if I report them I can't control what will be done about it, I had to find a way to not send the whole shift south by being indignant about the situation in which I found myself.
I got past that by utilizing a little bit of an "it is what it is" attitude, which put me more in the mode of making a plan to get things back on track step by step.
Not getting emotional about others' shortcomings (or dumps, or laziness or ineptitude) is how you can make a plan and whittle away at it until things are back on track. ~

Good point JKL. I just had a conversation with the one of my younger colleagues about this when she was upset about her slacker partner. I tend to be extremely efficient and often find myself with a lot of downtime. So I try to help my peers when I can. This has sometimes resulted in my peers slowing their pace because I was picking up the slack and the end result is my doing way more than my share of the work. I used to get really miffed about it but have learned reacting that way changes nothing but my mood and not in a good way. So now I try to just be happy that I did a good job and worked hard and to not worry about what everyone else did or did not do. At the end of the day all that really matters is what I think of myself and the good care I provided.

beekee · Apr 8, 2018

Before you go to your manager, address his deficiencies with him. If you don't catch it before he leaves, be sure to talk to him about it the next time you see him. Do it in a non-judgmental way, as if you are merely explaining the expectations of the floor.

Low potassium. Hey, yesterday, one of your patients didn't get her potassium replaced. Be sure to check potassium levels in the future.

IV Infiltration. Hey, yesterday, I noticed that you reinforced an IV that had infiltrated. Please insert a new IV when the old one starts leaking.

NG feeding. Hey, yesterday I noticed that the tubing feeding was shut off. You didn't mention why. Was there a verbal order that never got entered?

If he doesn't improve after calling him out in it, then go to your manager.

nrsang97, BSN, RN · Apr 8, 2018

Address it with him first like beekee suggested. If it is still a problem go to the manager with the safety concerns.

Have Nurse, ADN, RN · Apr 8, 2018

Lately our facility is hiring agency RNs. These RNs are older, not sure how much experience they have though. Anyways every time I receive report from this new agency nurse (not sure on his work experience, but he has been with us for probably 4 months) he never gives a full report, never even tells me why the patient is here, and he never knows labs or tests the patients have gone for. I basically cant trust a deport from him because it always ends up being something else. But when I need to give him report, he questions me regarding the patients head to toe assessment, which I want to yell at him because if you were doing your own head to toe assessment, you wouldnt need to know the nooks and crannies.", youd go based off your findings, so he pretty much copies and pastes the previous shift. He questions many things that are not too relevant in report that he could easily look up on his own. I just dont understand how you ask me a million questions when you dont even give that amount of information to me, let alone it being incorrect. He tapes over leaking IVs (i had to change 4 IVs the other night), my one patients arm was completely swollen from the infiltration. I had no idea my patient had a feeding tube and when I walked in the room the feeding wasnt even connected to the patient, and my one patient wanted to sign out AMA because no one came to speak to her for hours and she got fed up. I just dont know what to do. I know being new can be difficult but finish the work you are intended to do. Dont hide information for me to find out on my own. I rather you tell me hey im not great with ivs so they do not have one. I would appreciate that more than being blindsided. I have had this nurses district several times and it turns into a crappy load and I am on the verge of tears because of what is left behind for my shift. Am I being unreasonable? I was thinking about talking to my manager about it because this isnt the first time and other nurses also know any district taken from this nurse will be a disaster. What do I say to my manager? How can I handle this situation. I am the type of person who tells it how it is but it turns me into a mean person so not sure I should approach this coworker either. Help![/QUOT
Doesn't sound like he's safe around patients. Report him immediately. Forget about "appearing mean". Patients come first. That fact that you have shared that you are aware that he isn't safe, puts you in jeopardy too if you choose to do nothing. Report him - now.
The Nurse Practice Act is what it sounds like is being violated.