Jplvn

Jplvn's Latest Activity

1. 

   Home Health - concerns with unstable family

   Jplvn posted a topic in Home Health

   Hello all, I want to share with you guys some things I've experienced so far with the family I've been working with for almost 3 months. Maybe you guys can give me some insight.... I work with an 11 month old baby born with a genetic disorder due to gestational diabetes and the mom being a chronic weed smoker. So baby has a few issues that need nursing care, but is super easy to take care of. He is no harder to take care of than a healthy baby. Other than all his medical appointments this month (annual medical follow ups) as it's been quite busy, this baby is a delight to take care of!! With that being said, does he need 80 hours of nursing care a week? Probably not, but.. me and the other nurse report to a job, and that's what we do. I originally came onto the job, ready to help mom out because shes having trouble, can't afford a babysitter, and needed to go to work. Well, she worked for about 3 weeks since I was assigned, and ever since she's been working her own hours with Lyft. Which is ok! She has a job! HOWEVER! She's not really working? She works probably a maximum of 10-15 hours a week...which I have feelings about only because: 1. The baby will not have his basic needs sometimes including diapers, wipes, water, one time-- formula. (even though she gets it free). It's come to the point where me and the other nurse will communicate to each other to buy the baby some before coming onto the shift--which is not ok in our company to buy things for the family, vice versa.. but what else are we to do? 2. She smokes weed 2-3x daily. And I know weed---it is NOT cheap. With the amount she smokes, she easily spends minimum of $100/week to satisfy this vice. She prioritizes her high over many other things. (She's quite open with her finances so this is how I know)--apparently, she overdrafts her account a lot, she's late on her rent and car payments and insurances at least 2 months, and she rarely had food at home. Mind you, she has another 9 year old kid who all she eats is cup noodles and cereal everyday. I make her food from home when I can. But, there were times she's asked me for $20 here and there and to borrow my phones hotspot so she can earn some money on Lyft because her phone bill wasn't paid. I never gave her money or let her do this because I know my professional boundaries but I can't bring it up to her that it's not appropriate. My response has always been, "sorry I don't carry cash, or.. I'm waiting on an important phone call today" just to get out of it. 3. She eats out everyday. Never cooks at home. The 3 months I've been here, she's cooked something maybe 4x. Everything else is bought... Now, to be put in her shoes... I know what it's like to be low income.. but she has plenty of help. She's got section 8 housing, her son gets SSI, free insurance, she has 80 hours of nursing care that she can take advantage of to work somewhere full time..the list goes on. And I know that this can come across as judging her..but! This to me is reality. My heart goes out for her kids....and it's not that me and the other nurse are here to give her respite anymore, it's more to protect her kids from her... I've thought many times to call CPS or tell my company what goes on in this house, but I'm afraid. She does care, but she needs a lot of help. There are a list of many other things that put her kids in a lot of danger ..many. I'm not sure what to do. The other nurse and I share the same feelings but I don't think shes one to report either. I guess none of us are ones to separate families. So far, I'm just bottling it up.

   • Jan 20
   • 5 replies
2. 

   Quiting on short notice

   Jplvn posted a topic in Professionalism

   Hello everyone, I had the urge to make an account just to post this b/c of how much anxiety I am feeling right now. I am a new grad; had only been working for 2 months at a LTC facility; charge nurse for 34-36 residents at a time. I was oriented for 2 weeks; and by oriented I mean; I shadowed the nurses with very little explanation while there. I since then realized that like nursing school--the real world is a lot of self-teaching as well. I am not 100% comfortable with this fact because unlike nursing school; I am actually finally caring of real people and not just mannequins. I was taught "techniques" to last throughout the day and not exactly what to do when for example the BON comes for audits and such. I will ask for help. All the time. Just to make sure. So for 6 weeks, I've tried to stick it out for the most part. I asked for help when I need it, I suffer a little through the day because I know thats just what a nurse does. No breaks if needed, tend to resident's needs, all of it! I'm trying my very best. But it's this facility whose having a bit of trouble. They're understaffed with their CNAs. There has been a PM shift when CNAs were carrying 18 residents at once. There are residents who don't get their weekly showers, don't get fed until 8:30PM when dinner was served at 5:30PM, or briefs not being changed for over 3 hours!!! My fellow charge nurses are not very welcoming when I ask for help. When I endorse to the upcoming shift about change of conditions and such, it all comes back to me the next day. The other day, I had a copd resident who was having sob and sore throat. Did everything I could, called the doctor and all of that. Endorsed accordingly. Stayed a few extra hours to chart with the NOC nurse right next to me. The same pt cried out in pain and discomfort in spurts. At one point, I had to console her and check up on her. Stable when I had left. Next day, I had only clocked in, and same thing was occuring. Just loud yelling. It was shift changing time so it was hard to get ahold of any of the supervisors, and when I had, I was so angry at the lack of urgency they had. I didnt know what to do!!! So I called 911 without doctors orders b/c this resident had 31% o2 sat on RA and 58% on 4L. When the paramedics finally come, I go off on my supervisors out of frustration in front of them and they told me that I shouldn't have done that. With everything going on, with the lack of help and urgency with situations like such, with the overload of all the employees and just everything!!!---I told my DON that I quit. I didn't leave in the middle of my shift, I still made a letter of resignation. But my conscious is killing me. I should have stuck it out. At least for 2 weeks, formally. And my mistake was I had slipped the letter under the door instead of handing it in person. Now I'm getting all these calls telling me how unprofessional I am. I am weak at heart when it comes to these residents. I have cried too many times of how much some of the nurses there did not care about them. Always reassuring me that "that's just how they are.." It's not a good experience for me. What am I do to from here on out? I wanted to help them. I really did. But they didn't help me back. A very good few did, don't get me wrong. But when I need it most, I can't do anything without being absolutely sure. As a new nurse, I'm still scared. I've called for an ambulance 4 times when I had a gut feeling of a resident being in a bad enough condition. I got in trouble for it though??? I'm still so confused!!!! Nobody ever prepared me for the reality of nursing. The different kinds of nurses there are. I guess I thought everyone who I'd work with would be just as caring as one another. But a lot of them are just there for the paycheck---it's so obvious. I'm getting anxiety and I feel such great guilt for leaving those residents. Will it be hard for me to find another job? Will it always be like this? Because if it will, then I really have to brace myself and toughen up. I've cried almost every day after each shift. It's really gotten my down. It's discouraging.....

   • Dec 4, 2017
   • 4 replies