BeenThereGoingThere

Tulsa OK hospitals usually will. They train and are top notch to work for

I’m constantly recruited to do hazard pay and I am 62. I’m on the disaster registry. I can work circles around.... I know a 72 year old charge nurse who can too

Has anyone here ever heard of laminar flow? I worked on a burn unit that used this years ago. I never became ill with anything while working at that hospital. (Michigan) Later, I found that other burn units and ICU's didn't use this type of technology. Maybe they should. Seeing as the hospitals/corporations, or whatever you want to call health care facilities today, had thought about such a thing; they would be able to say safely, don't use a mask when you're not taking care of a confirmed diagnosis of COVID (forget the fact that we know that a good number of people out there have this virus without any diagnosis having been made.) I learned 10 years ago, that corporate medicine cares about numbers, dollars, and profit. Staff are interchangeable part, and only good if they can profit from them. Anything that costs money that would prevent infection is not their priority. Profit is.

I have worked Critical care for 30 years. I was ACLS from 1988 or 85 until last June. As a traveler, I made less than similar peers working for the hospital I was placed at. (Started traveling due to jobs drying up where I was) I've been out of ICU for 3 years. That means, I probably can't get an agency job, and many hospitals on the west coast of they type I normally work, (teaching hospitals) won't hire me for ICU. They're more than happy to interview for long term care and rehab though. I don't know about you, but I started in critical care and have never had any desire to work rehab or long term care. They will look at me and say, "do you really think you can do the work required for this job?" My hair is white. But, they think I can take care of 30 people at one time. That's not even rational. But it is what's happening. I would take an ICU job in a minute if they paid enough for me to support myself without taking a room mate in the area I live. But, age and this attitude that they are more progressive than anyone else in the nation (they aren't) has been a stumbling block for me. (I've had people say these things to my face. You have to smile and remain quiet) But, back to my point. Except for this crisis rate thing, experienced travelers rarely make as good as their counterparts hired by the hospital if it is union and they are paid based on experience. Their agency does, but they don't. And, the benefits are non existent or bare minimum. A young nurse with 2 years of experience makes more, but an experienced nurse does not. This is a response to many comments I just read....yes, I can still work pretty much any ventilator, and have a really good grasp of infectious disease. I haven't forgotten all of the different procedures, medications, and job requirements. But, in this day and age, they do prefer people who are younger, and lower risk in the eyes of their insurer.

What contract tips do you have for 1st time travelers who are considering COVID-19 response assignments? There are a lot of drawbacks to travel nursing. Sometimes you are in an hostile work environment because the regular staff nurses think you are being paid billions more. I took a $35 dollar an hour paycut to travel. It makes the environment hostile. Here's my tips: 1. Get everything in writing. Don't believe anything until it is in writing. 2. Have very thick skin. It's often a toxic work environment. 3. Have no opinions. Trust only your people back home. Just do your job. 4. Be prepared for comments about travelers being incompetent. Many hospitals insist you float to areas outside you expertise, and the agency is their client not you. This is true even when it's a procedure you specialize in. You didn't do it with them. Variations of this story will exist. 5. Don't travel too long if you want to settle down. Some HR's consider the typical travel contracts too many short term jobs. (Yes I've heard this from an hospital in Seattle) 6. Make sure they pay for the two weeks quarantine before you go home. 7. Make sure there's a plan for you if you get sick.

I forgot, Supplemental sends quite a few inquiries for this area and have a local representative. Strategic used to staff as third party in the NW. Aerotek does some. There's another one in Florida, but can't remember the name. Wait....check out NuWest. They're located in Seattle

Maxim staffs the NW, but pays less than others. Favorites staff most of southern Oregon. Cross Country used to have the contract for Kaiser. Therapia has some contracts in WA. Look up agencies under Washington or Seattle. There are several that are local. HCA used to have the contract for the catholic hospitals, CHI and Providence.

I would like to add that an albuterol inhaler runs $125 dollars with my insurance. I wish it was $25.

I'm so glad you have a supportive loving husband. I pray the virus doesn't even touch you.

I've been seeing them in a lot of places. I get constant texts and calls. I'm suggesting that you be wary of any agency that doesn't give sick pay. It's a legal requirement in Washington, but the agency I currently work for, out of Florida, does all they can to get out of it despite the Washington labor law. So watch out for that. Covid 19 is a lot worse than the diseases we get from patients ususally.

My heart goes out to you. That sounds so painful. I'm very glad your husband didn't insist you be the one in the hotel though! At least you are in your own comfort zone. That seems small, but it really isn't. I hope this is over soon so you and your family can re-unite.

There seems to be a lot of nursing home positions open. And, I can tell you that in Washington, unless you are an Amazon with an excellent immune system, you don't want the job. I had some tell me to try it for here and there per diem staffing. You get less pay...like $30 difference an hour compared to hospital. And you could have up to 30 patients. Granted there are CNA's, but family and lights are always on with multiple requests. I keep hearing about PPE rules. Don't bring your own, don't scare people not symptomatic by wearing them, etc. These people only have eyes for their bottom line. Your safety is rarely their concern. I believe that is why the outbreaks in nursing homes are so deadly. I refuse to work in one for these reasons.

Wait....1:450 or 500 students? I have 1800. Where is everyone located?

I think one thing that is illustrated here is that different institutions have different policies on how to handle things. I don’t think it’s appropriate that the oncoming nurse jumped all over you. I might’ve said thank you for the information. Then again I might’ve called the house officer more than once. It’s always appropriate to ask them what they wanted to be called on. I wouldn’t advise traveling to anyone. This is the kind of problems you run into. And I’m not saying this was a travel assignment. But with traveling I did learn how many varied opinions they were. And how many different policies and protocols for something so common they were. Bottom line, chart what the doctor told you. Chart what questions you asked and what you reported. If possible ask them to put in their own orders instead of you doing it for them. With house officers, it isn’t uncommon for them to pass the buck on to you and the supervising doctor questions what they ordered. It’s also not unusual for nurses with different opinions to be very vocal with their criticism. When your new one starting out, chart everything. Check for standing orders from the medical managers. Know your hospitals protocols. If you have a rapid response team you can always call and ask who is assigned to it for that night what they would suggest for you to do. There’s usually a house supervisor you can call also and ask the same thing.

I beg to differ. Giving the vecronium instead of verse Was a monumental mistake. It resulted in death. Right drug right dose is rudimentary. There is no other point. You could argue till the cows come home. I’m sure the family if they’re reading any of this have a real distinct impression of the nursing profession now. This was a mistake that never should’ve happened and would’ve been solved with basic reading skills