Katnip

I really wish they had built some sort of penalty for ER abuse. Pay a hefty fee for using the ER instead of making an appointment. But then, all someone has to do to get around that is say they thought that acid reflux was a heart attack and the fee would be waived. The key will be to have enough primary care providers available so the waits for office visits are better than what they currently are. I think that's one of the biggest problems. People feel entitled to isntant gratification and don't want to spend a moment of discomfort. Another thing is people just have to get used to the idea that it's not life threatening to suffer a few hours or days of runny noses before being seen.

Twice upon a time ago there was a chat room. Both times it was shut down, mainly because of user abuse. If you notice that in many posts, especially those that could be considered controversial, people here get very heated and sometimes downright rude. It would be much more difficult to control in a chat room. Then there is the off topic issue. With as many members as we have on Allnurses one chat room would be a mess if even a small fraction used it. Imagine a chat room with 50 people discussing a dozen topics. It would be a mess. Best just to stick to forum posts. It's much easier to manage.

Can't you work for the military as a civilian nurse and not have to get a license everywhere you go? The military also has its own agency-C2 I think it's called. It's the same if you find a VA job near where your husband is stationed. I'd check into those options as well. Granted, not all bases may need nurses, but from what I hear the military does need them pretty badly.

You wouldn't be asked to take care of someone who committed a violent crime against someone close to you. And no, you should not bring your personal feelings into it. For all you know, some little old guy you're taking care may have killed or raped someone in has past and never got caught. And again, the soldier who went on the shooting spree will face his judge and jury. His healthcare team are not it. You don't know anything at this point about his state of mental health at the time. Even psychiatrists have psychotic breaks. You are obligated to give a high standard of nursing care. You do not have to become their friend in doing so.

I agree, hospitals have been dumping their weekend only shifts for several years now. It's very, very expensive for the hospital, and like it or not, there is a money crunch pretty much everywhere. However, making you interview for the same position is really weird and I would ask HR about it. Or go to corporate. That just stinks. It's an obvious ploy to get rid of higher paid nurses while bringing in cheaper new grads. (Nothing against new grads, but this really isn't right)

Yeah if you think the work is never done in 12 hours, try getting it done in 8. I'm middle aged and 12 hours can be rough, especially in the ED. But I have 4 days off a week. Working 5 days usually mant 3-4 days of working, one day off then another one a couple of days later. It felt like I never had time for myself because at the end of a work day I was still tired and had little time to get anything done, so my days off were spent doing work at home.

In my old ED we all wore pedometers and averaged 13-16 miles each shift, each person. Needless to say we were tired.

I'm just back to emergency since a few weeks ago. Our manager wrote Happy Emergency Nurse's Week on the white board. So we don't have to worry about useless trinkets.

Did she sign a consent. I thought everyone needs to fill out that form form flu shots.

These days in particular, hospitals will probably frown on a nurse taking so much time off. Many places only allow two weeks off at a time, and definitely not every few months. They need to be able to count on staff being there regularly. Working for an agency is probably the way to go, but with the economy, agency nurses aren't getting that many hours, and most require that you have at least a solid year or two of experience before taking you on. Age isn't likely to be a barrier, but depending on where you live, a lot of places aren't hiring new grads, period. In time, this will change again.

I think if they want fresh baked cookies, Mr. Clemens needs to put his apron on and get cooking. No way should this ever be a nursing function. And as said before, what about all those poor people who cannot eat them? I'm sure they'll be mentioning that in their Patient Satisfaction surveys.

It wouldn't be appropriate to put either of those titles on until she's earned them. Just her name will be fine.

It does vary by facility. Many require certain objectives to attain each level, such as getting a BSN, getting certified in your specialty, years of experience, CEUs, holding in-services, etc. Check your manual or ask your manager if there are specific criteria for each level, and what they are.

This would have been a good thing to take to HR for mediation. Management didn't bother hearing your side of the story at all and should have.

Most boards require that information so they can confirm that you're actually working to keep your license active. I have to fill that out every time I renew my license. Most other professions don't necessarily have licences that have to be renewed regularly. Those that do have their own requirements to be met.

It takes me about 1 hour, 15 minutes to get to work. More if there's been an accident. In that case all bets are off. There really aren't very good jobs that pay well at all close to home. Now that I'm back to bedside in ER, it's only 3 days a week. I've done commutes like this for years so I'm used to it.

I would tell them I will not do such a thing unless it's in writing. And if they put it in writing I'd send it to the state's hospital association, Joint Commission, CMS, and while I was at it, the State's Attorney General. If they won't put it in writing and there are several witnesses, you get together, write up a document stating this is what you were told. Get everyone to sign it, and send it to you're state's hospital association...etc. And just in case there were threats to people's jobs, what the heck, send a copy to your state Labor Board. And then you do this :trout: to those administrators. Maybe it will wake them up. I'm evil.:angryfire There is no way I would tolerate such a thing. Seriously. They have no right whatsoever to dictate a physician's medical practice. It's unethical, it's illegal, amoral, and any other bad thing I can think of. I'm in a cranky mood to begin with. Can you tell?

I think if a doctor has the time to dictate to a scribe, then he or she has time to type it out himself and save the hospital the money.

Unless the DON has prescriptive privileges or there are standing phsycian orders, no way. It's illegal. Document and report it to the BON and CMS. Same goes for the nurse pushing Lasix.

Each year a new seasonal flu vaccine is released. That's not tested for years, either.

Healed scars are not an infection control risk. If you cut recently and the wounds are open, then you are at risk.

Without a degree or a lot more training, you aren't likely going to be making more than that in healthcare.

It loads fine for me. Did you try refreshing?

So the available supply of H1N1 vaccine has effectively doubled. Good news.

I'm trying not to let these stories get to me, but it is demoralizing to think about. This is just the beginning.