kmokay

well no, we're not licensed, but we are patient care providers. My job is to assist in procedures, there are only a handful of nurses in the entire clinic that sees 700-800 patients daily. Without us, I don't see how the docs would be able to get very much done. So do have the right to be in the room. yes I do clerical work, but there is also direct patient care involved. And in the case that there is direct patient care is involved, I don't think there is any violation of hippa. but then again the rules of hippa are abundant. really i think that most of it comes from the fact that I look 15, I don't see my co-workers being spoken to this way. atleast not that i'm aware of, but then again i could just be oblivious.

I work at a outpatient clinic as an ambulatory care assistant, I basically assist the doc in procedures, vitaling and putting patients in rooms, and paperwork. Well, I give one of the patients a list of medications we recieved for her to update. She asks me what a specific med is because she's not sure if she's taking it. and at this point we're extremely busy, just after lunch, i have five charts/patient to prep to be put in rooms, its clearly past their appt times and docs are angry. Instead of looking her med up for her, I simply tell her "I'm sorry, I'm not familiar with that drug, maybe its something you might want to speak with the doc about when he see him". She proceeds to reply with a "well you SHOULD know". This made me so angry. Its not my role to be familiar with all patient meds, I'm not a nurse, and I don't deal with medications. I do clerical work and vital patients. I wanted to say "no, YOU should know, if i was taking medications you can be damn sure I would know what they were". Instead, I just apologized. What would you have said to a patient like this, patients who expect you to know things beyond your scope of practice and get mad when you don't. another instance was today during gyn exam, I was assisting the doc. Fixing paperwork and getting supplies ready for the doc as he was doing the exam. He tells me he's needs to do a vulvar biopsy, so I proceed to get the supplies and paper work ready. The patient asks me where the biopsy was going to take place and I explain to her the region. Well she thens asks me which side, and I didn't know left or right because I wasn't watching the exam, I was getting things ready for the doc as he needed it. She then tells me, "isn't that your job" in a condescending type of way. I told her that I was not looking when he was examing and that my back was turned. Afterall, its not a collaboration, nor would i expect the doc to scoot over just so i can see , he does his thing and I do mine. I really wanted to say "no, its not my job. I was doing my job, sorry if I did not share the interest in scrutinizing your lady parts!" I just never know what to say to defend myself in these situations with patients, so i end up feeling dumb or like i'm not doing my job over things that aren't my fault.

i don't know how much to withhold. i tried the irs calculator and here's what it says. based on your responses, your anticipated income tax for 2006 is $211. if you do not change your current withholding arrangement, you will have $0 withheld for 2006, leaving $211 due when you file your return. to meet your anticipated tax of $211, change your current withholding arrangement by claiming 0 allowances plus an additional amount of $46 for the balance of 2006. here's how: enter 0 on line 5 of your [color=#661c80]form w-4. divide $46 by the number of paydays remaining in 2006 and enter the result on line 6 of your form w-4. this is the extra amount you need to have withheld each payday to ensure that you do not have too little withheld. assuming 10 paydays remain for a biweekly pay frequency, this amount is $5. check the "single" box on your form w-4.assuming this recommendation is in effect for the rest of 2006, your withholding will approximately equal your anticipated tax, and any refund or balance due should be less than $25. if i use withhold five dollars per pay period, then i would only be withholding 46 for the year. how to i withhold the $211 they mentioned? and why is there an additional amount of $46 to the $211 when it says my anticipated tax income is $211. i don't have a personal tax person to go to because i decided to switch this year. and i don't want to pay the $50 to visit a tax person just to ask this question. any advice would help, thanks.

well, when she saw me, my ankle was not swelling. it also was not hurting and as swollen as it is now. It wasn't until they sent me home that my foot started swelling and hurting more, all of which was not evident when the nurse assessed it. The reason for a cast boot is because I need the money so I need to work and I think I am able to do so without any safety hazard, its just me limping. and a cast boot will help to immobilize the ankle while its healing.

yes i have seen employee's health and the nurse told me to just to ice it and rest. But the only thing I want to know is if most hospitals allow their workers to come to work with cast boots on. Thanks for all your answers.

Yes i filled out a report and everyone knows about it. they sent me home early yesterday and i called in sick today. I suspect its a moderate sprain. I would like to work if they would allow me to using a cast boot. Do your hospitals allow you to work with cast boots?

I sprained my ankle at work yesterday, its hurts fairly bad. However, I want to continue to work. I would like to use a cast boot, do most hospitals allow an employee to work this way? I just got this job and its my first working in a hospital. I would like to stay home and rest it, but there's no telling how much time off work it will take. is it ok to go to work with a cast boot on? I feel bad taking more than a day off. I'd call my supervisor and ask but i'd like to see how it is at other hospitals first. I'm also per diem and its my second week of orientation.

we're all co-workers afterall. just like the guy that mops the floors doesn't call me "ms.--" or "nurse --" nor does the lady that cleans the toilets on our unit. we're coworkers, on the same level. so why must we address docs as "dr.---". Even if they were viewed as our superiors, I don't call my supervisors "ms.--" or "mr.---" I call them by their name, just like they call me by mine. Do docs get offended if you do this. I think its a nice gesture as nurses, but i think it also seperates us as healthcare providers. I mean to me there's an underlying connotation of superiority I think. I usually address them as Dr. so and so unless they ask me not to, but I just don't know the rationale behind this. Also what does it mean to document things aside from patient related info. Like if for a conversation between a nurse and a charge took place regarding the care of a patient that proves to later be critical. or if a staff is abusive, instances like that. Where would one document these things.

for every nurse i've seen stand up for ourselves, i've seen ten that don't. i've tried to ask this quesiton during nursing school and all i get from profs are "well thats the problem, nurses should stand up for themselves". well that doesn't answer my question. Why DON"T nurses stand up for themselves, i mean we're all co-workers when it comes down to it right? They can't fire us, or amm i just being naive and there is something i don't know yet. Like today, the nurse took a call for a doc and told the doc that she had a call on hold on such and such a line. Well the doc came out and said "who is it" and the nurse replied "i'm sorry, i don't know" and the doc chuckled in a haughty kind of way and said "well next time could you find out". She said it in a way that was arrogant as if she could walk the literally ten steps to the phone and find out herself. she didn't say please or thank you. it would have been find had she said "well next time, if you could find out, that would really help me out", but i mean, she acted as if the nurse was her personal secretary. the nurse's responsibility is to the patient she is taking care of and to assist the doc who is taking care of the patient with her, but not to be her personal secretary esp. if it is not related to the patient. It was a courtesy she thought she was entitled to. oh and sorry i kept typing that it was a doc, it was actually the FNP. another instance was when the nurse was at the station busy doing something and the PA had said something the nurse did not hear and she proceeded to said "are you IGNORING me?!" and the nurse heard her and said "i'm sorry, i'm not" half still busy. and the PA replied "okay...just DONT!". wow i mean, seriously, she really needed to get the *** down her high horse. is there is a certain reason, nurses take this. its not always flat out rudeness, its the tiny comments and gestures here and there that make me angry. can docs do something to get us fired or written up?