SCgirl1962

Anyone using this software care to comment on how to streamline charting? I find this software very redundant. It's like doing a revert visit every time!

Previous computer program ( allscripts) could be completed in the home. Now using hchb and it is ridiculous! One pain assessment where pt had multiple pain sites had 60 questions that had to be answered in order to address and complete. If the pt d...

What are your hospice policies regarding disposal of unused narcotics in the home after a hospice patient death?

Allscripts is a terrible program... not user friendly and very cumbersome. That being said, after you've worked with it for a while, you can complete the admission documentation in about 1-2 hours but I never do it at the bedside. 2 admissions per d...

I work for a smaller office and the on call is my biggest complaint. I average 10 days per month. One night per week and one weekend per month wouldnt be so bad but since we lost a nurse, it's more like 2 nights per week and 2 weekend per month.......

Forgot to add that on top of the admission, I did 3 routine visits and spent a few hours in the office doing administrator duties..... :)

Did an admission today. Spent 2 hours in the home explaining the hospice benefits, doing the initial clinical assessment, getting paperwork signed and getting a list of all medications. Came home tonight and spent another 2 1/2 hours inputting the...

Allscripts is time consuming and not user friendly. Getting everything documented in the computer for an admission and all of the notifications to DME, pharmacy, MD's and other team members can take as much as 4 hours depending on the patient. My b...

Help! I have a 63 year old male pt. with pancreatic CA who has undergone a jejunostomy in the past. He is chronically nauseated and is having trouble keeping even fluids down. Currently he's on Haldol 3 times daily, Ativan prn, Phenergan supposit...

This patient is already on Phenergan, Haldol, Compazine, Reglan, Protonix, and Ativan. Felt that it was due to a mechanical obstruction, so I did get his permission to put in an NG tube. This has helped, and we are trying to get him scheduled to ha...

I work in a rural area and usually my caseload is 8-10 patients. ( which is really good ) I have had as many as 12 and that's okay depending on how far you have to drive between patients and how many visits per week you do. We are on primary call o...

I took the exam in Columbia, SC. Just got my results today. Cannot believe it, but I passed. I was sure that it was a lost cause after taking the exam!! Good luck!

Just wondering if anyone has experience with hospice patients having uncontrolled seizures. Case Scenario: Pediatric patient - 13yrs. with hx of seizures since age 4. Allergic reactions to most anticonvulsants - Dilantin causes Steven's Johnson...

We admitted a patient to hospice for end stage COPD. Unfortunately, he also has schizophrenia. Currently, his COPD is fairly well controlled. Unfortunately, his schizophrenia is not. The family calls us all the time stating that they want him in...

That's been a consideration. Gotta get with his MD on this. Wish we'd never started it though. It's harder to convince a patient that they can get the same relief by taking po meds once they've started on a pump.

Another great book is called " Midwives for Souls ".

Totally agree. When I first started hospice, I tried to attend all as well and I burned out very fast. Felt like I was in perpetual mourning. Not only that, but this job is very demanding and takes you away from from your family enough without go...

Thanks for the input. We went up on the doses of Versed and Valium and this has helped so far. Unfortunately, this patient doesn't have any IV access - both the port and PICC lines clotted repeated prior to our getting her on the program. I person...

We cover all meds related to the terminal illness for comfort/ pain control. I would love to have the e-packs, but we don't use them. To me, that would save a lot of $$ in that you'd only have a few of each e-med on hand instead of having to get sc...

If you truly enjoy the patient aspect of nursing, then forget about the treatment from the nurses you met while training. Unfortunately, sometimes it's true that "nurses eat their young". Maybe it's because most hospital nurses are overworked and ...

We've been told that under Medicare guidelines, a revocation must be patient/ family driven. While I understand this on one level, it puts the hospice in a dilemma when patients don't really understand the concept of hospice and end up going to the ...

Anyone who took the exam in Sept. 06 in Cola, SC heard anything yet? I'm on pins and needles.

We use CADD pumps occasionally - usually when pain cannot be controlled with oral meds and/or other methods of pain control have failed. I currently have a patient on a CADD pump for a morphine drip. When I checked his usage, he only pushed the but...

Anyone have any great ideas for chronic constipation relief for a parkinson's patient who has been on Sennekot-S, Lactulose,( according to his wife ) and Docusate Sodium and MOM ( according to me ) in the past without success? I hate to have to giv...

Just wondering what the typical caseload is for other Hospices - also are you in a rural or urban area?