CSHRN

It depends on the unit and the hospital, but in the units I have worked for in my hosptial the days jump around. Some people request to work 3 in a row to get a few more days off on the end, but it doesn't always work out that way, especially with per diems and part timers in the mix.

Did anyone else get annoyed at the line from Grey's Anatomy last night, October 29th, where one doctor says to Dr. Grey who will be assisting Dr. Shephard in the OR "Sounds like your his *****." Then ends with "Have fun playing nurse." Lines like this mess with the public's perception of Registered Nurses.

I get it all the time. I'm 25 years old, a lieutenant in the army reserve and have been a registered nurse for 3 years now. I am tired of the ER population looking at my ID after I have identified myself, or calling me "kid," "son," asking how long I've been a nurse, or when I finished school. Just the other day while orienting a new nurse I missed an IV start and asked my orientee, who is older than me, to give it a try. Later he told me the patient said, "I guess the newbie couldn't get it." I've heard I will look good in the future, but I want to be taken seriously right now.

I am an Army Reservist working in an ER on the civilian side. My hospital requires me to work two weekends a month. Add that to drill weekend and it comes out to three weekends a month at work. I am sure I am not the only one who has to deal with this. Any suggestions from those who have "been there done that" to get a better situation. I have tried to think of what nursing fields I could switch to. I like the challenge of the ER and have been there a little less than a year, so I feel leaving would be quitting, but I need to reclaim my sanity. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks

I found this older thread looking up an issue I have recently faced, so forgive me if there are newer threads on this topic out there.... I am glad to see that my hospital isn't the only one dealing with rudness from floor nurses. I was once a floor nurse and know what it's like up there. I think its funny when they try to explain to me like I dont know what its like, because I do. Now in the ER, I constantly get attitude. The floors don't like getting patients, they are always with a patient, or mad that I don't know every last detail about the patient's life story. My places is so busy, I don't have time for the details that I floor nurse would be concerned with. Forgive me for not knowing their diet, but it is in the orders. Just read the chart. In the ER, all I have to go on is the triage sheet, where as the floor as the full story written down. And I'm tired of being hung up on. How can these "caring nurses" go take care of peoples loved ones when they hang up on their coworkers?

Haven't been in the ER long, but no lunches are common. That hour is critical to recharging the batteries and getting away from the hecticness. Managment is working on hiring more, but the process is slow. I hope I don't get burned out because I love ER Nursing.

We just got an entirely new mangement team and they are amazing. It is great to see management out on the floor helping with patient care when it gets crazy as well as being there to mentor and laugh with. When it gets crazy, the meetings stop and they come out to help decompress the ED. I'm glad the old team is gone. I got a thankyou card in my mailbox thanking me for the hard work I did the other day. They put out bowls of dove chocolate each day for us. I am really glad to work for a team the supports its players.

I have the opportunity to get a position in the ER or an ICU. Both appeal to me. I know each unit has it's own "personality." I need to decide which one fits me better. Can anyone offer advice on those personalities so I can be better informed when making this decision.

I'm sure answers are going to be generally the same, but what are everyone's thoughts on Jcaho visits? I for one am glad they are here so they can go and we are done with all this for 3 years. The bosses are crazy and the rules are in full force. Cleaning crews I have never seen before are making appearances, calling people back into work to correct mistakes in notes, over staffing the day shift and the list goes on, have all shown up this week. Shouldn't Jcaho see the place as it usually is? I know that when anyone is looked at, you put your best foot foward but to me this clearly shows that with current staffing and procedures, in order to "pass" we have to have extra staff with people dedicated to reviewing charts to correct mistakes that are not life threating but happen. For example calling back a nurse who forgot to write "RN" after her name . Basically I think the show that is being put on for Jcaho is silly and if Jcaho falls for it, that is even funnier.

I was working with a Spanish speaking patient before I got our translation services set up and he says, "I don't understand english" and continues speaking to me in spanish. O told him, "Senor, I don't understand english" I realized what I said as soon as I said it, but so did the other english speaking patients in the four beded room.

I wish I could exercise but I am way too tired. Even on my days off, there is a "leftover" tiredness that doesn't leave and makes it difficult to get up and go running. I had two weeks off a few weeks ago, the longest time off since I've been in nursing and switched back to a normal sleeping cycle and had more energy than I've had in two years.

I work someone now that has a pretty poor professional work ethic that has fed up most of my other coworkers. We have brought this nurse's comments and actions, or lack thereof at times, to the attention of the manager. Nothing seems to really be done about it. But then again, maybe there was a discussion, but from our end it seems the same. When it is allowed to happen over and over again, it gets pretty discouraging that we work so hard and others can coast and get away with it.

Go ahead and switch. I see you already have a sense of humor which will come in handy in this career. Good luck to you.

I've been working a year and a half and have thought about quitting myself. I don't know what else I would do besides nursing. At first I really enjoyed working and then reality set in. Long hours, sick patients, short staffing, the night shift, working weekends, managers, and the list goes on. Aside from all of these, I like the profession better than I thought I would when I was in nursing school. I'm not planning on giving up, but I am planning on chosing an area of nursing that best fits me and my personality. My advice to other newer RNs would be to give nursing a chance because there ARE so many different areas to specialize in and can find your niche.

This is slightly off topic, but do any of you actually use a nursing diganosis in your practice? How does it fit in? And why does it fit in? We all know the reason the patient is there, what is called the medical diagnosis, but is it true we all learn about disease process in school. I understand that nurses are not allowed to diagnose, but what is wrong with taking the medical diganosis and knowing the nursing roles related to that. Does anyone truely follow nursing careplans or is stuff made up by non practicing theorist that "think" up ways to "empower" nurses?