dali92

P.S. One thing that has seemed to help, is our NM met w/the floor NMs & supervisors about expediting transfers, and now the supervisors are to be called if the floor nurse is not able to accept a patient- this has made a HUGE difference & cut way down on our "hold" times in PACU; and amazingly the supervisors hardly ever have to get involved.

I have also worked both sides, & I do try to be understanding when sending M/S a new post-op. I have held patients when able- but my experience is some floor nurses will take advantage of that- I'm told "the nurse will call back in 10 min" & then it's 20 min. later & I'M calling THEM again to see if they're ready yet. It becomes a game, as if the floor nurse envisions the PACU nurse sitting there filing her nails w/her one or 2 patients! It gets old to hear that the nurse taking that patient is at lunch (who is watching her other patients then?) & that it's shift change & they're "all in report"- yeah okay, but what if a patient needs something? Since report is taped, you can always go back & listen once your patient is settled- been there, done that. Some of my coworkers have resorted to calling the supervisor, particulary for the "room isn't clean" excuse. We are not sending unstable patients w/out of control pain- & when assisting w/transfer of the PACU patient from the stretcher to the bed, it is a little uncomfortable for the patient sometimes, so please don't ask us "Have you given ANYthing for pain?" One point that the floor nurses can't seem to fathom though, is that (at least where I work) PACU nurses are on call Friday from 3:30p.m. until Monday at 7 a.m. & we are expected to be at work Monday, even if we were there t 3 a.m. for a c-section. Yes, I can hold your patient for a few minutes, but please remember that we want to get home & try to get a few hours of sleep b/f coming back when you are getting to go home.

Automatic machines are used in the OR- & where I work, these are the same machines we use in PACU & in ICU. When we have a patient w/an A-line- and this depends on positoning too-- it is very close to what we get on the automatic machines, so yes, I trust them!!! I asked one of the CRNAs once what they did years ago-- he said they used to have to take every BP manually in the OR- AND w/no Sa02 monitors they were watching their patients VERY closely-- this was also in the days of ether! I would say if you're getting all high one shift and all low another then you need to look at the technique of the people taking them, and whether or not your machines are regularly maintained to function optimally. What I DON'T trust are the tympanic thermometers!!! I have heard the temporal ones are more accurate, but that's what they used to say about the tympanic ones. (the mercury ones were alot more accurate but not as quick)

I agree, there people that are frustrated w/poor working cond. & poor management, etc. that are perceived as negative. These people will eventually leave when they see things won't improve & nothing at the place will ever change-- places like this like newbies until the newbies get a clue- sometimes yrs down the road & then THEY leave-- one manager even TOLD me that he expected nurses to turnover every 5 yrs!! The problem is management doesn't really CARE about retaining hardworking faithful employees- or working to improve conditions-- it is far cheaper to hire newbies and pay them less --and so on. What is sad, is that rather than listen to the long-term employee, management just yells "negative" "poor morale" & are willing to lose a very good nurse & hire one w/maybe less experience or not as skilled, and coddle this person & put up w/all kinds of cr*p if they're "happy" and not complaining -for a while. Sorry to sound "negative" but there are 2 sides to every story. It is far easier to play 'stepford nurse' & lie low & stay out of the limelight- IOW put up & shut up. Sound like Russia? or maybe Iraq.......

LOL, this is good advice- you're right, everyone has their idiosyncracies-- & there has to be a certain amount of tolerance of each other to work together. We don't have to be best friends, we don't even have to LIKE each other (tho that helps!) we just have to WORK together.

have any of you ever worked w/moody nurses? I mean a nurse who is happy & productive one day & then acts depressed & avoids work for several days. I have worked w/this person for 7 weeks now and I have given up even trying to figure him out -- & forget relying on him, b/c we never know what "mood" he'll be in from one day to the next. We have brought this topic up to our manager, and she told us to "give him a chance"! Well, he IS a very good, experienced & competent nurse WHEN he's in that mode, but more often than not he seems to be struggling to get by- emotionally. I might add that I work a very very busy ED & there is no time to play counselor to a coworker & figure out WHY he is this way. He is also putting a burden on the rest of us who are competent EVERY day. Suggestions?