RN1989

This isn't theoretical for me - been there done that. Years ago had a hurricane coming - my hospital was just a few miles from the beach. Went to work with clothing and flashlights. Eye never got close to us, just had heavy storms. Husband was rid...

If you leave because of the staff.....well, you know the grass isn't always greener. But, if it looks like the facility is unwilling to assist you to make the changes needed for safe, competent care.....chances are you will never/be allowed to make t...

:chuckle Patient safety is what healthcare is about??!!! That's the funniest thing I've heard all morning. Healthcare is a business to make money. That explains why so many facilities are for-profit, including insurance companies - the care is on...

Something else is going on that we don't know.

I don't know of any hospital that does NOT have standing orders for nitro, o2, etc. for chest pain. If you believe that someone has cardiac related chest pain, do not wait for the doc to call you back before you do something. Standing orders are the...

A career counselor at your college should be able to give you a better picture of things in your locale.

If you don't stop this here and now, you will jump from job to job because you didn't face your fear and deal with it. Bullying and CNAs trying to be nurses without a licence have been going on forever. I highly doubt that it will stop, even with ...

Unfortunately, this is happening more and more frequently and not everybody can or will be able to jobhop so much. With CMS reimbursement regs coming into play this fall, I anticipate that things are going to get MUCH worse and more people will be w...

Every place is different. You need to ask more specific questions of your prospective employer/supervisor. They should have written P&P on this, if they don't - don't take the job.

YOU ARE THE NURSE!! Chant this mantra to yourself until you believe it and get a set of cajones - "I am the nurse, I am the nurse, I am the nurse"! When you get report, make up a sheet with weights, blood sugars, diets, activity, foleys, diapers, bat...

What I would do: I think I'd want a copy of my position's responsibilities as well as the job descriptions and list of responsibilities of all the other staff. I would also ask my supervisor if there are any other expectations of me and the other st...

Remind your facility about the latest Sentinel Event Alert regarding bullying behaviors. Although the newest regs are aimed at facilities controlling these behaviors perpetrated by employees and docs, it would take very little to get these regs move...

there are many resources, do a web search.

Now that's a scary thought! That just reinforces my opinion of many of the nursing schools there when the passing rate is so low.

Since you've obviously still had a job despite the charge, that should go a long way. Read the application carefully, sometimes they are only asking for stuff in the last 5 years. If so, there is no need to disclose. You might consider writing up ...

In this troubled economy with Medicare/insurance reimbursement about to get worse, nurses are going to find that facilities are going to be choosier about when to hire and which candidate is their top choice. If you really want a job, you need to tak...

If you could come up with a viable plan to ensure staffing on both weekends and weekdays, I'm sure your manager and facility would be willing to listen. Be part of the solution, not the problem.

You need orders by the doc or protocols to follow that have been approved by the medical staff. If your facility does not have a WOCN that comes around to assist you and you don't have protocols, consider getting your facility to research and write...

They generally feel like they have been kicked in the chest by a mule when their ICD fires. They KNOW it when it goes off. Considering the gender of this person along with a "young" age of needing and ICD - he was probably being a weenie and allow...

My facility had an excellent ed. dept. I was sent immediately to management classes when I was appointed charge nurse.

No, there is no such thing as a "ratio". The nurse does as many as their facility has need of. You need to discuss with your DON any issues you have regarding the "load".

To all reading, don't forget about specific business/state taxes that have nothing to do with what comes out of your "normal paycheck like $$ for the IRS, Medicare, and SS. When you file to become a business entity, you are placed on your state's ma...

This is exactly why we make little progress in our profession. Everyone is too afraid to stand up. When will people learn that they can't terminate EVERYONE? One or two nurses - yes. But if the whole unit, hospital, state, country stands up and says ...

What is odd is that this is very true, yet in all those Gallup polls, nurses come out #1 ahead of the docs. I wonder if that is because the patients don't like the docs because THEY pay the docs and feel cheated, but patients don't pay nurses direc...

You are right, mandated ratios do not tell the whole story. Unfortunately the employers (as a whole) will not fix the staffing unless the government forces them to do so. It is a lot easier to get the politicians to understand number of patients t...