joy09

Redo nurses notes? I wouldn't do that. Stay away. Don't let them drag you back into that mess. I worked for an agency that assigned holidays without compensatory days off. The scheduler told me the other nurses worked right through. That's12 days on. People are damn crazy especially when it's someone else being abused.

This is a great thread you have provided, especially with your updates. I heard HH nurses are the most abused in the profession and I now see it and believe it. I work pediem and take up to a full load with the same results. I cant take a fulltime job because I just cant do it. Im going to refer a coworker to this thread. She is constantly hounded about OT. She refuses to work for free. The other nurses cut corners to get the job done or dont document all of their time. Glad you sre out. As soon as I find another job, I will be too.

How many patients do you see?

Fulltime? No.

The elephant in the room is that home care nurses are supposed to get six-8 patient visits, documentation and travel done in forty hours per week with few exceptions. Some agencies pay a salary to avoid OT. In my personal experience, observation and discussions with other home care nurses , anyone who can do that is cutting corners or working hours daily for free. The one scenario which is unrealistic is having stable patients who need only a basic assessment and easily understand basic teaching. They also need to live within a few miles of each other!

I burned out in five weeks covering for a full time nurse. I can't handle exactly what you describe. I do per diem while I look for another fulltime job.

I do alot of SOC. At first it took me 3a hours visit and documentation. Now, most of them are one hour in the home with some documentation and one hour to finish documenting unless it's a vac, significant wound care or other direct pt care or hands on with teaching.

One hour total for a basic visit. 1/2 with the patient and 1/2 documenting average.

Wet to dry and wait until morning unless assessment indicates need for a visit. I would not send a patient to the ER.

Can't beat that story! Imagine what you can accomplish in 8NO years with your health. Repost then!

Per diem used to mean you work the shifts you want to. No more in my neck of the woods. I must do weekends, holidays and call as scheduled which is equal to what the regular staff is required to do. When I am get called out on call I get paid mileage and for the visit. The regular staff gets time and a half from the time they leave the house until the time they return. What's the practice at your agency?

Toomuchbaloney is right. You need to draw boundries. Why are you putting your safety at risk in high crime areas, neglecting family time? Keep looking for a job and take the risk of honoring your priorities. You are entitled to and deserve a reasonable work schedule and to feel secure. Speak to the DON. Non nursing personnel don't have a clue and they think nothing of compromising you to fill the staffing holes. Short staffing is their problem, not yours!

I don'think there is a protocol but this is what would be done: PT eval on admission; the HHA would call the supervisor who would advise her until a nurse could get there (or would be directed to stay with patient and 911 called if necesary). RN would evaluate patient,and provide appropriate interventions; HHA/RN would submit incident report and it would be reviewed by supervisor; RN would notify the MD and patient contact andPT make recommendationsit to themPT and theWITH patient; everyone documentsrefers the hellPT out ofPT it.All of this would be documented.

Excellent post by Yosemite. I'll add that you should do as much documentation at the visit as you can. Don't get into the habit of taking notes.

I am paid like you: same pay for a short or extended visit. In the end, it should even out. Consider taking the patient just to help out and to get experience if you don't have it with the skills the patient needs. I would decline a two hour visit knowing the regular staff gets paid by the hour. That is too much of a discrepancy in pay to make it reasonable. Rarely make it about the money though. If you also have a scheduling issue, make it about that for now. BTW, I feel I can do this because I have taken many hour plus cases and have helped out in other ways that wasn't crazy about.