kookiepumpkin

I would call around. Some hospitals don't have CNAs anymore. I'm in Socal , at my hospital we have PCAs and sitters. CNA license is not required.

I came across this on a job search site

I'm considering moving to FL. But I'm spoiled by CA staffing ratios 1:5 on med/ surg floor. What is the general ratio in hospitals in FL?

I'm 56 working in an acute surgical setting. I'm struggling with the ever increasing demand of real-time charting, Management is auditing faster across several topics than I can input/ update. It feels like it is more important to make the statistics and computer happy than the patients. Oh but wait, pt satisfaction is audited and rated highly too! I'm not as fast as my young coworkers, have aches and pains and an increasingly thin skin towards our manager who is like a machine spitting out emails with new requirements and data yet so far removed from the bedside. I feel burnt out, not heard, no more go-to fellow nurses because the good ones left and are replaced with new grads. I'm their go-to person and happy to help and prevent mistakes from being made. But this cuts into the time I need to complete my charting. I'm irritated by the incessant talking about their relationship issues in our charting room, it interferes with my concentration. I thought I could stick this out till retirement but I'm not sure... and don't know who to talk to without sounding like a complainer. Anyone else dealing with similar issues? Any suggestions are welcome!

Hi there, I get you! I was just told that I have moderate hearing loss and am niw facing getting hearing aids and trying to figure out which stethoscope will work. I joke around a lot to cover up my insecurities related to this issue. as for that comment in your annual review: I think it warrants a talk with your HR department. Many supervisors just climb through the ranks but are not too well informed about what is considered discrimination. Many years ago I was going through chemo and had a note from my doc that at my discretion I could ask to not get an admission on top of my high acuity assignment. My manager told me that maybe I could not continue to work on that floor. HR asked for a meeting and very quickly stated that of course I had that right as it is the law to accommodate. It wasn't an issue after that and most of the time I pulled my full weight.

I just went through an encounter with a pt with a drug seeking, manipulative personality disorder. I am originally from Europe, my accent is subtle but noticeable. It frequently becomes a subject of conversation with patients. I don't mind telling where I'm from. Pts usually have sth to say about the country, language, culture etc. In this case though, the pt demanded to know where I'm from, insinuating that my education is inferior and I should go back to #*% (somewhere in eastern Europe, not my country). All that because I refused to give her more narcotics and sedatives at that time as she was frequently falling asleep during the conversation, slurring her speech, low O2 sat etc. My answer to her was that it doesn't matter where people are from, that we all adhere to the same standard of care and don't judge people by their race and country of origin, therefore I would not tell her. Then I offered to have the charge nurse come and explain it to her. Needless to say, the pt - nurse relationship ended there.

I feel your pain. I wrote my resignation letter one night shift when I just couldn't hold it together anymore. I felt that we were understaffed , had unstable patients , a lot of float nurses, admits, nobody cared about us.... I look back now when it gets almost unbearable in my new job and remind myself of the hardship that followed. i wanted to do travel nursing for a while until I figured out what I wanted to do. I was diagnosed with BC during pre-employment physical for the next job. Thank god for COBRA! I was off for Tx's for almost a year. Plenty of time to think. By the time I was ready to go to work again, I changed my specialty from Tele to Onc. It wasn't easy to get a job after such a long absence and entering a new field. I never want to be in that position again. My recommendation to you: go to your Employee Assistance Program person, see if you can get some medical leave for burn-out, see a therapist to help you sort out where your unhappiness and not caring about your patients is coming from. Maybe registry or travel assignments are a better way for you in the meantime because you know you're not stuck in the same place for long. Good luck!! If you can't change something, change the way you think about it.

Yes, on my first day of OR observation I nearly passed out too. I felt it coming on when the scalpel cut through the first layer of an abdomen. The preceptor had her eyes on me and guided me to a chair when the color drained out of my face. it happened again when my brother was a pt in ER and had his blood drawn. Since then I had some close calls but was always able to breath through it and look away until it passed.

Congratulations! Hope it works out for you!

Sounds a little like my own story. I am a breast cancer survivor. Which caused me to change my specialty to oncology 8 months ago. When I went for my interview my hair was still very short, I thought everyone would guess. But I didn't admit to my own Hx until later because I felt that it should not be part of a hiring process. Although it has given me a different perspective, I rarely mention any of my own experience to my patients. I took a palliative care class where we discussed this and were told that it is not about us but about the patient and were they are in their process. It is debatable but I am comfortable with that decision. I can still use my own experience without going into details. I also am not so sure anymore that onc is "my calling" longterm. I find that I can't keep up with the workload, am more stressed because of it and disappointed that I can't spend enough time with my patients because there is too much to do. Nevertheless am I going to a Chemo class in three week and plan on getting certified.

This cancer is killing your loved one. We can't do more than we already have, don't keep asking for miracles. Change the code status to DNR, sign up with hospice and take him/her home and enjoy the time you have left together in a comfortable environment.

So sorry to hear that you had so little support from the mentor, tank god for the tech and the clinical instructor!

Just an update: It has been almost a year since my DX of BC. I survived chemo and just finished radiation last week. During the last three months I have occassionally worked through registry when my WBC's were okay one night a week. The radiation schedule did not permit working. Yesterday I went for a informal job interview and was basically offered a job. I am switching my specialty to oncology and they will pay for the classes and offer a bonus to become ONS certified! Nobody asked about my "short hairstyle" and I didn't bring it up. I feel I have just been given a new chance to accept this cancer as something positive that changed the direction in my life. Now my only worry is that I have the stamina and strength it'll take for the demands on a busy med/ oncology floor. And chemo has affected my concentration. But I also realized that in order to get a slower paced job down the road, I'll need to lay down the foundation now.

Yes, I would imagine when they see the medication list they can ask you but you don't have to answer. If you do they have to keep it confidential and can't withdraw the job offer. I also will start on Arimidex after the radiation. I only have three more weeks of chemo left and am feeling the fatigue now.