jasnms

As a male nurse, I will say that physicians do treat male nurses differently. Most are not sarcastic or show the God like complex to me. I have seen physicians treat female nurses with disdain as though they were his peons. Then this same physician would speak to me in a very courteous manner. The fact is that male nurses are treated differently by both physicians and female nurses. We are working in a world predominately filled with females. But my main concern has been and will always be providing patient care.

At one facility, we had a box that went directly to the DON. I have had those nights and was always the charge nurse. Even though I would try to assist, my own patients would go wacky on me. After numerous times of sending messages to the DON, I met a Clinical Nurse Specialist who actually came to the floor to see what needed to be changed. It took the CNS and I about two weeks to come up with solutions. One was based on patient acuity. If the day shift needed the extra people, the night shift needed someone extra as well. Another was to tell the house supervisor that they could send new patients to other floors that had plenty of nurses and not enough patients. Or to float one of the nurses from another floor. We also came up with a floating nursing pool where nurses would work different floors. A lot of nurses applied for these positions and it helped alleviate some of the frustration. However, if you feel that you need a break, take it. We all need a time out just to relax and not come home feeling frustrated and undervalued. It will make you feel better.

If the patient is cognitive, then it doesn't matter what the family wants. Our job is to provide care for the patient. I have worked in many nursing disciplines; peds and geriatrics can be the most difficult. But if a child is crying and you know it's because of pain, then administer the medication the MD has ordered. If the patient is elderly but not cognitive enough to say yes or no, use your own nursing judgement by facial grimacing, crying, how the patient is behaving. Remember documentation is everything. Document that the family is requesting pain medication and why you did or did not administer it. Documentation will save you from disciplanary actions.

Have you considered private duty nursing if it's available in your state? You take care of one patient. Home health is another option as well as hospice. Believe it or not, correctional nursing is actually easy. It's basicallly like working in a clinic. Hope everything works out for you.

I have been a Registered Nurse for ten years. During these years, I've worked in many areas of nursing. My last position was Director of Nursing for Private Duty. I have attempted to mentor nursing students by explaining things to them that they may not have grasped in class. I remember what it felt like being a new RN. I had a lot of book knowledge but hardly any nursing skills. I have seen experienced nurses refuse to help new nurses. I find this behavior appalling. I feel that we owe it to new nurses to teach them everything we know, so that our legacy of providing quality care is continued. Before I was DON, I usually was a charge nurse and preceptor. I encouraged new nurses to use the knowledge they had learned but also taught them nursing skills that they were unfamiliar or uncomfortable with. Nursing is not a profession. It is a calling. We are there to provide healthcare to everyone. This healthcare must be above standard. I once went to work for a facility that did not fully orientate the nurses. They allowed new nurses to provide care to patients after only two to three weeks. As the head nurse, I asked the unit manager to please place certain nurses with experienced nurses to allow them to learn. But this never occured. I had to write so many incident reports regarding the substandard care that our patients were receiving. I actually was ashamed of this facility. I understand about nursing shortages, but seriously, let's teach the new nurses good habits to inculcate into their nursing practice. Let's teach them that all patients are our patients. I dislike the words, that isn't my patient. Let's take new nurses and even student nurses under our wings and show them the joy that nursing can bring. As I have said, nursing is not my profession. It is my calling in life. I am tired of reading about nurses becoming burned out. If we teach them correctly the first time, they will be able to handle things. I was very lucky when I was in nursing school. I had two nurses that I externed with. These nurses taught me everything that they could within what the law allowed. After I became a RN, I was fortunate to shadow several nurses who taught me so many things that I didn't learn in nursing school. This is the legacy we should leave to the new nurses. Let's help them reach their full potential. As I look around at the open RN positions for most companies, I find it sad that nearly every ad states experience required. How can any nurse obtain experience if we do not invest in that nurse? So let's invest in the new nurses, teach them, guide them, mentor them, and let their superb nursing skills be the legacy we leave them.

You should also check with your state laws pertaining to private duty care with pediatrics. Some state laws require that an adult be present at all times.