bcoaggiemom09

I'm no longer there, and glad of it. After speaking with several other former employees who have been let go since I left, we have determined that the new RDO has "cleaned house" of almost all management that had been in place with the prior RDO. This is a horrible place to work at if you are in a management position.

For the last couple of months before I left, the rumor was that Brookdale was being bought by someone else. Since BSL just bought Alterra, I can't imagine them being bought by someone else, but you never know.

I was working as a med-surg floor nurse and had a patient with a HUGE boil on her forehead. Her doctor was making rounds and told me he was going to lance it and asked me to get the supplies and meet him in the patient's room. This boil had to have been the size of a silver dollar, and probably stood almost an inch above her forehead. REALLY BIG!!! Anyway, he barely touched the "head" on it and "stuff" just started oozing out. It was white and had the consistency of cheese. He started pressing on the boil to get it all out. Keep in mind that there was only a pea-sized hole in the middle of this huge boil, so as this stuff is coming out, it's doing so in a long "noodle". I forget exactly how much he removed, but by the time he was finished, the skin that had been stretched by the size of the boil looked like the skin on an old man's arm: very wrinkled and loose. She had a perfectly round, pea-sized hole right in the middle of her forehead. Another time, I had a patient who had surgery on her heel. I don't remember the dx, but I do remember that she had very poor circulation and the doctor was very concerned because the wound wasn't healing. He ordered leeches. Initially, I was the only nurse on that floor that would apply the leeches. They were really cool. Before they are applied, they are the size of a slug, very dark brown with black stripes. When you apply one, all you have to do is use a tweezer and hold the leech close to the wound and it will independently attach. Just leave it there and when it gets full, it will fall off. We had to be very careful when we walked into her room because we never knew where we would find the detached leech. Once, I found it crawling up her wall!! The leeches were effective. I saw this same lady about six months later and she was doing fantastic and her heel and healed wonderfully. My family thinks these things are gross, but I think they are really cool. These are what I miss most about med-surg.

I posted this on another thread, but it applies equally well here.

WOW!!! I thought these things were just in my region!! The whole thing about marketing moving inappropriate people in? Yep...and when I tried to do my job by insisting that I be allowed to assess them prior to moving in, I was told that I could in the future, but it never happened. Back in August, I had five people move in on the same day, and I had not been given the opportunity to assess any of them. When I finally did get to do my assessment, I knew right away that two of them should have been going to a nursing home or psych ward. Whenever I would try to point out that someone wasn't appropriate, the question asked of me was always, "What do they need that we cannot provide?" My first Regional RN actually told several of the HCCs in my region that the only person she would always say no to was a female who is still menstruating. Other than that, anyone was fair game. I don't feel so bad now, knowing that there are others who have experienced the same things I did.

Nascar Nurse, you hit the nail on the head. Believe me when I tell you that things have not changed one iota. "Aging in place", management instability, etc.,.... bad place to work.

WARNING!!! As much as I loved my job with BSL, it truly is not a good company to work for. I was fired because of attendance. Supposedly I routinely came in at 10am and left at 3pm. This is ******** and the RDO knew it. If you go back and read my first post here, I said that you must be able to get along with your ED. Well, my ED quit in September and for two months I was doing my job and hers, without any help from my regional leadership. I could go on and on, but I won't. Suffice it to say, consider yourself warned about working for BSL. I'm very seriously considering leaving nursing because of this experience. I am so sick and tired of working my ass off for companies and always being worried that someone is going to decide they don't like something about me and I end up losing my job, and then be concerned for my license. I have heard horror stories from other nurses who did things in the normal course of their job that most other nurses have done a million times, and then end up having to go before the state nursing board to defend themselves. If any of my children ever told me they wanted to go into nursing, I would tell them HELL NO!!!!

It does seem like he just wants to make a bunch of folks mad, doesn't it?

JOHN123, If you do move to Texas I hope you leave your crappy attitude, obnoxious opinions, and the chip on your shoulder behind. We don't need them here. I am a NATIVE TEXAN and damn proud of it. If family reasons necessitate a move to the Lone Star State, then please come in a better frame of mind. Thank you.

Pretty much, yes. They have to do a background check on you and check your license. But if they decide to hire you, someone will be calling you within the next couple of days. Also, if you are hired, you will go to Milwaukee for boot camp sometime in the next few months. Enjoy it, and LEARN!!!! Let me know if you get the job. Good luck!!

If the decision is made to take a person off either/both of these drugs, for that person's benefit it would probably be best tapered. The problem with dc'ing these meds is this: Although there may be no noticeable benefit to continuing them, if the med(s) are stopped, there will be a decline. Family members will likely be surprised at the degree of decline and may wish to reinstate the med(s). Unfortunately, this will not bring the person back to the level they were at immediately prior to dc'ing the med(s). Once that decline has occurred, they will not rebound. I have had several families say they didn't feel the med(s) were helping their family member anymore and ask if they can be dc'd. When I explain the above to them, almost without exception they decide to continue the med(s). Hope this helps a little.

Shadow in the area that you think you want to work in. I precepted in L&D because I thought that's what I would want to do after graduation. I found out that I am not cut out for mommies and babies. Had I not precepted there, I might have ended up in a job I really didn't like.

Hi. I'm brand new here. Noticed the questions about Brookdale Senior Living. I am a Health and Wellness Director at a 37-bed Sterling House and have worked for BSL for about 1 1/2 years. I love it. Yes, the work can be exhausting, but for the most part it is manageable. For anyone considering working for BSL, one word of advice: The most important factor related to whether you like your job or hate it is whether or not you get along with your ED. If you two can't get along, it will never work. You have to be a team and have each other's backs. If you haven't already been to Milwaukee for boot camp, you are in for a fabulous time. They will put you up in a really nice hotel, feed you good the whole time, and you will meet a lot of other brand new employees, both HWDs and RNCMs, who don't know a whole lot more than you do. If you are a brand new nurse just out of school, I would not recommend BSL to you. Ideally, you need to be a mature person who has some business office experience, med/surg experience, and nursing home experience. All of these skills and experiences will come into play working in the HWD position. If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask. I won't give out my personal contact information or any details as to exactly where I work, but I will be glad to talk here. Good luck and I hope you all enjoy your time with BSL as much as I am.