DogWmn

I currently live in NE GA where a snow/ice event is rare, so rare that chains are illegal in this state and you can't even buy them. But several years ago while working as a PRN patient sitter/tech a snow/ice event was forecast. I called staffing and asked if they'd like me to come in a head of the storm as I doubted I could get out if the event happened as predicted. I was told I would have to PAY for my own hotel room which would have costed more than I would have made on a shift! No support what so ever. Well we had a really big snow storm for us and several inches of ice on top of it. I live rural and I couldn't get out was trapped in my home without power for several days. So I was off when the storm started but I had signed up for a shift now keep in mind it's PRN we called 2 hours before the shift started and if there was a patient we got the shift. No patient no shift. I couldn't afford several days of hotel room and food ect. The next day when I woke to the snow/ice and knew I was going to be stuck for several days I did call and tell them my situation giving them warning yet when my shift came up I was still trapped and couldn't get out and I wasn't fired but I got a huge ding on my record. If the facility isn't going to help us with hotel rooms and no guarantee of a shift ~ I certainly couldn't afford to pay for a room that would be more than I'd make for a shift and not get paid at all.

NOOOOOOOOOOO way wrong ~ you need to find another job. If you are a CNA and a med aide each state clearly defines what you can and can not do.

Hi everyone, last year I got my CNA and have had difficulty getting work due to my age ~ very active fit 66 year old! I was an LPN from '72-'92 burnt out and left nursing my license is not active in this state and due to financial and time constraints it's just not feasible to go thru the process of getting it back. So My CNA instructor called me out of the blue and asked me to apply to the very small rural hospital for an ED Tech position ~ she works part time there ~ I was needless to say honored and mega flattered she picked me out of all the CNA's she's taught over the years. I got the job!!! It will be part time ~ every Saturday from 9a-9p. This ED is not a trauma center, they stabilize and ship out, it's more like an urgent care center most of the time. My question to all of you ~ what things should I be brushing up on??? In the interview I was told I will remove sutures, foley's, and a wealth of other things ~ the DON was an LPN first and is not much young than me, they both realize I'm a bit rusty but feel I will be able to do more than most because of my experience. Since 2008 I've worked as a Patient Sitter/PCT working with 1013's and dementia, got laid off 3 weeks before I turned 65 so I took the CNA course, since then I've only been able to get part time work through our regional Senior community council on aging ~ I did a stint at an adult day care center and now work part time at an out patient mental health facility doing medical records work. I'm very computer literate and have utilized a variety of Electronic Medical Records programs. So tell me what you as nurses want and expect from your Techs! Thanks

Working as a PCT will teach you so much that you won't learn in school, real world experience with patients, their families and other staff. The big one will be time management skills ~ that alone will be worth it. As a nurse you will utilize your PCT skills every day ~ if your a good nurse. I worked as an aide (we didn't have CNA's back then) it gave me many opportunities to discover if nursing is what I wanted to do, I often talked with the nurses asking them questions about what they liked and didn't about their jobs it gave me an opportunity to observe what they did and also ask about schooling. Before you invest any more time in school you need to decide if this is really what you want to do.

I worked as an Office Nurse in a University setting where FP residents were trained & we did OB, Peds, small procedures and I loved it it was fast paced and we did everything. I also worked in a rural FP clinic next door to a 35 bed hospital pre-urgent care again doing everything from cradle to grave. It was fantastic and you never knew what was coming in the door besides the scheduled patients. Lots of pt education and getting to know the whole family and their dynamics.

Their pain is what they say it is, as nurses we are their to care for them not to judge them

I worked as an LPN for 20 years and finally burnt out ~ I never wanted to be an RN too far away from the bedside ~ I was lucky that most of my career was in hospitals before we were kicked out. They other part was in Family Practice clinics and for the most part that was a great job caring for patients from cradle to grave ~ then the Docs started hiring MA's so I did a stint in a SNF ~ in hind site I wish I would have gotten my PTA ~ I've talked to many of them and they all seem to love their jobs ~ so if you want to stay in the medical field and utilize your LPN experience go for a PTA ~ those jobs aren't going away and you can get additional certifications in specialties you have a national License ~ but fair warning make sure of your state regs and don't let your nursing license lapse I wish you luck

Yes there are still plenty of LPN jobs ~ I've been hearing the "phased out" since 1972 when I graduated ~ it's BS

I guess I'm floored ~ I'm an LPN grad '72 we had tons of clinical hours as my program was based on the old hospital based diploma program. I was well prepared for the job I was hired to do and those diploma new grads could hit the ground running with little orientation they were a joy to work with ~ my concern is this new grad's program is badly lacking if after 3 months of orientation she couldn't handle the job ~ scary So many schools today don't have enough clinical hours ~ my last term we were given close to a full assignment of patients we learned time management skills in school, we also had what we then called "brains" a form we filled out at report and carried in our pockets about each one of our patients with notes to make sure we did it right and on time. Back then we also had team nursing with total patient care ~ there were no cna's or techs only LPN's and RN's ~ those patients got fantastic care! I would ask the OP if others in her class are having similar problems?

Hmmmm Welp I graduated when dinosaurs walked the earth in '72 from an LPN program ~ we had more clinical hours than the ADN and BSN programs only the Diploma nurses had more. I was fully prepared for my work and it took 20 years to burn out and move on to other things. Back then there were only RN's & LPN's in the hospital no cna's or techs. My favorite jobs were working in rural Family Practice long before urgent care ~ we were the urgent care along with doing cradle to grave care seeing whole families OB and peds ~ no matter what the schedule said there were always a few surprises ~ It was fast paced but doable, I felt like I was making a difference too. OP ~ 1st ~ get out from where you at NOW! 2nd evaluate what you did like about nursing and go from there. With a BSN you will have many doors open ~ look at something like sub accute or Skilled Nursing Facility as an RN you will be in management not direct patient care. 3rd you need to get some help dealing with this, I don't know if your facility offers anything but they should at least have a help line you can call. 4th your health comes first, if your not healthy you can't give good care with the stress you are under. BTW as a side note ~ I let my nursing license lapse ~ big mistake and the BON in my state told me I must take my whole program over again and at 65 I wasn't going to do that(waiting lists and costs would have me at 68 and in debt). So I just graduated from a CNA course and I'm a "new CNA" LOL Don't give up ~ get healthy and work some place else ~ there is a job out there for you.

Congrats I take mine on 5/12 ~ I went through the WIA at Athens Tech ~ great course great instructors ~ and they even have a 3 week boot camp after to hone our skills test!

Oh so true I was an LPN from '72-'92 quit due to burn out and then in '08 I lost my real estate related job and my profession as the market crumbled. After 4 years I was able to get on as a patient sitter at a regional hospital ~ I was laid off 3 weeks before my 65th birthday. The nurses loved me and often requested me to sit with the most difficult patients due to my prior nursing experience, yet all I was told was to apply for other jobs at the hospital which I had done with few interviews. I have 2 friends who are in their late 50's and early 60's who are still working at that hospital as RN's and live in fear of loosing their jobs since we live rural there are not a lot of options. The 4+ years I worked at that hospital I was quite frankly shocked at how the older nurses were treated ~ they were our gold mines when I was a new nurse. Everything is so true ~ but what's the answer? Hospitals are unwilling to train and staff correctly and the patient care suffers. I'm terrified of ever being admitted to any hospital in today's world.

I find this thread quite interesting. From '72-92 I worked as an LPN in mostly hospital environments, Med-Surg, Ortho, ICU and even ED ~ I ran the suture/cast room. During that time there were NO aids/pcts it was just nurses. We also had team nursing back then. We were all professionals, the patients were well cared for, we got our breaks and if we had a late admission we all helped out so no one had to stay late or everyone did until the admission was finished. I LOVED TEAM NURSING. As LPN's were run out of the hospital I became a charge nurse on a Medicare floor of a very large SKNF. The Aids and Orderlies were good and caring. Again Team work in play. We had 1 RN as a shift supervisor and the rest of the floors had LPNs as med passers, treatment nurses and Charge. I left nursing after 20 years with burn out. In '08 at the age of 58 I lost a job and profession I loved as a Real Estate Title examiner. After 4 years of unemployment I got a job as a Patient Sitter ~ so I got a real eye opener as to the Techs ~ some were great, some good some awful and often it was directly related to floor management. September of '15 I was laid off 3 weeks before I turned 65. Soooo I am now in a CNA program through our local CC because I need to work at least part time to supplement my SS. I'm very surprised at the depth of the program. It has many more hours than OBRA requires. We learn not just the skills but the whys behind the skills. I start clinicals this week! then we go for 3 weeks of "boot camp" to prep for the 2 part state exam ~ a multi-guess test and a timed skills test done with a state examiner standing over you! I'm old enough that I sat for the State Test Pool exam. I will be a "new" CNA soon and an older worker! I expect to be treated with respect by my co-workers and that means ANYONE be it nurse CNA, dietary etc. We are all there for one reason ~ care of the patient. So if one of you ends up working with me ~ I might not be the fastest, the strongest ~ but I will be a GREAT CNA! So for those of you who are having problems with your co-workers you need to spend some time reflecting on WHY and figure out what YOU can do to implement positive changes. My instructor in my CNA class is ALWAYS positive ALWAYS and it's infectious and it's one infection we should all want to get! To the OP ~ on your way to work think of one thing your grateful for ~ work on ways to walk through the door at work with a smile on your face and leave your problems at the door. Find little things at work that give you joy. If you can't do these things you need to consider either a job change or career change. Staffing in healthcare is abysmal and it's not going to get better. If you want to stay in nursing ~ become the innovator ~ the problem solver ~ work with ALL the staff to come up with ways for everyone to work smarter and involve the staff in these changes ~ make them feel they are part of the solution and part of the team. I wish you luck OP no one ever said working in the field of medicine is easy for anyone.

OK so I do have chronic Lyme/Tick Borne diseases and the info as usual is mostly incorrect. If anyone really wants to know about this horrid disease - don't follow the CDC protocols. Check out ILADS - End Lyme disease epidemic through education, awareness & physican training. to start. It's very complicated disease. I also belong to several FB groups that update info all the time. Sadly those of us in the Lyme community have been trying to get info out for decades. Few docs know how to treat correctly. if you get a tick bite - see an LLMD - a Lyme Literate Medical Doctor ASAP.

One size doesn't fit all, it will depend on your finances, time, age and a lot of other things. Look at all your options, what's available in your area, sit down and run the numbers. Only you can decide, for me I wouldn't want to go into mega debt - not a good way to start out. It's a hard decision to make and good luck

After 20 years I had major burn-out. Also as an LPN trained in bedside nursing we were being tossed from the hospitals and I had no desire to become an RN. I did find another area that I liked and that was rural Family Practice clinics (long before urgent cares) we did and saw it all from cradle to grave! I loved it but the pay was pathetic and I could hardly make it from pay check to pay check. Choices continue to dwindle and nursing was all I had ever done so I left and worked as an admin in IT departments and enjoyed it that went away and learned to run titles as a real estate title examiner history of the land but as we all know that died in '08. So now I work part time PRN as a patient sitter with 1013's my long dormant skills came flying back to the surface and I'm good at it -very good, I often am requested for difficult patients by unit managers....LOL crap pay but it helps supplement my SS. Would I become a nurse again - NO? I see what goes on today and I would not care to do it again. It's the patient that suffers the most and bedside care has left the building never to return.

Thanks, I'm a retired LPN and now work as a Patient Sitter, it's a hard almost thankless job. But someone's got to do it.

Class of '72 and proud member of the crusty old bat club!

I graduated when dinosaurs walked the earth in '72 and worked 8's, I did try a few 12's, but now at my age forget it. We recently lost a nurse who fell asleep on the way home. I really do not think they are safe.

It continues to be a problem, staffing is VERY low, often NO techs. By the time the RN comes around the first time it can be as late as 9:30 or 10. So that's 2 1/2 hours to 3 hours before the patient is even seen by a nurse after shift change. I do my best to work with the staff on scheduling a break but when I'm not seeing them until this late it is a problem. Often times I can't ring the bell as the patient is asleep and I would get chastized for waking them up as it is answered by the front desk via intercom. Hourly assessments...LOLOLOL. When I first started a year and 1/2 ago staffing levels were good, we now have new management and they have cut to the bone. Patient sitters in our hospital are considered "non-medical", so we are often ignored when staff comes into the room. I am continuing to put down no dinner break and it continues to **** off staffing management. Even getting a potty break is difficult and at 62 I just don't have the great bladder I used to. I really am trying to rack my brain for a solution that I can put forth and it all seems to boil down to low staffing and high census issues that are chronic.

I did go to staffing and got a less than positive response, since then I've not gotten any shifts even though there is a patient.

The problem is some of the units are short staffed and they have no unit sect'y or techs. I do understand that it is a busy time, but we do need to get out of the room away from these pt's and I NEED to eat something. My last shift I asked when the nurse could relieve me and was told ohh around 1am...ummm I get off at 11...sigh. Every time I put no lunch down the staffing office gets ****** and I'm not going work and get dinged for a 30 min break I didn't get (last I heard it's illegal). WeepingAngel patient sitter's can't leave the pt unattended they are either 1013's or fall risks and that's why we are there to begin with. I can't even go to the restroom without someone to cover for me and even that is getting difficult. I do understand how busy everyone is, however I'm asking for suggestions and possible solutions.

Right now I'm working as a patient sitter and we have 4 or 8 hour shifts, I work the 3-11 shift and all other staff works 12's. The problem being that the middle of my shift is 7p. I understand that is a problem, so when the night nurse comes through I try to plan a dinner break starting somewhere between 8 and 8:30p. Lately this has become an issue and I get told we just don't have time or how about 10:30...really? We used to have 12 hour shifts we could sign up for but no one did, sitting in a room with someone for that long is horrific. As patient sitters we have problems even getting a restroom break let alone a 30 min dinner break. It's like we are an after thought as far as the rest of the staff are concerned. I've been doing this for over a year and 1/2 and I've yet to get the legal required breaks ever. My question is: What's the answer? It seems to me that staffing should adjust their resources accordingly. In stead of just complaining about it I'd like to offer suggestions, but I'm not on the other side of the fence so I'd love to hear some suggestions.

I LOVE 3-11:30, I can sleep in if I need to, have plenty of daylight hours to do things and then go to work. I can't do nights, I've tried and it's not me, it actually made me physically ill.

OK so I''m old enough to have worked in a team nursing environment and I loved it, we only had LPN's and RN's no aids,techs etc. The new grad LPN's did the patient care until they could take their advanced pharm courses and sometimes some of the new grad RN's did the same, then there were rotations for med passing or we did total patient care including our own meds. But it was a very different world back then, everyone pulled their weight, we all left on time because if someone got buried with a late admission we all pitched in to get it done...including shift supervisors on occasion. Blew me away when I was working Ortho and we had several late admissions to our floor due to some traumas, the shift super came up and helped me set up a striker and get the patient transfered into to bed and set up. It was really TEAM work, we also were staffed well, we had floats that would be sent in for lunch breaks if necessary or help out if our census went up. These floats were very very experienced, sent to the "hot spots" throughout the shift we had both LPN and RN floats they were the cream of the crop, they also worked a regular schedule. Today health care is all about the money, not the patient and it shows.