becca001

Oh, which one to tell... okay, received a call one night from a lady that wanted to make a reservation to be seen for her abd pain. She was shocked to find out we are open all night and don't keep regular doctor hours. (why don't more people think this way???) A elderly gentleman with a tattoo on his abd stating "Love Lifted Me" and an arrow pointing (you guessed it!) downwards. He grins and states "Yup, it still works". An object in the rectum that the surgeon, who has a sick sense of humor, packaged in a box complete with wrapping paper and a bow, and sent back to the ED doc. The woman that came in with multiple trauma (lacerated kidney, several rib fx, small pnuemo) was hit and pinned to the garage wall by a golf cart. The golf cart was driven by her 2 dogs. (neither had a license) Yup, this is a crazy world we live in

First, check with your BON to see if they have the same criteria. Your BON may further define sleeping on the job. Secondly, just off hand, I would say 'closing your eyes' for a short period of time is going to be considered sleeping on the job if you are supervising patients at the time. You and only you are responsible for being alert and able to do the job you've accepted with the patient load you took report for . If your facility will allow you to take a break, go into a break room and power nap for 15-30 minutes, then great but I would definitely check the policy on that and never, but never, count on that getting to happen. In other words, don't go to work expecting to get to sleep. Our main concern is patient care and safety. If you are not safe to work, then don't go to work. Trust me, I'm not going to have any sympathy for your sleep deprivation if my loved one dies because you were 'closing your eyes for a short period of time'.

Ahh, Kooky Korky, you said it much better than I. Thanks.:loveya:

It's just a common courtesy. My docs appreciate it and respond in kind. But then, you'll always get the few that act like buttheads regardless. It's then that you show your true professional self by rising above it.

I don't flip or try to stay up, then sleep at night on my days off. Too hard on the body and mind. Fortunately, I have a wonderful husband that understands and guard my sleep. Mostly because as a firefighter, he knows what it's like to be up in the middle of the night.:kiss

Does your hospital require you to do bedside reporting? Has it increased your Press-Ganey scores? Satisfaction scores? I've seen comments before both for and against, and now that my hospital is attempting to enforce this style of report, I need some input from those that are actively doing this. Thanks so much for the feedback.:heartbeat

I was fortunate enough to work as an Emergency Room Tech during NS over the weekend nights. Every Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. This was a bit of a problem for Monday morning clinicals but I had a great boss and even greater nursing staff and thus doable. Remember, where there is a will, there will be a way. Good luck on school

laynaER, I'm not sure you're getting my point. Reputation means a lot around my hometown. If I'm accused of gross negligence, my reputation will suffer. My employer may stand behind me and maybe not. Just the accusation is enough to cause most to question the whole case. Proof is something that is only required in a criminal court of law, not civil. And the public will think whatever they want. Actually, you kinda proved my point in your next post. No matter what the union rep said, the public convicted them in the court of public opinion.

Okay, so this may be a bit of a stretch but...in my state, the Good Samaritan Law states you won't be held liable for acts rendered in good faith when outside a compensation setting (ie auto accident) but there is no protection for gross negligence or omissions, etc. So, it could be argued that if a nurse fails to stop and render care and someone recognizes them as they pass by.... a lawyers dream case. Bottom line, I stop at accidents and carry good liability insurance. (small town living means everyone knows everyone else)

Okay, so this was from when I worked at the female prison. Had a female offender that had recently gotten into enough trouble that she was anticipating going into segregation. Now, offenders don't get many things while in seg, the whole point is that it is a form of punishment. So, this offender is anticipating this to happen on a Friday but lo and behold, the seg committee didn't convene for her offenses and she was forced to approach one of the male officers to request to go to sick bay and see a female nurse. Found in the vaginal area was a full pack of cigarettes, a lighter and tweezers. Said she placed them there and couldn't retrieve them when needed.

Look at it in terms of building a foundation. If you start in Med-surg where a vast array of medical conditions are seen, you build a broader base of knowledge. Let's face it, some specialty areas are more interesting but you've got to make certain your foundations are solid

I wear a short lab coat with cuffs at the sleeves because I get cold easily and it's easier to take off a layer when hot. Advantage to a lab coat is extra pockets. Disadvantage is I sometimes get mistaken for a doctor before I get a chance to introduce myself.

Thanks for both replies. I guess what I'm asking is, if the pacer is there to prevent an arrythmia from occuring that will be fatal, is turning it off a way of 'hurrying' the dying process along?

As a new nurse on a step down unit, I was assigned a little lady that had a massive CVA. The family had decided comfort measures only (pt was 92). The family had many questions about her and was very caring, truly appreciative of my efforts to make the patient as comfortable as possible. On the last day, the family became very concerned about the pacemaker and it's role in the DNR and dying process. They wanted to know if her heart would continue beating for any length of time after she stopped breathing, and if so, could we just turn it off. I was able to fumble my way around the first part of the question although I still don't know how long a pacemaker might keep the heart functioning before it can no longer fire any impulses. The latter part was answered by the PCP (bless his heart, he was wonderful with the family) when he said he didn't think it would make any difference. Pacemaker dx was heart block. Question I have is, if it had been a different dx for the pacer, would it then become more of an ethics question? Such as Sick Sinus or something else that might have had an impact on the length of life? Any input is greatly appreciated.

Today, along with 23 others, I will take the pledge and be pinned. I want to thank all the nurses that have came before, for your wisdom, instructions, assistance, hugs, encouragement and everything else you've done. Without all of you, there would be none of us. Continue to do what you love and by doing so, you pass that along to the rest of the world.