CEO

could someone please explain to me why taking medication from a patient seems to be generally regarded as "stealing", yet taking it from ward stock isn't. as a manager whose job it is to maintain my department's resources within a budget (amongst other things), i resent the widely accepted pilfering that is rife in my facility. if it isn't nailed down - someone will take it. hospital staff seem to think that their employer is responsible for providing free drugs, pads, stationery, food - you name it. it's stealing.

A mother bringing in an 15yo boy who had been playing on the escalator in the local shopping mall. He claimed to have gotten the bottom of his pant leg material stuck in the escalator, bent down and ripped it out with a hard pull. Nothing happened, no injury, no problem. She wanted a 'medical record' so that she could sue the shopping centre. When questioned the little *%$* admitted that he and his friends had been thrown out of the shopping centre by security officers many times for playing on he escalator. Another time we had a mother bring in 3 little snotty nose brats to be "checked for snake bite". Nothing had happened, nobody had seen a snake. No symptoms. She had read a report in the local paper that it was snake season in the area.

:rotfl: Of course I value myself and my workmates. Don't be ridiculous now. And, stop taking yourself so seriously. Perhaps you're valuing yourself a bit 'too much'.

To me, it is just common sense. It's not really about male / female nurses. As nurses we shouldn't care one way or another. (NB: If you're proficient with one gender and not the other - then seek re-education.) I think it's all about the patient. What would make the patient the most comfortable, how can we help them maintain their dignity, their personal wants and wishes. Patients are at their most vulnerable, and if they have particular wishes that centre around not wanting a male nurse or female nurse, or gay nurse or straight nurse - whatever - then we should do our best to accomodate these wishes whatever our own opinion. Additionally, there are some patients who act and behave in a way that give you a little hint that they might be litigious. They might have a history of legal action or are just big complainers. Any suggestion of that behaviour and I make sure that everything is done in a way that leaves them with no room for misinterpretation at their end ie. male to male, female to female, 2 staff in the room when procedures are being undertaken, more comprehensive documentation in the medical record - whatever it takes.

Farkinott, your comment ...."offending their delicate nostrils?! .." is a bit contradictory don't you think? You are slinging off at the sometimes high and mightly attitudes of some of the different professionals that we work with by referring to their 'delicate nostrils'. We are all aware of this type of behaviour - we see it every day in a stuck-up surgeon or allied healh professional, YET you're suggesting that as nurses we start acting in this way too! Quite frankly, you would be a pain in the ar#$ to work with. Where do you get off thinking that you are above other people. Nurses have suffered long and hard from having to work with other professionals who believe that we should fall into line with a master-servant relationship. I'm damned if I'm going to perpetuate that system so that I treat others as if they are subserviant to me. As far as I'm concerned it is a team effort. Housekeeping staff, food services personnel are professionals as well. If your definition of a 'professional' is someone with a degree then think again. I've worked with highly educated people with all sorts of degrees and some of them can't walk and chew gum at the same time.

YES I agree! too much info. ?professional And, the comment -my job is easy I just have to rebuild his face- this makes me wonder if the writer is feeling a bit self-important.

As a NUM, I will now add "how do you feel about removing the trash" next time I am interviewing to fill a position in my department. It worries me to think that I might mistakenly employ a nurse who would turn a blind eye to a full trash bin in the room of an ill patient. I empty trash, my boss empties trash and his boss empties trash. Who do you think you are?

RU Kidding? My sister is a teacher and often complains about the following: 1. Teacher to child ratio is a joke - you can't do a good job because there are just too many kids to make a real difference. 2. The pay is crappola ++ 3. Men rise quickly to the top with less experience and skill, leaving the women doing the real work 4. Not enough resources to do the job - management does not have enough money in the budget to buy them. 5. There is some excellent equipment and resources on the market that would make a real difference, but again no budget so all resources are 20 years old. STARTING TO SOUND FAMILIAR??

The issues that you raise are complicated. I don't really fully understand your qualification, suffice to say that if you're a nurse - YOU WILL GET A JOB. Perth is no different to any other Australia state - they too are experiencing nursing shortages. Age doesn't have anything to do with it, and many hospitals have schemes to get more experienced, mature nurses back into nursing by re-training them if they have been working in doctor's rooms or in non-clinical environments. Many hospital administrators would jump at the chance to employ an older nurse with a lifetime of experience. Whether our age impacts your immigration status is something I can't comment on. However if you get in touch with the Human Relations department of any major public hospitals in Perth or even corporate offices of private hospital groups, they will assist you in your application to come to Australia by negotiating to provide you with confirmed employment on your arrival. They probably won't offer to cover any of your costs, but as 'importing' nurses has become one of the strategies that Australian hospitals are using to fill vacancies, the people involved in these schemes are fairly knowledgeable about how to make the immigration system work. Good luck.

Australian hospitals are experiencing a shortage of experienced nurses and are very interested in hiring nurses from the UK. Most major public hospital and companies who own and operate private hospital would be pleased to hear from you, and will be able to offer you all sorts of incentives and assistance with setting up in Australia. Healthscope is a company that runs high quality private hospitals in most states of Australia, and will be able to offer you a range of positions to pick from. With respect to your dad's enitlements, I understand that Australia and the UK have reciprocal arrangement with this. If you register in Australia for Medicare, he might be covered. Again, a potential employer in Australia will look into this on your behalf - just ask. reason for edit: removed recruitment information