vsink

I just don't understand how to do it, I get interrupted all the time, and when I go into the room to give the meds, they've got to go to the bathroom or they need something else. I have to take blood pressures or AHR before giving some meds, or the patient will want to take the twenty pills they get ONE at a time and drink half of a gallon of water with each. I love the patients and do not want to hurry them, but I do not think I am cut out for LTC. I think 10 to 15 patients is do-able, anything more, I am risking my license.

I do not believe that any human can safely pass medications to that many patients and follow the 5 rights all the time. I am sick of the people in charge making good nurses make bad choices in trying to hurry to get all the meds passed in a rediculous timeframe. I challenge ANYBODY OF ANY DEGREE to pass medications using the 5 rights with every medication administration to pass that many meds in that timeframe. Even the people that make us try to do this unsafe nursing practice is unable to do this feat, It is all about the profit. If you happen to be the one to make an error big enough to cause harm or death, then your license is on the line, and you stand before the board all by yourself. Until all nurses band together and stop putting ourselves in this type of postion, it will not change. LTC in the United States is a JOKE!

I worked in LTC where I had sometimes as many as 23 patients and let me tell you that I worked non stop, doing medication administration with all the DM patients having to have BS checked q4hrs! I had two brittle diabetics that took turns having sugar levels at 27 one night and the very next night at the same time it would be over 500! of course this means calling the MD each time on top of everything else. There is always the ones that will not sleep, will not stop getting up out of the w/c setting off the alarm which sends me running because God knows I do not have time to deal with a fall! I felt like I was inadequate at my job because I just could not get all the meds out on time, do all the treatments, and properly take care of that many patients and do a good job! I always want to double check my meds because I did not want to make med errors and this slows me down but if I make one mistake do you think the people that allow this type of scheduling to go on in the name of profit are going to back me up in court when I am losing my license because I did not take the time to double check! It is not worth it to me! I think the way the nursing homes are run with the ratios the way they are should be illegal! There are better laws for animal shelters than for all the sub- standard elderly hidaways other wise known as LTC! I want nurses to stand up and demand better treatment for these people and for us nurses as well, this has got to change. I wish I had answers to this craziness, we nurses are going to have to band together and change this, nobody is going to do it for us!

Hi, sorry, this wasnt meant to be against you in particular, probably should have just made a comment in a plain box but since I am fairly new to website, didnt do it correctly. Please forgive.

I expect my relief to show up at the scheduled time! I do not arrive 10minutes early and do not consider myself late if I don't. If the employer wants me there to give report ten minutes early, then I will be on the clock! If you are injured during that time frame, your employer is not responsible because you are off the clock. If I am scheduled at 6 am , I do not clock in until 6 am! This bs of working off the clock has got to stop! Besides, is it not illegal to work off the clock and why do so many nurses continue to do it? And the employers expect it! It is Bulls**t and has to STOP! The only way to change it is for all nurses to ban together and refuse to work off the clock. It totally drives me crazy when nurses come in off the clock early to "get ready", why would you give your employer all that time, don't you think that your family deserves that time, or even you, yourself deserve that time. Seriously. we've got to stop this practice of giving all this time away. There is no human way to get everything done in the alloted time frame and the employers know this and as long as you are willing to work for free, it will continue. Curious as to how others feel about this.

Hi, am still a fairly new nurse. could you explain the "ICU being an ADHD person's heaven"? I'm not really familiar with ICU and am just not "gettin it" Thanks

I have been a LPN in a nursing home for almost 3 months! I just put in my two weeks notice! The med pass is making me nuts!