SMT_RN

Oh, I'm hangin' in there...not going anywhere! Despite this bull, I do love my job. My patients come first, and if I made one of them feel better at the expense of losing a few bucks for a sc injection, then oh well!

Where I work we still do paper charting, and don't see computers entering the picture for another couple of years. I can understand that, with the shape the economy is in, hospitals need to make sure they bill for everything they can. HOWEVER, to what extent should they go? We mark charge sheets for everything we do that can be billed...injections, IV fluids, etc. Lately we've been getting e-mails pointing out who missed what charges and how much that adds up to. The e-mail is sent to the entire staff. Night shift audits the charges and 'turns us in,' so to speak. If I catch a charge that night shift didn't mark, I just mark it and go on. This is part of 'that's why we're here 24 hours.' Not once have I seen anyone from night shift be fronted out for missing charges. I think this is affecting morale for some people...I know of one nurse who is interviewing elsewhere. My point...don't you think they should just send out a general e-mail listing the total missed instead of pointing fingers? I know they want to make us accountable, but come on! I think a general e-mail would foster an attitude of teamwork more than finger-pointing! And for the record, I'm not 'whining' just because I've been pointed at...this affects a lot of us here. No matter how hard we work, we're not perfect and can't catch everything. And I REFUSE to be so petty as to keep track of who on night shift missed what charges so they can be pointed out.