RNnik07

Same as the previous poster... I've had patients well into their 20's on our floor. I've seen it with these patients as they have a condition/illness that is considered a childhood illness and our doctors are much more familiar with it than those on another floor.

Thanks, I didn't think of it like that. I'd rather float then get called off :) However I get very anxious when I have to float... Thanks everyone.

As a pediatric nurse I know exactly what you mean! Unfortunately to be able to do your job you do sometimes need to bring in another set of hands to help hold the child. Sometimes when the parents get involved it makes it a bit easier because it's mom/dad helping to hold them still, not a stranger. I also have used stickers, they do work to put a smile on their face. At the hospital I work at they have packages filled with a stuffed animal, coloring book, crayons, etc. so when a child is really upset about something (putting in an IV, cleaning a wound, etc.) we give that to the child when it is all over to help them calm down and to not be so upset. I hope some of those tips help. I think also explaining yourself (not in too much detail) before doing anything makes it easier!! Good luck!

I want to know if Per Diem nurses are always the first to float as I'm looking into working as a Per Diem nurse after my maternity leave. I'd like to do it for the flexability and pay, however where I am currently employeed Per Diems are always the first to float. I'm more comfortable in a familiar setting and don't enjoy floating, so I just wanted to see what I may be getting myself into! Of course as it approaches I will ask the individual facilities that interest me, I just wanted to get a better idea of what being a Per Diem nurse may be like where you work.

Things are going well. No changes in my pregnancy or at work. So far baby seems to be doing great! Headed to the doctor on Monday to see if he wants me to continue to work! Thank you :)

Thanks all who have wished me good luck with the pregnancy, I very much appreciate it. My husband and I can't wait to welcome our little baby boy into the world (who by the way was planned and we couldn't be happier!!) I just don't want to meet my baby too much sooner than March 30th - his due date!! I wasn't looking to start any type of debate. I just wanted to know my rights. I don't want light duty because I'm pregnant. I want light duty due to my complications/risks and because I want to be treated fairly at work like others who have been disabled. Anyway, I'll let you know what the disability office has to say, I'm hoping to hear from them this coming week.

FYI my husband and I have plenty of money put away that we intended to use while I was unable to work. Enough to get me off of work for 6 months without having to lift a finger. However, I do not want to use 3 months before the baby is born. I want my full 6 months with the baby, not 3 with and 3 without. I would never bring a child into this world if I didn't think I could support them. Also, by me working another 3 months I will accumulate even more holiday time/sick time that I can use for maternity leave!

I explained it to her the morning following our brief phone conversation stating he wanted me on light duty. She didn't care about the reason as to why he wanted me on light duty. She just repeated that I can either take maternity leave or not.

Thanks so much Angel@mytable. I'm feeling like I'm ready to come out now... I have another doctor's appointment on January 1th which my OBGYN said he would probably end up taking me out on that date. At this point I'm kind of hoping he does... but until then I want to be treated like all of the other employees who have worked through temporary disabilities! Just 3 more shifts that I have to work before my next appointment so I'm hoping they are smooth shifts. My co-workers have been great but I've had it!

Hi Noreen. Yes my facility is unionized, I am a member of NYSNA. I signed up for FMLA and just sent my paper work in for my maternity leave. Other nurses have been given light duty for the following reasons which I am aware of; one sprained/broke her ankle outside of work and upon returning (with a fracture cast in place) was allowed light duty for, from what I remember, was about a month maybe longer, it was last year. Another with a sprained wrist was given transport duty, I'm not sure if she hurt herself at work or outside of work. And another which happened last week hurt herself while lifting a patient and has been put on light duty (she is an aide and they had her answering phones the other night!) I called the disability office at my place of employment and left a message last night, however I haven't heard back from anyone today - maybe because it is New Years Eve, I'm not sure if they are there? I work in New York State just north of the city by about 45 minutes. It is not a private hospital and I don't know anything about PERB. If you have any information that may help I would appreciate it. I'm just very frustrated and am not looking to do light duty because of being pregnant alone, it is because earlier this week I had a bit of a scare with my pregnancy and went in to see my OBGYN. He examined me and said he didn't know if he should send me back to work or not. I told him they offer others light duty and he said I could go back and gave me a note to work light duty. On that note it doesn't specify why though. But my boss wasn't interested in why he wanted me on light duty, she just told me no. Thanks for your help!!!

I guess I should have been more clear. My doctor wants me to be on light duty due to something that came up with my pregnancy earlier this week. I had some clear fluid loss (sorry if too much information but I'm hoping you can better understand where I'm coming from). I also had some moderate abdominal cramping (not the normal mild cramps that come and go). I went in for an exam and my doctor said he didn't know whether he should or shouldn't take me out of work for the remainder of my pregnancy yet. I told him they allow light duty to other nurses who were injured and he said I could go back on light duty. His main concern was of course the fluid loss and the fact that my mother had given birth 2x's to premature babies at 27 weeks (where I am now) and lost one of her children. My brother is a strong and healthy man now but spent the first 8 weeks of his life in the NICU. My OBGYN said my mother's history wasn't of too much concern, but was of some concern to him. He said "I need you to carry this baby at least 2 more months." I'm not looking to be on light duty because I'm "just pregnant." I expected to work until at least 38 weeks with my normal everyday assignment, with the exception of taking patients who would need a lot of heavy lifting, or someone on contact/droplet precautions that could be harmful to my baby. I'm looking to go on light duty so I have a chance to carry my baby full term and not have to leave work yet. Of course I will leave work if he wants me out when I go for my next visit, but until he says that I want to work so I don't use up all my time off while sitting home alone. I want to spend the time with my baby and we can't afford for me to go out earlier if we can prevent it. I hope that makes things a bit more clear... What I'm most frustrated about is the fact that they assign light duty to other nurses who have been hurt both on and OFF the job.

Well I haven't handed my boss the note because she flat out told me I couldn't go on light duty. She didn't even ask why I needed to go on light duty, so as of right now the note itself doesn't even apply. Even if it stated exactly why he wants me on light duty she doesn't seem to care. I called the disability office at work and left a message tonight explaining what's going on, I hope to hear back from someone tomorrow before I go back into work at night....

I was recently getting some of my notes done early on one shift. A co-worker and friend looked at me and decided that I wasn't busy and told me "since you're not busy you can take the first admission." This was about an hour after her telling me she didn't want to take first break so I had to. I looked at her and said "Ok so I'll take first break and the first admission, is there anything else you'd like me to do tonight?" I have recently learned to enjoy "giving it back". I use to be so quiet and let people walk all over me, then I became a nurse and decided I was NOT going to let people do that to me anymore. Empower yourself :) Oh, and later that shift at around 3am she had something else to say, I don't remember what it was and I snapped but it felt so good and I felt proud of myself for standing up for myself!! If you don't stand up for you, no one else will!

Has anyone else had to modify their tasks at work for being pregnant? I'm an RN in General Pediatrics & Pediatric Oncology and my OBGYN wants me on "light duty" at work for my pregnancy and I told my boss about this, I have a note and all from the doctor too. My boss told me there is no such thing as light duty for pregnant women and that I'd either have to be on maternity leave or not, however I've seen on several occasions that they assign light duty to others who have had a sprained ankle or wrist or who have hurt their back. These women have been assigned transport or come in to help with admissions or just to walk through the units to help the other nurses out. My position is such that I can be on my feet for literally up to 12.5 hours at a time. There is a lot of heavy lifting (which I've been avoiding), a lot of running, and extreme stress as I'm sure many of you can relate to! To top it off I work over-night and have always had a hard time sleeping during the day. I don't want to push the issue of "light duty" with my boss but I feel like I'm being treated very unfairly. I found a government website stating "If an employee is temporarily unable to perform her job because of her pregnancy, the employer must treat her the same as any other temporarily disabled employee. For example, if the employer allows temporarily disabled employees to modify tasks, perform alternative assignments, or take disability leave or leave without pay, the employer also must allow an employee who is temporarily disabled because of pregnancy to do the same." http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/fs-preg.html I'm really frustrated. I still have 3 months left before the baby is due and I was planning to work up to at least 38 weeks (unless of course my OBGYN wants me out earlier). I wanted more time off with the baby and I am so upset about this. I don't want to hurt myself on the job because my boss won't help me to modify my tasks.

I got the max number of questions when taking the NCLEX. I SWORE I failed. I knew I failed. I cried all weekend and couldn't think of anything I could possible do differently to pass it the next time around. Boy was I surprised when I found out I passed on the 1st shot!! Don't drive yourself crazy. I work with people who took 5 and 6 times to pass it....