Bbo.W

It seems unfair to me to make sweeping statements like "I would never......" (fill in the blank). None of us have a crystal ball, and to judge a family for their choices is unprofessional. Part of the art of nursing is to educate families and patients and to support their choices.

I worked at a LTC that had an awful problem w/ call-offs. It was not unusual to have 40 residents each, and it was a dementia unit. Some of the residents were continent but most were not. I found that not every resident was wet at every round, and that helped. But the job took such a toll on me that I quit. On the subject of why our ratios are not regulated, I think it is because the elderly and disabled are devalued in a way that children are not. It breaks my heart. If appropriate ratios were adopted, the facilities would go out of business. It would hurt the bottom line.

I had a similar assignment and it was rough. I had 32 residents on a locked ward w/ no nurse. Yeah, lots of falls. One thing that I found that helped was to let your midnight wanderers stay up. Put them all together in one room, try to give them snacks or activities (lol's like to fold washcloths) and try to keep them busy when you round. It is not safe though, and a shame that our elders are treated that way. I had to get out.

Uggggg, cna bs. I hated that. My only advice is to remember to be professional at all times, and to help out other newbies. Never take shortcuts if it is about safety of your residents. And drink plenty of water!!!!! Those hot rooms dry you out!

Many facilities have dedicated memory care units. Look into that. Also contact your local Alzheimer's organisation and ask about facilities that care for that population. Definitely mention your hospice and family care experience, my family xare experience is what got me my first job!!!!! Also in your interview, tell the hr person about your passion to provide care for dementia residents. It takes a certain temperament to care for this population. Bless you!!!!

I had a few residents talk about the "little boys under my bed", one lady even insisted I leave food for them. I worked with dementia patients so I always humored them but I thought it was strange because the residents only reported the boys in a certain room.....anyway, I always tried to enter their reality. It worked well for everyone involved.

Okay, there are lazy cna's, lazy nurses and lazy supervisors. ...we all get that. But I think the spirit of this thread was a rant and in fun. With that being said, I once worked under a nurse 7p-7a that would pass her meds then go into a resident's room, turn on the resident's tv, and take a 2 hour lunch break that included a nap. She was very hostile and angry if interrupted (if, for instance, a resident fell or was actively dying and needed medication). Now I do think she had some home issues and didn't sleep well, but still...a 90 minute nap? On the clock? Every shift? Not okay at all!

Some residents at the facility I worked at had orders for prn ativan or haldol. When our residents had new onset agressive behavior they were also tested for uti....a uti does strange things in an elder's brain! Good luck, it sounds as if you are in a difficult situation. When working in memory care I was hit, kicked, punched, scratched, spit on, and thrown across a room. I was always very caring and kind, and was careful, but our wing turned into a geri-psych wing and I had to get out after a broken rib.

Wow, that RN needs to work somewhere other than healthcare!!!! Even when residents have extremely impaired, word-salad communication , they still understand intent when a kind caring tone is used. I worked with a nurse once who had a similar attitude and she ended up getting fired for neglect. That made total sens to me because if she didn't even speak respectfully, she obviously was not caring for the residents. I was so glad when she was gone!!!!! She actually referred to the residents in memory care as crazies....in front of them. Yuck

C-Diff and babies.....no!!!!!!

Sooooo.....I reported verbal abuse, swearing by another cna towards a resident that could not report....all it got for me was the evil eye from fellow cna's and management was impatient with me....is it okay for a cna to cuss a resident out? No. Does it happen? Yup. Sad state of affairs for our wise aged population.

Is it lying if they don't remember 5 minutes later? ???? No. So give them a good night, tuck them in, and earnestly promise to send X family member around to see them in the morning. Reorientation is cruel.

Ummmmm...yuck, first of all....if cna's aren't toileting residents and c-diff or any other yucky germ is present, wewr gloves. Better yet, if you are in a facility where 2 briefs are normal, call the state. Would you like to sit in pee all day? No? Then call state and get that place shut down. That is a disgrace, to treat our elderly that way. Please report!!!!!!

Truly horrific....that poor soul

DNR's for Alzheimer's patients are immoral. Ditto for feeding tubes and life support. ...what are we feeding and supporting at that point? My grandmother had several strokes, dementia, feeding tubes, the whole 9 yards....you know what happened? She was miserable and cursed us all out, repeatedly. She had said, in no uncertain terms, that when God called her, to let her go. Too bad the POA didn't get the memo. I still have nightmares about her suffering. RIP Grandma....please