RN691

Hello all, I have 9 years experience as an RN in an acute care hospital. I would love to work in hospice but am unsure how to go about acheiving this goal. Any information on certification needed, etc. would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

I am in the same union. I went to work. Haven't heard a word from the union. Maybe I will, but I still stand by my decision to go to work. We had no dog in this fight and had no reason not to go to work.

I have to disagree with you. Regardless of pressure no competent nurse would put tube feeding through an IV if that is in fact what happened. Nurses are supposed to be able to work under pressure, remember the 5 rights of meds and always be a patient advocate. The nurse administered the med, the nurse is responsible,period. And if we want to discuss how much hospital "big wigs" make, how much are the union "big wigs" making. They didn't go without pay during the strike you can bet on that.

First, please don't yell. Second, actually no one was forced into a sympathy strike. Nurses could have to gone work if they chose too.

what i meant was that i triple check my meds with myself before administering them and use another nurse for the black box warning meds that i mentioned. . lol, no i don't check with another nurse before giving tylenol.

I think I must work at the same hospital you do. I also crossed the picket line. I cannot for the life of me get my head around having a sympathy strike for a different union. In my opinion this was all politics. I am a nurse not a politician.

it doesn't matter if the hospital has a double check policy on meds. Nurses know the 5 rights of med administration. there are black box warning meds-heparin drip,chemo, ton,etc., where another nurse should be used to validate med. a nurse should not need a policy that tells her/him to check the 5 rights. and if a nurse is unsure if a med does require a second nurse to validate that is their responsibility to know the policy or at least ask. if you administer the med you are responsible. no one else.

Hello all, I have been thinking a lot about the patient who died during the strike. If it is true that the nurse ran feeding to an IV that negligence is so gross it makes me wonder if the nurse was really a nurse. There are plenty of stories of people pretending to be nurses and are able to forge nurse credentials. It just does not make sense to me that nurse, regardless of experience, would ever think that running a bag or bottle of tube to an IV made sense. Just wanted to post that thought and see what others thought. Thank you.

I have worked in several states and have always been told that we are NEVER allowed to cut nails. Ask a doctor for an order for a podiatrist to see the pt. if the nails need to be cut. I would not delegate trimming or cutting nails to the PCT to protect myself. You can also ask to see the hospital policy that states nail cutting is allowed and who may delegate that task. If no policy exists I would refuse to cut nails unless I had a doctor order and knew the PCT was competent to do such a task.

A replacement nurse is an R.N. I used to work as a traveler and took a permanent position at a hospital I had a temporary contract with. I am a very experienced R.N. and have made mistakes-just as every nurse has. The nurses on strike did not make a mistake, the hospital did not make a mistake. The nurse who gave the wrong med made the mistake. A HUGE mistake, and my heart goes out to her/him. Isn't this the nightmare that all nurses dread come to life. We may sit here and think "oh I would never do that" and maybe you would not, but you and I are capable of other mistakes-ones that could cause someones death. I feel for all involved. What I am upset about is to see the union-my union- use this as politics to blame the hospital. If a staff nurse would have made this mistake who the union blame then? The hospital. This was an AWFUL tragedy that as nurses we can learn from as a reminder that we are all capable of mistakes and the importance of reading our meds and routes and administration instructions.

I worked for an employer who stated that I had to have the flu shot of be fired. I stated that in my opinion that was the same as forcing me to take a medication against my will which could be construed as battery. They left me alone, then the union stepped in and got a court order to stop mandatory flu vaccines. This is my body and I have a right to refuse medications, just as my patients do. If a hospital demands that I take a flu vaccine then I demand they force all patients to have a flu vaccine.

Hi, I work at Kaiser in San Jose,CA. and LOVE IT!!!! I started here over a year ago as a traveler and worked 3 contracts and then accepted a full time position. Pay scale is determined by your years of experience. I have 8 years as a nurse and started in the high $50/hr, then got a 5% increase at 90 days and will get another another 5% raise at my year anniversary. The differential between evening and nights are great also. The managers are very supportive of staff and help us in any way they can. The computer system they use is health connect. I love this system-the entire chart is on the computer. Doctors put in the orders and nurses taking verbal orders is discouraged. In the time I have been here I have taken only 9 verbal orders. I really do enjoy working here and my co-workers are great. Still have rough days-but thats the world of nursing not because of the hospital. I highly recommend my facility. Hope that helps. P.S medical insurance is 100% covered and free for employees