minnymi

i was assuming that you were talking about a nurse who is employed by the hospital and just happens to get pulled somewhere else. however, the hospital where i used to work as a nurse intern had an agency that staffed nurses just to float or fill in gaps where there was a need. the nurse might be on our floor for one day or she might be there for several months. either way, i was shocked at the way they were treated. for example, i had one of the agency/float nurses ask me to fetch one of the "regular staff" nurses to help her do something. when i found that nurse and told her the agency nurse needed help, her response was: "i have my own work to do. she's getting paid twice as much as me so she can get her own stuff done." they really were the black sheep. nobody really talked to them or socialized with them during lunch. they were downright jealous that they were doing "the same job" and getting paid less. i was always extra nice and helpful to those nurses because i saw how they were treated and they were always grateful to have at least one ally. i once asked one of the agency nurses why the other nurses didn't just go and work for the agency and "get paid double" and i found out that many of them WANTED to, but the agency had an agreement with the hospital that they wouldn't hire any nurses who had been employed by the hospital until they had been separated from the hospital for at least one year. it made sense because if that rule wasn't in place then the hospital would lose it's nurses in a heartbeat! i'd HAVE to get paid double to be an agency nurse that floated. besides all the instability....they'd have to pay double just for me to put up with the way i'd be treated! it really was elementary.

there used to be LPNs in the hospital where i work, but not anymore. they stopped hiring them and the ones who worked at the bedside either left, went back to school, or took other positions in the hospital. some of them are discharge planners/case managers. there are a couple who work basically as EKG techs. i don't know their real job description. i just know anytime someone needs an EKG an LPN shows up to do it. so, there are still some LPNs in the hospital, but they aren't at the bedside. i guess they offered other jobs as options other than going back to school, but they are definitely not hiring. oh...this hospital is magnet.

after seeing how you jump on every bsn thread and get so personally offended by any statement that implies getting a bsn in this job market would be wise.... quite frankly, i don't believe you.

i know it's the technology age and everything, but you're the most advanced two week old i've ever seen! sorry, couldn't resist.

congratulations....i hope you like it!

i would think, "oh, great. i'm going to get stuck with the load nobody else wants." i used to work on a unit where one of us would have to float pretty much every shift. NOBODY ever wanted to be the one to go. we were supposed to take turns, but it almost never happened that way. if it was the person's turn who was best friends with the charge nurse then the charge nurse would have some reason that that person couldn't go. it's one of the many reasons i quit that job. i hated the floor i got floated to and i was just about working on that floor more than i was the one i was hired for.

uhh....requiring a bsn in order to practice is raising the standard. who said they shouldn't have a voice? don't take one part of what i said out of context (literally) and twist it to fit whatever on earth is inside your head.

sure you can. just choose not to have a life!

my guess would be because there are too many ADN educated nurses who have a voice and they are more worried about their pride so instead of raising the standards they keep them the same. some people take things way too personally as is evident on this very board. they feel that raising the standards will somehow take away their worth. heck, why don't we just go back to the good ole' days and start plucking prostitutes off the streets.....it's just nursing.

you said your pay doesn't cover much more than childcare, but you work part time. wouldn't the solution to that be to work full time in a job that you actually like. it sounds like you want to quit the job you have for other reasons than wanting to stay home.

why don't you take her aside and be very kind, but straight forward about it? maybe the manager addressed her needing to iron her scrubs, but wasn't able to address the odor. it's not an easy thing to do. i had to tell a co-worker she smelled one time. it wasn't a nurse. i approached my manager about it, but my manager didn't feel comfortable doing it and asked if i would. the girl later thanked me and said she went to the doctor and had something going on that caused the B.O...i can't remember what she said it was.

good news! i've never understood why anyone would do something like this when it's not like they are paying for the supplies out of their own pockets anyway.

some of them might be jealous and your acceptance is a reminder of them being stuck where they are. it's nothing personal and there's not really anything you can do about it. i used to ask some of my co-workers why they didn't go to nursing school (and i was sincere with some of them who i thought would make great nurses). some of them would say they didn't want to be a nurse, but most of the responses were, "i want to, but i can't start until next semester because (fill in the blank)" i would just encourage them and say something like, "well, you should do it as soon as you can. you'd be a good nurse." then, even if there is some envy there they at least know that you see them as capable and not "better than them."

whatever you do - don't badmouth your former employer and don't make excuses. i know it's hard bc it's natural to want to defend yourself, but the best thing to do is to explain that you made a mistake. explain that you learned a valuable lesson from it and you are now more cautious than ever.

this may be the case where you are, but i doubt that it's typical. i have given many baths and inserted many catheters alone. i stated previously that i doubt the OP will have an issue while giving care, but to say "none of what you will do will be alone" could be very misleading. in fact, there have been times where trying to find someone to help was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

i don't personally use vocera, but i've been to units that do. from what i've seen...the nurse checking out gives their vocera to the charge nurse (so the charge nurse has like 10 at the end of the shift) and then that charge nurse gives them all to the charge of the incoming shift. that charge nurse then passes them out to the "new nurses" who just arrived.

exactly....MANY of these patients are on medicaid. not that i'm against medicaid, but isn't it enough that you're getting your care for free without asking the nurse to order something else because the one brownie wasn't enough?

one time when i was working as a (new) tech on a med/surg floor there was a patient who asked me for peanut butter and graham crackers. she asked me to spread the PB onto the crackers for her which i found absurd, but i did it because the facility was all about "patient satisfaction." there was nothing wrong with her arms/hands. so, after i took her the 'snack' i was venting to the nurses about how she demanded i fix them for her and "not spread it too thick" when her nurse spoke up and said, "oh, no, she can't have those!" i had no idea why, but later found out that this woman's blood sugar was considered "good" at 250. i had asked the patient, "are you allowed to have them?" and at that point i had only dealt with patients who were honest about their diets. the nurse went straight to her room...and i followed behind her to make sure the patient didn't try to say she was offered a snack or she told me to ask or anything like that. anyway, the nurse walked right up, took the plate, and threw it in the garbage. still, MOST patients are aware of their diet restrictions and BS, but i learned after dealing with that woman to ALWAYS ask the nurse before giving a snack. it opened my eyes to the lengths some people will go to get their food fix.

no! incompatible meds can't be given through different ports in the same site. do you mean different lines? maybe this is a difference in semantics, but one line can have several different ports. attaching an incompatible med to a different port in the line is most definitely pushing both the meds through the same line.

:yeah:

i agree! one time i went running around the hospital trying to find a red popsicle for a patient. i told one of my co-workers, "wow...when i was in the hospital after i had my children, i didn't even know that i could ask for a drink!" she laughed, but i was serious. i had my husband go to the vending machine to get me a drink...it never crossed my mind to ask a nurse to get me something. why would i? now, if one of my stitches were popping out then i would have hit the call bell, but for a drink? it literally didn't cross my mind. i guess if i had been alone then i would've asked for some water WHEN the nurse came by. i would've never expected that i could even have a soda for "free"! and this wasn't long ago...it was just 6 years ago. this whole "they are clients, not patients" thing and letting them order whatever they want as if they're in a restaurant is absurd. i do recall having trays brought to me, but i don't remember ever being asked what i wanted....or caring really. if it was something i wanted to eat then i would eat it. if not....then i would see if anyone else wanted it and set it to the side. i would've never dreamed of asking for something else. where do people even get the audacity to behave like they're in the ritz?

everyone is different. you might love LTC. plus, people often come here to vent. you don't get to hear all the positives. you get to know your patients and they get to know you. sometimes, you're able to actually make a difference as opposed to acute care where the patients are gone just as soon as you remember their names. i've always had an interest in geriatrics, but as a RN i'm afraid to go to LTC until i have enough hospital experience that it won't matter if i want to transfer back. plus, i'm afraid i'll get stuck with a bunch of paperwork and "delegating" instead of patient care which is what i would want to do. however, it's definitely something i plan to pursue at some point. so, i do think it's funny sometimes when i hear people vent that they want to get a hospital job because i'm thinking, "i would love your job!" you just have to do it for yourself and see if you like it. don't base your opinion on what you see online.

couldn't the order "offer dilaudid prior to therapies" be confusing... what if it was given at 0800 and therapy was at 1000. yet, there's an order to offer dilaudid prior to therapy? i can see how that order could raise a question.

hmm...i dunno. i don't know if it helps any, but i actually heard a couple of patients just last week voicing their disgust about the pet therapy dogs. "i can't believe they let those nasty dogs in a HOSPITAL!" and "there's black dog hairs all over the place. people in here are sick." i was surprised by that because i thought everybody loved the dogs!

umm...no. if they can go and get it then that's one thing, but i will NOT bring it to them nor will i go down to the cafeteria to get it.