ilostu12

I was thinking the same thing........:angryfire

middypiegirl.....your going through what EVERY nurse goes through on their first job as a nurse (except for the lose of you child, I'm so sorry to hear this ). You will feel so overwhelmed that you may even start to think you made a mistake becoming a nurse, but don't give up, hang in there.....it DOES get better. Keep an open mind, remember your training and don't be afraid to ask questions or ask for help, don't worry about making a fool of yourself. Your a new nurse and nobody expect you to know as much as someone that has been a nurse for years. Many, many nurses out there are more than happy to help you along the way. In 6 months you'll be suprised how far you have come. Good luck

It's a very tricky situation, in OH, with the existing order of the self releasing seatbelt AND the added use of a sheet (without a Dr's order and proper assesment and documentation for three consecutive weeks and repeated falls and injuries.......you get the picture:angryfire ) would constitute double restraint....period, and double restraint means bad news. You were doing what any good nurse would do, try to relieve pain and discomfort and keep your resident safe. With our litigation happy society, nurses are caught with a double edged sword, if the resident fell then you didn't do enough to protect the resident, but if you try to protect them your interfering with their rights........ As for the situation with the other nurse, your documentation of res care is your proof of proper care. Talk to your supervisor or DON, if you have a good working relationship with either or both, thaey can provide ideas and suggestions for this res. This will also show them that the other nurse is just stirring up trouble. Wish I could offer more help but I don't know your situation. Good Luck

30 residents, that's not too bad. Oh wait I forgot...meds, treatments, oh dang this one wet critical gotta call the doc and send them out, oooooops I forgot the two new admissions that came from the hospital at 6pm with out report, well crap everyon needs to go to the bathroom and the aids are busy with other residents, wait did I leave my dinner in the microwave a couple of hours ago?, yeah I know pharmacy is on the phone and has a question about the abt order I faxed but a family member is on the phone and has a question about their parents/spouse frantic call that they didn't get a desert at dinner and I have another family member pacing the halls mad as hell that their loved one is not given top priority for turning their light on.........sorry about that Administrator, I guess staying over 30mins to make sure all my residents are taken care of and are safe isn't nearly as important as you having to spend some money on nursing hours. Sorry folks I had a pretty rough day today..................but I STILL love my job!!!

Like many other posters have stated, it's just nurses venting. You need to vent, no matter what proffession your in, everyone does. I was a computer Tech/Network engineer for over 20 years and switching to nursing was the best thing to happen to me....I have truely never been happier with what I do.

Good question...... I'm sure as there are more posts to this question, you'll see the pros and cons are pretty much the same for each. Like the challenge of your job, learning new skills, the great pt's you'll meet. Working short staffed, underpaid, so much paper work, etc. It's really what you make of it and if it is a field of nursing you want to be in. If you like where your at and your job, then you'll notice more pros. On the other hand, if your not happy there or you don't like being a nurse, then the cons are real big. As for the RN part, that is really going to depend on the facility and its staffing. In LTC an LPN/LVN is often the charge nurse or supervisor. If there is an RN on the floor, then of course the RN is the supervisor (and then again I've seen an LPN as supervisor and in charge of the RN...go figure). If there is more than one RN or several RN's then yeah, there is a RN in charge of the others. Something like a unit manager or the like. Then of course there is the DON, who is incharge of ALL the nurses and the facility. As for the hospital enviroment, I would only be guessing and I'm sure others will be able to answer that question

The grade scale for Nursing programs are different than other classes for a reason. You are going to be responsible for someones' life. Look at it this way, in most gen ed classes a 60% may mean a C, but in Nursing programs you need 77% or higher for a C. Who would you like to have taking care of your loved one, the person with 60% of the knowledge or the one with 77%+ of the knowledge. It also motivates you to work harder on your grades, and BTW I graduated with about a C+ GPA and it didn't hamper my ability to get into BSN program. So don't fret, work hard, learn as much as you can and don't get stressed (yeah right.....ROFL)!

PRN is exactly what it means....as needed. All facilities have a staff of PRN nurses, if there is a call-off or there is a need for another nurse, the PRN nurse can pick up that time. They aren't part time or full time, I guess you can look at it as a facility with it's oun agency.

All of the previous posters have hit the nail on the head (or something like that...lol). It's what you make of it, but no matter what profession you do there is good and bad. I was a computer tech/network engineer for 20+ years, I liked my job and what I did, but I've been a nurse for several years now and I can honestly say that I have never been happier with what I do. Like everyone else, I have bad days and I have to vent, but over all I wish I would have done this years ago. Good luck with your career.

SCRN and AuntieRN......Please see a Diabetic Educator if possible. These people are specificly trained in diets and exercise for DMI and DMII, they can help you with a diet for working nights. They can teach you how to adjust your diet when you go from working nights and for when you have days off and eat during the day. They can help with an exercise plan to help maintain lower blood sugar levels. I'm insulin dependent and on a pump, my educator was a major help in maintaining my A1C's to about 7. Diabectic Educator, that's the way to go.

kstec......I remember when I first became a nurse and started working at an LTC. I thought to myself that I made a huge mistake, I was soooo over whelmed and I thought this isn't why I became a nurse. Your right the whole healthcare industy is NOT patient care driven, it's $$$$$ driven. HOWEVER, hang in there and keep plugging away, you will get a system down and before you know it you will have time to proved the special 1:1 that makes you a nurse. You can and willl make a difference in your residents lives and their families lives. You'll find out their little quirks and special things that will put a smile on their faces, and believe me there is NOTHING that makes you feel better than to so you residents smile and even laugh with you. There's lots of frustration on the job, but when you've had a day from hell and nothing is goining right, when a residnet looks you in the eyes and smile and says 'Thank you,' the day just got a whole lot better.

Actually your situation is really pretty good. Most LTC nurses will get 30+ on days and evenings, nights will commonly get 40 or 50+. But don't panic, believe it or not you'll get use to it. You'll get a routine worked out to get your med pass done as well as treatments and charting, ect. It will be challanging for you for a few months, but hang in there, it does get easier.

First off ejsmom, gratz on passing! I normally don't work the night shift, but have done a several. Depending on your facility staffing ratios, you will more than likely have 50 - 60 residents to take care. Now don't panic, at least 95% of them will be asleep the whole night, the remaining 5% will up late or went to sleep early and now are awake and so forth. There are med passes, tube feeds to change, flushes, treatments, linen carts to stock, med carts restocked, drugs reordered, vital signs, you may have one get combative with the aids or someone may go critical, and yes there are some that do pass in the night. Oh yeah, lets not for get charting and other paper work. You'll be busy, but not over whelmed. Depending on the facility hopefully there will be at least two nurses on duty, so you won't be by yourself. At first this seems a bit much, but you will get a rythym down and it will become easier. For the first several months, your gonna feel like you don't have a clue as to what your doing or if your even doing it right, every nurse goes through this. Don't let that discurage you, remember your a new nurse and you have a lot to learn, don't be afraid to ask questions or ask for help. Also I'm willing to bet that some of the more experienced nurses will seem harsh and cold to you, but don't give up because there are going to be several nurses that will go out of their way to help. You may even find one or two that will take you under their wings and teach you(use this to your advantage, they can teach you soooo much in a short time). Where I work at now I was very luck to find such a nurse, she was very patient and was eager to share her knowledge. I hope this doesn't scare you too much.....LOL. But don't give up, be open to new ideas and suggestions, and above all....listen to your aids!!!!!! They are your eyes, ears and nose.

I'm with you on that one LoriAlabamaRN. I'm am LPN at a LTC (I'm hoping to finish certification in a couple of weeks). I've never been happier with what I do. I've also had some negative comments said about LTC nurses. Once while I was visiting my mother-in-law in the hospital. She was a mess, not given a bath in days,ect......when I asked for supplies to get her cleaned up, turned and so on. The RN asked if I was an aid, I told her I was an LPN at a LTC, she said "Oh, one of those." Well I shouldn't have said it but she said the wrong thing to me at the wrong time, I said "Yes, one of those nurses that has to KNOW their job and not go crying to a doctor evry 5 mins." Needless to say, I didn't have any more problems at that nurse. On a side note, 95% of the staff at this hospital are outstanding nurses and always treated me with respect as a fellow nurse.

When I first read this thread, I became very angry. Not because the mother may be smoking around her children,which as healthcare professionals we know is not the best thing to do, but because of the ABSOLUTE JUDGEMENTAL attitude of soooo many nurses who posted here! Some posts were very professional and offered very good advice. There were just too many that voiced how horrible the mother, or any parent for that matter, that smoked around their children or how self absorbed these parents were and on and on and on. A word of advice for these nurses.....GET OVER YOUR SELVES and stop being judge and jury. Stick to being an educator, teacher, and advocate for healthy live styles. No matter what we do, people will make bad choices and affect the lives and health of themselves and others.....this is life. As heathcare professionals we need to encourage, cheer on and provide information to our patients. We don't need more laws, like previously posted where does it end? Does it all end when we are ALL in jail or prision for not covering our mouths when we sneeze? And yes I am a smoker, I don't smoke around my children, I smoke outside not in my house. Also my children have pulmonary issues NOT caused by second hand smoke, they have MD. One more thing if some of the posters want to continue to judge smokers, alcoholics, drug addicts, and individuals that are over weight.......you better first sit in judgment on yourselves.

WOW! That is a tough one. If the pt gives in to the family there isn't much you can do. Very careful documentation should be priority. I don't know why but I get a feeling that should the pt turn bad or die the family is goning to be all over the facility with lawyers.

I saw an agency nurse handle something similar to this when I did my med-surg clinicals. A couple of staff nurses where really riding her back about not knowing the policies of the unit. She simply replied "And just think. If I wasn't here, YOU would have to do this on top of your other assignments." And she walked away, the staff nurses didn't give her any static from that point on, in fact, they were more than glad to help. I love it!

What the nurse did wasn't safe for the resident, asperation comes to mind. Your best bet is to follow the facilities policies, use the chain of command. Why the nurse handled the situation like she did, I don't know, but you need to look out for the resident's saftey as well. Just recently, I had to change a residents foley because it was occluded. I gathered all my materials and had a couple of STNA's assist me, the resident was very large. I removed the old foley and inserted the new one, made sure the new one was flowing well, cleaned up my trash washed my hands and left the room. A few minutes later one of the STNA's pointed out that I didn't use the betadine swabs before inserting the new foley! I was horrified! I felt so bad, so I wrote myself up, notified the unit manager and the MD. The MD went ahead and ordered an antibiodic as precaution, the unit manager pulled me into the DON's office and they shredded the write-up. The DON said it was a mistake and I did took the proper actions to correct my error. As it turned out the resident was fine and no complications. Bottom line, the aid did her job and was looking out for the residents safety. I couldn't thank her enough.

I don't refer to them as old dogs or old nurses, I call them EXPERIENCED nurses. We have several where I work and I have learned more from them in a few months, then I could have learned from instructors and books in several years. There is a reason why they may be resistant to SOME new stuff. They have been a nurse much longer that me and have good 'tried and true' expierence to fall back on. I've only bben a nurse for three years, so I'm still new, but the more experienced nurses are the BEST source of information I have found. And yes I have taught them a couple of things, but that's because we always lean from each other. So the new nurses out there........BACK OFF!!.......listen to the more experience nurses, who knows, they just might know how to make your job easier and provide you with experiences to last your whole career.

here's how see it, nursing that is A new top because a pt with dementia spit out there medicine: $18 A new pair of good nurses shoes, because of all the walking you do in 8/12 hour shift: $115 The frustration of faullty equipment, long hours, lack of support from managers/supervisors and low pay, etc: the cost varies The one heart felt 'Thank you' from a pt you cared for (which may very well be few and far between): Absolutely and totaly price less!! Like other posters have said, nursing if not for everyone. But that one 'thank you' I may get, makes it ALL worth while......at least for me. Would I recommend nursing.........in a heart beat!!

Sounds like a typical email from a bean counter, someone who doesn't have a clue as what is going on on the floor. All they see is OT and money being wasted on nurse that can't do a simple job of passing pills, doing treatments, being an advocate, providing comfort, listening to what the pt has to say, answering the phone, write new orders, d/cing old orders, doing admissions, updateing treatments, answering the 40,000 questions a family member has about their loved ones meds and treatments, helping co-workers with transfers, showers, bed baths, toileting.............I think i may have missed a couple of dozen other things. I mean come on, you have 12 hours! If you can't tell, I have recieved a similar email..........my response was "I was looking for a job when I came here........" I haven't recieved another e-mail since and I'm still there doing what I love to do.

If it is a pt/res that has this issue, what was previously posted is a good idea. Let the CNA's try first, hopefully they have a good repour with the pt and can get the job done. If not then the nurse needs to set in and be an advocate for their well being and for the rights of the other pt's/res. If it is a classmate or co-worker, that's a little different. Ok....this is 10+ years in managment in another career talking. This needs to be handled by the shift supervisor, charge nurse, or even the DON (depending on the situation the the person it involves), the post by TheCommuter hit the nail right on the head, 'caring, tactful, and respectful at the same time.' I went through several training semminars just on this specific subject and how to approach and handle the co-worker. The biggest thing to remember is that the person in question may not have any idea he/she has an issue with BO. By talking to the individual in a quiet and PRIVATE area and explaining that the situation is very difficult for you to discuss, will let the person know that you want to help them and not try to cause them undue embarassment, and will make the situation easier to resolve. One other thing , if you hear someone talking behind the persons back, get it stopped immediately! This is not fair the the person involved and can lead to some even bigger problems.

Another thing to remember, your facility has a 95% rating, this is a good thing. The inspectors know that this is a good facility and the staff are professionals. Surveyors understand EVERYONE is on edge and trying to be perfect. If you make a mistake tell them you did so and make the correction, provided it's not a biggie (like not washing your hands before doing a treatment, or changing your gloves). Also, talk to them....small chit-chat. They know your probaly scared out of your wits about making a mistake. I've only been through two state inspection's, and on both times the inspectors told me "We're not out to get you." They have a job to ensure public safety, it's nerve wracking, tense, and it can seem like the worst time of your career. We have all been through it and we all know exactly how you feel. But like every else has posted, think a little ahead and remember your training. Now as far as trying to relax.....well, that's easier said than done, but try to relax. But above all........BREATH!!! Taking a few deep breaths will help more that you know. Just to let you know....where I'm at, two surveys ago they had 15 tags (ouch!), the first one I went through we got 5 (all of them no harm), the last one we just went through......2 (unfortunatly one was mine.....I forgot to announce myself ....) Best of luck

Yeah marie4....your a nurse. Like I said, we have all been through this, and we still go through it. Try not to let it get you down sick, it's good that your concerned about your quality of care. Any good nurse will sit back and look at the work they do and try to find ways to improve. As far as the med pass, I'm sure that the other nurses are passing all the meds, but remember, they have been there for a while, maybe a few years. That makes a difference, there is two stages a nurse goes through when on a new job. The first stage is getting used to the resedents and getting a routine down, this may take a month ot two. The second stage usually happens after they have been there for about a year, they become comfortable with the faciluty and it's procedures. Granted I don't work with you, but from your posts, it sounds like your putting your best effort into this, just keep going....believe me, you'll get it and your job will become easier.

BJS54321 is right. Your just starting out on a wonderful and rewarding career. It takes time to get a routine down and learn time managment. It's a shame though that some of the nurses you work with forget that they too were new to nursing once. Don't give up, it will come. I went through the same things your going through, everyone has. The hours can be long, the work over whelming and co-workers can be a real thorn in your side. But I have never been happier with what I do. You will touch lives and you can make a difference. One other piece of advice I would offer.....don't be afraid to ask for help. Sure a few nurses will blow you off or even make a few comments that I can't repeat, but most nurses will be glad to help if they can. Ask for advice, ask them for some 'tricks of the trade' to make you work easier. You'll be suprised how other nurses can make your job eaiser and help you to grow as a nurse.