MsNiceNurse

Hi everyone, thanks for all the advice. I followed my gut and also all your advice. Now I'm free of stress and feeling better than ever. :)

When I first started at this SNF, I already wanted to quit because I thought it was hard. I thought to myself that maybe I should try and see if things will get better. I decided to stick it out some more and now I am working there for 6 months already (which is a surprise for me). Now, I really want to call it quits because I think that it is not a healthy environment for me. Like I said in a previous post, this job has affected me physically and emotionally. I thought things will get better but I think it is just getting worse. I have been telling myself that I should run before I get into serious trouble because of other co-worker's mistake but I still stayed because I needed money. But now I have really decided that it is time to go. Besides, the SNF will be having another resurvey after it failed twice this year. I gave our manager my two week notice last week and now they're telling me that I should at least help them get through this upcoming survey. The thing is, I am only Per Diem. It just annoys me that I already gave my two week notice and it seems that they don't want to let go of me. Employment at this facility is "at will" and it says in the handbook that the employer may terminate me or an employee may quit at any time without reason. I just did not want to burn any bridges that's why I gave them two week notice, but now I don't know if I should have just called it quits and left. Oh, and another red flag FYI is that the DON and Administrator left the facility already. It is just so scary to be there now especially with this situation at hand. And today, the HR told me that our SNF RN Consultant is going to talk to me tomorrow regarding the deficiency that the SNF had and my license. I think it was something along the lines that we have to clear the deficiency tag first because it is going to affect my license. I don't know. I'm so scared and I just wanna leave right now. What do you guys think? Have you ever heard of a license being suspended related to a SNF failing a survey?

We actually have an availability form that we submit to the staffing department every month. I signed up for lesser available days coz I just feel so tired. Anyway, I submitted mine and now they question me why I can't work on the days I did not sign up for. It's because they want me to work on my unavailable days. I think they're so messed up.

Hi everyone. I am a new grad RN who graduated last December 2012. I have an ADN and wants to pursue a BSN next year. I passed my boards just this April and was able to find a job in a SNF and Rehab. And now I'm in my 3rd month in that facility. I was hired as a per diem nurse and I am feeling burnt out already. I didn't really quite understand what I got myself into. As a per diem nurse in that facility, we don't get any benefits and no fixed hours. We just got scheduled into days where we signed up for that we are available. However, I find that I am already working like a full time employee. In a two-week pay period, I work about 80+ hours and the last one, I worked 90+ hours including OT. I also feel that they have a problem with staffing, which annoys me. Coz it feels like they are not hiring enough people to work, and they overwork the ones that are already there. In fact, one time, they wanted me to work double shift. I was working AM shift one day when the supervisor approached me and asked me if I can also work the PM shift. That's 16 hours straight of work! Oh wait, that wasn't one time. It already happened twice. Then at one time, they scheduled me in PM shift and wanted me to work AM shift the next day, which is really hard for me because it takes me about an hour or two after the shift to finish charting on my patients. When I work PM, I usually get out at around 1 am. Then I wake up at 5:30 to get myself ready whenever I work AM shifts. So if they made me work PM and AM shift, it meant only about 3+ hours of sleep for me. I said NO in both situations. And it is an emotional battle for me to work there. Sometimes I feel like this is not what I went into nursing school for. Like I said, have been working there for 3 months already and I still can't finish med pass in the "1 hr before and 1 hr after" time frame. I have 28 patients which always asks for PRN pain meds and I finish my 9 am med pass usually around 11 am. Then I would do my BS checks then my afternoon med pass. Btw, I even calculated how much time each resident would get if I do my medpass in 2 hours, and it comes out to 4.28 mins per resident including checking BP and HR for meds with parameters, punching out the meds from the bubble pack, and actually giving it to the resident. To me, this is not the care I want to give my patients. Coz right now, I feel that the only thing I do at work is give meds. It is really really stressful for me. I actually lost 10 lbs (and counting) since I worked there. I don't know how others do it in 2-2.5 hours. I always stock my med cart right before I start med pass but it's just so hard. Sorry, but I just had to really vent out my emotions. And I hope that there's any advice you can give to a struggling new nurse like me, coz I don't think I can stick with this situation anymore.