Juliet310

Thanks so much for your feedback . I am going to have to pray about this and keep keep myself available for opportunities . Some hospitals here hire LVN as CNA or utilize LVN in outpatient settings. Like I said I really do like the fact that I'm able to learn med-surge skills with many different " conditions" instead of being locked down to one ward like " oncology " or " L and D". I am thinking I just have to suck it up , do my job, and advocate for a higher wage when the time comes.

Hello ! I am a new LVN grad and waiting for my test date for LVN in California. So I picked up a job at a sub acute center . The pay is really low for the amount of work I do. Some of my co- workers asked why I am doing so much. They said the company doesnt pay enouh for you to do such a thourough job. I don't know how much the LVN are paid , but I will have a job when i take my test if I keep in working f hard. I like this place because it's really close to my house and I am learning A lot! We have very few long term residents. There are job opportunties at nearby hospitals that pay more but i dontnsee a lot of LVN positions. I think would like to work in home care and geriatrics. I would like to get my RN and start a home health care company help people stay in their home longer or shorten their stay at rehab centers . I have done a lot of training in psych and communication and it has helped me so much in nursing. I have only worked at this place for 6 weeks but already i want to run away! There is inconsistency with different nurses , some things are just done correctly. . I would really fear if i was the charge nurse . But again i am a newbie on the block and I am learning a lot.

Yes that must be another reason. I was just discussing this with a neighbor of mine and we talked about people being so uncomfortable with death. And I don't think these family members are really doing "all they can", it's the nurses that are! It seems the families are being unethical by pressuring them to not allow them to live that way. It would be more ethical to for families to learn about option and discuss them with loved ones before they are unable to understand and allow them to 100 % make their decision. I notice as our loved ones get older they become much more vulnerable and if the children are not ethical they get bossed around. So maybe education would still help here? I think these family members do not see themselves as being unethical.

I know I am tired too, I just pray that I have enough energy in the day to get good grades, pass the test, and help humanity with my career. I was hoping to work with seniors, but the conditions in this LTC/ SNF is deplorable. I can't understand my purpose there except to learn , I feel like the patient's life is gone. : ((((((((((( I wondered if I work there if my job would have purpose or am I just getting a good pay check and keeping people safe and alive. I think I enjoyed working with the developmentally disabled much more. I could work as a care planner instead and help teach relationship skills and teach them how to live independently safely, and protect them from people who try to harm them. Even as a caregiver I witnessed sd ituations which I felt exploited them. For example, a person living in independent group setting managed by a company that will hire staff for 24 hour care and a day program that provides them recreational opportunities. I was a sleep shift night sitter for my client, and the other staff (in the same house with a private room) was the "awake" staff for the other resident who usually is awake all night getting into trouble. I would not really be able to sleep because the other resident would take random baths in the middle of the night and I had to stop it, (his caregiver was sleeping) I found him asleep when his bath was too long, and I got him out of the back door from digging in the trash cans because his fridge was locked by his parents. The caregiver was irresponsible yes, but he was a full time student and the company did not offer to pay the awake staff any more than me. I reported all of it, and the person who was hired to fix all of their ******** was fired because his rate " was not worth it" and they couldn't humble themselves from listening. THat company had all of their clients pulled from regional center because this negligence of course ended up harming the clients and they ended in hospitals. I am so grateful that regional center did that, but sad for the people in their care who suffered because of their corporate greed. As soon as the new manager was fired I quit because they did not care to change their ways. I am so glad that company is no longer in business.

Thanks for all of the responses. The only thing I can clearly understand is that I don't understand and I will try to find out more. It just seems unethical. I suspect, and I could be wrong because I have not done the research - is that things just snowballed and now we have the current situation because of all the past events you all have mentioned and the general puplic is the one to suffer because we don't make the laws we just abide. I feel the sick, elderly, disabled, and poor are the ones to suffer because they lack the resources to make informed decisions. To answer your questions, yes I had this discussion with my father who recently had an urgent surgery, an aortic valve replacement. I told him the conditions about the nursing home, and asked him if he wanted DNR status, and if he had a living will and advance directives. My father is a practicing Catholic and he believes that he is not DNR but additionally has said that he would never want to live like that. I am not sure what the Catholic church says exactly either, but I know their belief with regards to physician assisted suicide. All of the legal , medical , and religious details are complicated and are not easily interpreted by the public, that I think is unethical. I asked my brother , who is an attorney and my father who is a scientist with 2 PHD's and neither of them knew all the details, we had a probate lawyer do the living will. I guess my hopes would be that somehow this info can be made readily available because effects so many lives.

Thank you, Yes I am aware of those legal terms. I think my question is more about what events in time and political forces are behind this current trend. It seems like to find the answers I am looking for I need to do alot of research!

p.s. This is a sensitive topic so I hope it was worded in a way that does not feel offensive to others, I apologize if any part of message comes across that way. And secondly, I might have projected some of my own ideas in the post because I am still in the phase of gathering information, and things evolve and change as new ideas bounce around. And lastly, I am just really trying to figure it out and learn more about topic. : )

Hello All, I am very curious what politics are involved in the current trend to have residents in LTC facilities that are bed bound and requiring various artificial means for life? I visited my grandmother in an Alzheimer's unit as a child towards her later stages when it became hard to care for her, but I do not remember this large of a community. ( I know I was a child so that has to account for alot ) . But, the argument still is many more people are alive this way then 30 years ago, and 50 years ago. I was discussing with a classmate today and we agreed with these points, but I want to learn more and wondered if anyone can recommend some books about this. -It is costing California SOOO much money -I wonder if these patients were informed about their rights to not have artificial means before. -Is there a lack of information available to the population about our human rights/medical rights and lack of education regarding our options -If that is the case, what is being done to inform the public? -What segment of the population is more informed, at what age, and what is the problem getting the information to segments of the population that are not as aware, language, socioeconomic factors, ect. -These facilities provide many jobs for LVN, what is the loss and gain of taxpayers of this? -What arguments are ethical to propose, what are not? How does religion play a role? How does government play a role?