greener22

Been a nurse since the mid 80s I'm definitely OG and I definitely remember how to use paper charts and I can answer all of your questions. We were notified when they were new orders in the charts because of position would flag it and put it at the desk. The charts had a little mailbox type of flags that could be extended at the top like a bookmark. Yes the Mars were on paper and it depended on which one you used if it had three days or seven days or 30 days on them. Paper charting for 30 day format or sometimes still used in long-term care. If I needed to communicate something with another department I picked up the telephone tell them that the patient in room seven or whatever needed a new x-ray or that the diet order had changed... Nursing tasks were kept on a Kardex, similar to what is in the brain on epic. It was a cardboard 8 x 11 or sometimes 8 x 10 paper that we wrote out in pencil things like the patient's IVs, dressing changes, when vitals were to be done etc. and then those were updated every shift or with every order written by the doctor. The night shift staff would update the paper MARS. The world is much safer now with ESR but much slower. I'm happy to have a longer discussion with you if you DM me.

Rose queen-I does sound like an incredible amount of work to go through but it pays off in the long run. I don't have the luxury of having everybody together for one hour. As we are a hospital we always have patients. I am not involved with the OR only the preop and two PACU areas. So I have to have one small drill at 5:30 in the morning for preop before their patients arrive. And then another one with inpatient PACU if and when they don't have patients and then another with outpatient PACU because they all evacuate differently. And I only get 20 to 30 minutes for each drill.

I am the professional nurse development specialist at a small community hospital. I am responsible for preop and PACU education for all staff. what I'm curious about is why I'm expected to conduct live fire drills. engineering handles the pulling of the alarm but I'm expected to set it all up and come up with fake fire and take attendance and do the teaching evacuation plans. I've asked the chief engineer why is this my responsibility and he replies that he doesn't know anything about how to appropriately evacuate a postoperative patient. it's not policy anywhere I don't feel that I'm qualified to direct people on when to evacuate. Do you have to do this at any of your facilities?

I think it's a good idea to shadow any position your interviewing for that way you get to know if it's a good fit for you and they know if you are a good fit for them. I request a shadowing experience so I know what I'm getting myself into. But yes it is on your time. I feel like if you're really interested in a position an extra four hours is not that big of a deal.

I would not have cared at all if my L&D nurse was male. My OB was male. Doesn't make any difference to me. Not everyone would feel that way I suppose. If she has a female OB and no one other husband has "been there" it might be a situation

I stopped working 12 hour shifts 25 years ago when my son was a baby. I could not stand not being with him all day. He would be in bed before I got home and then the only time I saw him was on the way to day care at 6am. I left to work M-F with weekend and holiday call only. Way better! I was able to go to all my kids’ after school events and had family meals together. Not that my kids are grown I went back to 12 hour shifts for the past 18 months and realize why I don’t like them. Yes, I get several days off in a row and can appointments during the day, but the work is exhausting! I am going to 4 9 hour shifts next week. Maybe a compromise between the two.

Why does she not speak to you? Is it just you or everyone? If it’s just you , you deserve an answer and she does not provide one, ask HR for a mediator to discuss it. If it is everyone, then just carry one and do her work too because she is useless and can tell her that

My first code was so long ago that we didn’t have any type of postcode analysis or really even paperwork. It was in the Summer of 1988 and I had one year of MedSurg experience in orthopedics. I work the 3 to 11 shift and I was making my rounds on a fresh postop hip replacement who had been on the unit a couple of hours. When I went into see her she was complaining “it hurts it hurts” I went to the nurses station to get the PCA key so that I can give her a bolus of her morphine PCA. When I went back to her room she was in full arrest. Some of those details are a bit hazy and what I did next but I know that I ran out of the room as Yelled for help and for somebody to get the crash cart. Only no one was getting the crash cart so I had to go get it. Again this was before we had RRT .we only had code blue teams. So I took the crash card back into the room and an orthopedic surgeon who happened to be on the floor came with me and he initiated CPR. Somebody, I have no idea who, called the code blue team they arrived and took over. When I asked me what happened I told him all the details I just shared with you. It was discovered that her allergy bracelet had been removed and taped to the front of her chart, which of course was kept at the nurses station, and we didn’t have EHR. Everything was on paper. So her allergy bracelet indicated that she was allergic to morphine. She was on a morphine PCA! She did not make it unfortunately. But something I’ve always remembered from the report I was told later was that she had a massive MI. I’m supposing that when she said “it hurts it hurts “she wasn’t referring to her hip but rather her chest. now that I’m a nurse instructor I share that with my students and I make sure that they always understand it when a patient says that they have pain that you verify where the pain is and don’t just assume it’s for what they’re currently being treated for. I don’t know specifically what her allergy to morphine was, whether it was anaphylaxis, or if it was nausea, but she shouldn’t have been on it.

Call the BON in the state you wish to live to and ask for reinstatement. Pay the fee and then complete any CEUs but they won’t ask for those up front. Not hard

Reading these comments I am floored by the comments I am a mother and I would not have minded at all if my nurse was a male. I had a male doctor who I had never met as my female doctor was not on call. Would the opinion be different if my female nurse was transgender? Probably. Or lesbian? How would I know if she were? I think he should try it. Would it be discrimination if they would not hire him??

I would choose the school with the better pass rate and if particularly if it’s nationally accredited. But I would figure out a way to move closer. I don’t think that commute is gonna work

Oh honey there are so many questions that you need to know the answers to. I wish it were as easy as a supply and demand. Schools are limited on the number of students they are allowed to admit every year. This is controlled by the state board of nursing. Unfortunately there’s just not enough clinical sites that are willing to take students to do their education so the schools can only except X number of students. . Her Director needs to know the situationAny hospital or care facility can say no that they don’t wanna take any students at all or they will only allow four at a time etc. It sounds like your school is not a very good one at all. You need to find another school. It’s quite possible that you have a grievance or a lawsuit against them. I don’t know who your clinical instructor is to go off on you for emailing her. Her Director needs to know the situation

The trouble I had when my kids were little was that day cares are not open after 630pm. I had to take 8 hour day jobs from 07-330 or 8-430. Lots of those jobs exist. I did have to get in the waitlist for the hospital day care but I took them to La Petite until then.

I would not write a letter to your former employer because they are not going to care. They are not going to change your file. If ever asked in the future if you’ve ever been terminated from a position I think you should say yes. Because if you say no and they find out that you lied they could fire you for that. However, if ever asked if you’ve ever been terminated say yes and explain why. I am not saying you’re going to be able to get the perfect dream job. But if you can get a job, any job, and keep it for over a year you’ll show that you are hireable and can then apply for the job you really want once you get experience. I recommend what others have said to try an LTAC or rehab center for experience. You might find you actually love it! BTW speaking from experience, I have also been terminated from a position but have had my current position several years now.

Take the job where you’re happy. $3500 a year is not worth the hassle or the unhappiness. Just remember that there is no such thing as a perfect job and whatever pastor is greener is going to have crabgrass eventually

“If you don’t know why hospitals are short staffed you have not worked in a hospital..” is rude. Hospitals spend upwards of $50k training new staff and then they leave in 2 years once they finish school. Few people want be a nurse anymore- they just jump right to NP.

No need to be hateful. I currently work in a hospital setting and I have for all of my 33 years. we’ve been shortstaffed my entire career. and everybody going to NP school just makes that worse

No need to be hateful. I currently work in a hospital setting and I have for all of my 33 years. we’ve been shortstaffed my entire career. and everybody going to NP school just makes that worse

If you hate being a nurse I am not sure an NP is a better option. I hear from complaints from NP friends about the long hours, red tape, and hands being tied. If I may piggyback into this conversation- NP programs seem to be diploma mills anymore with little regard to the already saturated market. In my metro area, it takes experienced NPs upwards of a year to find A job, not even one they like. I feel as though young men and women are going to nursing school so that they can immediately apply for a nurse practitioner school and they never work at the bedside. And the hospitals are so short staffed because nobody wants to be a nurse anymore. Whatever happened to requiring 5 to 10 years of bedside experience before being admitted to NP school?

My hospital needs adults to sit with all levels and patients , they have oriented the housekeeping staff to come in on their days off or off shifts for extra money sit.

Interesting as I have actually requested to be a sitter rather than be sent home without pay. Patient safety is paramount and I think it is fine to have qualified staff care for those patients who need it. I think you are being selfish.

Racism exists in nursing, without a doubt. Yes there black nurse managers, educators and directors, however it varies depending on the location. I believe there is equal opportunity for everyone. Have I been turned down for a position because of my color? I sure have and I am white! Lost position to the Asian candidate in order to make the company more diverse. Not my fault I am White. Racism goes both ways. But ageism? Let’s talk about ageism. Nurses over 50 have a much lesser chance of being offered positions because, I guess, I demand more compensation. Or is it the company is fearful of me using more insurance benefits? Possibly. But that again is it illegal. Sure I could mention in an interview that I wouldn’t need benefits but just getting to an interview is the hard part.

Having been a nurse for 3 decades, I worked 8 hour shifts for a few years before 12 hours were common. I did that for a few years until I had children. I found that day care was a significant problem as my husband also worked odd hours. When I came home from my 13 hour shift and my toddler was already asleep and I missed him I decided no more. I have worked in day surgery or education ever since and it works for me. I find staff who work in outpatient settings or 8 hour shifts tend to have small children at home. Working 5 8 hour shifts gives the kids more stability and consistency. At my age I can’t imagine working 3 12 hour shifts in a week. I am tired. I think it works well for the younger staff. I do agree that patients and families appreciate the longer shifts. I see both sides here.

WOW!! Very insightful!!

Having been terminated myself I feel your pain and confusion. a few weeks later I met with the CEO of my company about it. He said I could put whatever I wanted in the blank to that question because HR will only give dates of employment. You did submit a letter of resignation so if asked if you have notice, yes you did. Reason for leaving question is up to you. Someone else in this thread recommend to not put “not a good fit” and I agree with that, But be prepared with an answer. I have worked with RNs who walked out mid shift yet were rehired by the same company. You have the right to know your rehire status. They have to tell you if you are eligible for rehire or not. You can omit the job altogether in your resume if it was only for a short time. If later questioned about it, just say you were limiting space on your resume and included pertinent information. (That will work if your next position is not similar to the one your left). best of luck!!