Provided with a phone for shift?

[Graduatenurse14]

I will start a job next week for a large, urban teaching hospital on a unit where only some of the nurses are provided with a phone ( ex. Spectralink.) If you have a doc calling you back you have sit next to a landline phone. That is shocking to me!!

I worked as an aide for their competition which is another large, urban teaching hospital where all nurses and aides had a Spectralink phones to communicate with each other. The nurse phones had an outside line so they could continue to do things while waiting for a doctor, SNF, etc. to call back.

I can't imagine how much time is wasted by everyone not being provided with a phone for their shift.

If anyone is phoneless, tell me how that works. I'm already worried about time management issues and now I find this out!!

Thanks!!

[cayenne06, MSN, CNM]

Hmmm. I've never been provided with a phone, and when I am waiting on a call back from a provider, the secretary answers the phone and calls me to the desk.

I am also a CNM student at a super busy tertiary hospital. All of the providers (and us students

[NotReady4PrimeTime, RN]

I work in a huge, urban teaching hospital. The only people with phones on my unit are the charge nurse, the transport nurse and the rapid response team nurse. We also don't have a unit secretary from 1600 to 0800. Nor are we allowed to use our personal phones. I would guess that most units don't have phones for every nurse. To do so would be cost-prohibitive.

[iPink, BSN, RN]

On my previous unit, we didn't have phones. We had these small walky-talky devices called Volceras that allowed staff to reach us. An MD could call us directly on the Volcera and speak to us if they wanted, but mostly they would call the unit and the unit secretary would let us know. I'm now on a different unit and hospital and we each have phones, which means more numbers to memorize.

You'll learn how to prioritize and say "I'll call them back," if you aren't able to get to the phone.

[schnookimz]

Wow. Everywhere I have ever worked in the last 5 years has had a phone for every single nurse and tech. Can't imagine doing without them!!!

[abalone]

Worked in an ICU in a large urban trauma I medical center. We have land-lines. Nurses/CNAs/PCTs don't have cell phones on our unit (although acute care/ med surg units do). Pages to provider/pharmacy/RT/PT etc can be made by phone or the EMR. In return: Provider calls one of the nursing stations where someone/anyone that is sitting there answers and I get a page overhead. All the pt rooms have phones and the call can be picked up there. 30 bed unit, no unit secretary. It's not an issue. It works because we have a great team. IMO.

[Graduatenurse14]

We had these small walky-talky devices called Volceras that allowed staff to reach us

The hospital I precepted at had Voceras which I didn't like but compared to nothing, I would love it!!

Wow. Everywhere I have ever worked in the last 5 years has had a phone for every single nurse and tech. Can't imagine doing without them!!!

This is how I feel!! I can't imagine doing without them either!! I'm even more nervous now!!!

[greenerpastures]

We have phones were I work which is great if I need to call out, but not so great if someone needs to call me back. You can't give your direct line to the oncall service because every floor has the same numbers in the hospital, so you never know what number they might call back. You have to give them the main floor number and let the secretary know you are waiting for a call. Sometimes, the secretary doesn't send the call through, the signal is poor so the call drops, or the doc gets upset they had to wait 20 seconds for you to pick up the call and hangs up.

[bb007rn]

Worked in an ICU in a large urban trauma I medical center. We have land-lines. Nurses/CNAs/PCTs don't have cell phones on our unit (although acute care/ med surg units do). Pages to provider/pharmacy/RT/PT etc can be made by phone or the EMR. In return: Provider calls one of the nursing stations where someone/anyone that is sitting there answers and I get a page overhead. All the pt rooms have phones and the call can be picked up there. 30 bed unit, no unit secretary. It's not an issue. It works because we have a great team. IMO.

this!

15 bed ICU, no phones in most rooms (was a neurosurgICU)

(except we all had pagers and someone would either find which room we were in or would webpage us.) We were always good about telling whomever was sitting near "our" phone that we paged the doc and were waiting for a callback and "I'll be in rm# if they call before I get out of there"

[dawniepoo]

Not only do every nurse and tech have a phone, but we also have walkies. There is never a break from the noise! I have a love-HATE relationship with my phone.

[calinicumurse]

I'm in school now and everybody has access to a phone in our hospital. Looks like an iphone - very well may be - with an app on it for communication with all providers, nurses, PT/OT/RT, etc. If you have your own smart phone you just get the all yourself

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

It is my understanding that most of these phone systems are based upon a modular system... with each module containing a certain number of devices. If you want to expand the system, you have to add an additional module rather than only one or two phones. If the system is 'maxxed out', they can't add any more phones without re-doing the underlying capability.

We have discovered that the effect (of nurse phones) on patient satisfaction is also unpredictable. Patients may not realize how they are used... so they think that the nurse is just 'gabbing on his cell phone' rather than working. If this technology is used, it is important to make sure that staff make a special effort to ensure that their patients have an accurate picture of what is going on.