"On your unit, what are your duties as CHARGE NURSE?"

RN~in~CT · Dec 27, 2004

i'll give it a go ....

how does being in charge impact your shift??
usually makes it more stressful, because not only am i in charge, but i also have a full pt assignment.
do you feel an extra burden of responsibility?
yes! especially when we have float nurses on the floor, i pay extra attention to them to see if they need any help. this naturally takes me away from my pts, but i feel it is my responsibility.
some units i have worked on had numerous additional duties
as the charge nurse.
others, i only had to make the patient care assignments.
what kind of unit have you worked in the past or present - -
and, do you mind sharing what your additional duties were
as the charge nurse???
hmmm, in addition to carrying a full pt load, we have to assign the admits (er and direct) and post ops. if there is an lpn on, need to cover, or assign someone to cover her iv meds and assessments. make the assignment for the oncoming shift. figure out staffing for the oncoming shift. plan on how many sda's are coming in the following morning, anticipate which ones will need a room closer to the nurses station, a private room, isolation, etc. some doc's will demand to "only speak to the charge nurse" ~ sure, because i've got all the time in the world?! deal with any issues that may arise. etc, etc, etc...all this for a lousy extra $1/hour. boy, it sure is worth it! :rotfl:

pebbles1977 · Dec 28, 2004

At least you get a differential for charge! They don't do that in our hospital. I'm in a new job now, but before this, I was the clinical lead aka charge for days. All what you wrote I did, plus the extra duties my manager didn't want. Reports, scheduling, educating staff on new equipment, policies, etc, checking attendance compliance, serving in committees (not always voluntary), making sure equipment was in working order (if not, fixing it or contacting the dept that could), networking with other departments/floors, etc etc. It was almost like ANM, but still in staffing. The idea was that the CN would NOT have pts, but over 50% of the time I did. Several times a full load or more than the other nurses. I know of at least one time I had 7 pts and the most another RN had was 5. Bull!

SO anyways, not to complain, but just to give an idea of what I did while in charge. I do not regret for a second leaving that position. I'm very happy being the peon right now!

DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN · Dec 28, 2004

How does being in charge impact your shift??
Do you feel an extra burden of responsibility?

We get a whopping $1.00/hr for doing charge. I run all the rhythm strips first thing, read them, mount them and put them in the charts. I also put the rounds reports in the charts. I calibrate the accuchecks and check the crash cart. The rest of the day is answering the phone and checking/noting orders. We have a unit secretary from 7A-11P so I don't have to take off the orders. In the evening around 1700 I make the staffing decision for the next shift and do the assignment for nights. It gets pretty hectic at times because they keep calling for rooms for patients and they come up faster than we can get others discharged and sometimes there's not a nurse to assign the patient to because I refuse to let them take more than 6. I have on occasion refused to have a patient come to the floor until I was ready. Other dept's don't like it but tough. I can't take patients because I'm not allowed to leave the desk because of the telemetry's. They are checking into getting telemetry watchers. I hope it comes to pass. I hope this info helped to answer your question.

chad75 · Dec 28, 2004

I think the nurses that do charge for anything less then a 5$ differential have lost their collective lost their minds. You are responsible for the unit, depending on the unit that can be a lot of responsbility.

casper1 · Dec 28, 2004

We get no shift diff. Usually must carry assignment 5 to 7 patients in addition to charge duties.

DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN · Dec 28, 2004

We get no shift diff. Usually must carry assignment 5 to 7 patients in addition to charge duties.

I get the lousy $1.00 per hour. I think it's lousy but I do it because I know in other respects my employer is worth much more to me. When there is a disagreement between the nurse and patient, family or physician I have always known the management to stand 100% behind me. That means alot to me.

As for taking patients on top of doing charge I'm afraid I would have to REFUSE ! and I would flat out REFUSE ! That's not only cheap but unsafe and irresponsible on the part of the employer. It's not safe for your patients nor for you or your liscense. No way !

nursbee04 · Dec 28, 2004

how does being in charge impact your shift??

it makes my shift harder. as charge nurse i take a full load of patients.

do you feel an extra burden of responsibility?

most definitely.

some units i have worked on had numerous additional duties

as the charge nurse. others, i only had to make the patient care assignments.what kind of unit have you worked in the past or present - -

and, do you mind sharing what your additional duties were

as the charge nurse???

i work on a medsurg unit. i take a full load, i make all assignments, i check the crash carts/fridge temps, cover for lunches/breaks, do all new admissions/postops (the nurse that gets the pt does the physical aassessment), give iv pushes/hang blood for the lpn's, do blood draws from ports and central lines, handle any problems the other nurses bring to my attention, piles and piles of useless and redundant paperwork (we have three different mandatory forms we have to fill out that lists the staff for the night, the census and each pt room (listed separately, of course) that each nurse is assigned. this is just the extra on top of doing total care with no aides for an average of six to seven patients (have done it with as many as eight.)

all this extra work for an additional compensation of......(drumroll, please)..........................are you ready for this?................................there's no way you'll ever guess :rolleyes: ...............................................................................

nothing!!!!!!!!!! that's right. the staff nurse who only has to worry about her six patients makes as much as or more than me. (more is usually the case.)

redwinggirlie · Dec 28, 2004

I get extra doughnuts in the morning after my night shift has ended. I also get the dregs of the day shift's lunches since they're left on the table where I receive report.

All in all, I guess it's worth the extra buck an hour.

DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN · Dec 28, 2004

I get extra doughnuts in the morning after my night shift has ended. I also get the dregs of the day shift's lunches since they're left on the table where I receive report.
All in all, I guess it's worth the extra buck an hour.

That's pretty disgusting.

passing thru · Dec 28, 2004

Thanks for your replies. I see nursing is the same every where.

Red Wing Girlie - - - I wouldn't know how to take report if the table was clear. Us night shifters always ""straighten up " and make coffee for the morning crew.

When we come in, it is exactly as you described, the coffee pot has baked dry, and trash is overflowing out of the wastebaskets onto the floor.

I've always wondered why days can't take 10 minutes to make the place look presentable for us.

passing thru · Dec 28, 2004

RN1976 - -

How large is your tele unit???

I haven't seen a tele unit without a trained monitor tech in many years.

Anyone else working tele without a separate tech?