Does anyone else feel that nurses, in general, are given to much responsibility with out enough help to pull it off? I've felt that way since the first day I became a nurse and I'm just darn tired of it? Why are nurses such wussies? My first job was pre/post CABG care. We were promised a 4 to one ratio with aids who would have 8 to 1. What ACTUALLY happened was 5 to 1 and sometimes 6 to 1 with aids who had 8-10 to 1. CABG pts are hooked up to all sorts of stuff post op that can take several days to get off and in the meantime I'm suppose to make sure the pt gets up to walk 3 times a day. Even though we have PT, and I had an aid, this order rarely got done. If the patient was 'healthy' and could pretty much walk him self with all the gizzmos attached then that pt could get it done, any pt that was real work to get out of bed usually only gets one walk a day because my aid and I are to busy to get them up.
Now I'm a traveler and I'm working on a med/surg floor that expects me to take care of 6-10+ without an aid or any other sort of assistance. Mostly it's hip replacements, knee replacements, GI surgeries, back surgeries, and so on, but plenty of the clients are 70+ and can't get out of their beds and a fair share are complete care. So really, how do I answer call lights for stuff like food, going potty, bathing, etc. AND still do my job?
I guess that is the kinda of poo that makes me so angry. I want to do the orders, and want to take good care of my patients, but I literally don't have the time to do so. I don't understand why we as nurses are willing to put ourselves through this. I'm tired asking other nurses how to get it all done and gettting answers like, "work faster". Well first of all I'm working as fast as I can and it's not getting done. Second of all we shouldn't have to go to work and bust a** every day to get the bare minimum done for our patients. See, on an average working day we SHOULD be able to go to work and walk at a normal speed, pee 2 - 3 times while we are at work, SIT down and eat for 30 minutes AND STILL be able to adquate (not bare minimum) care to the patients AND get all of the paper work done AND leave on time.
What I'm frustrated with is that other nurses say stuff like. "Yeah, that'll be the day." or "Don't count on it." REALLY? Why? What because this sort of treatment is our 'norm' we should put up with it? Well that's crazy talk. I refuse to do so. I WILL walk at a normal walking pace, I WILL take a 30 minute lunch, and I WILL pee. Unless something HAS to be done immediatly or someone's in trouble THAT is what I'm getting paid to do.
So I understand that the order for the antibiotic was put in at 11:30 and I'm just now at 16:30 getting it started, but guess what?? 5 hours later is NOT going to kill the guy. When I say something that needs to be done ASAP, I'm talking about life threating situations. I realize that in nursing care some orders work better the sooner you start them, but that is the kind of crap I'm talking about. If I had a patient ratio that was doable (in my terms not what the hospital knows I can PROBABLY do if I bust my butt) then these things would get done. I'm all for being concerned about the patient, but here's the problem. The more we try to do everything we can to get the patients everything we need, the more hospitals believe that the ratios we have are acceptiable. Thus the only way for them to see that they aren't acceptable loads is TO WORK AT A NORMAL PACE and not get everything done.
Does that make sense? The nurses I work with get so angry because I'm handing them off stuff at the end of the shift, well deal with it. I'm tired of being questioned over and over again about WHY I didn't get something done. Guess what your blood is hanging and other similarly important stuff, the darn antibiotic was last on my list because stuff like blood was higher. Now you get to try to do it. Good luck. Have fun.
We need a nationwide floor nurses union or something. This kind of work enviroment makes me want out of nursing SO BAD! Please believe me, I'm activley trying to get out of it. This is not right. It is not safe. And it is not good for ANY nurse's health. So why, oh why, do so many nurses verbally chastize me for saying so?
