other rehab nurses who want to communicate

gwofford · Apr 2, 2001

So far I haven't met a rehab nurse who didn't love the field! I spent my first two+ years in subacute rehab and have been in acute rehab for a little over two years. Yes, we still experience the "hustle and bustle" of hospital nursing and sometimes it's obvious the patients should be on a medical floor. Some of my friends, other nurses, don't consider this "real nursing", but then they haven't tried it. We seem to spend more time getting to know our patients as we guide them in their ADLs and encourage them to do more for themselves. We spend time with their families, too, and often build relationships that continue after discharge. Our unit has 48 beds and the average length of stay is two to three weeks. On days and afternoons we usually have 6-7 nurses and 5-6 nursing assistants. On midnights, we have 4 nurses and 3 assistants. Of course, like almost all facilities, we frequently have less staff. Ours is a closeknit staff out of necessity, as the work is often grueling and we need to support each other. After finishing my BSN, I would like to become a CRRN, so if anyone has some suggestions about how best to prepare, please let me know!

AnaJane · May 7, 2001

Hi gwofford; just wanted to let you know that I did not need my BSN to sit for the CRRN cert in '94. Then things changed but they changed back again, so in PA, you do not need a BSN to sit for the exam. You need at least 2 years of experience as a rehab nurse and I forget how many ceu's. Go to the website http://www.rehabnurse.org and see if you can get info on your state requirement. There is also an email address: [email protected]. Go for it!!! good luck. (I did go on to get my BSN but it was nice to have the cert prior to finishing school.)

tiger · May 17, 2001

hi. i've been a rehab nurse for 10 years in las vegas. when i started here we had 10 hour shifts and several choice in shifts which all overlapped giving extra coverage. since then our staffing has decreased just a little each year or so (and trust me it is not because of a nursing shortage here it is because admin. decided to cut our ratio numbers) and they switched us to 12 hour shifts (no more overlap). right now we have a ratio as follows... 34 pts = 8 on days and 6 on nights 28 pts = 8 on days and 6 on nights 25 pts = 7 on days and 6 on nights 23 pts = 6 on days and 5 on nights 19 pts = 5 on days and 4 on nights less than that i'm not sure because we normally don't have that low of a census. i don't enjoy it near as much as i used to because we have less staff meaning more complaints while other departments pick and choose what they feel like doing. nurses are the only ones stressed to make sure the patients are taken care of while some of the other departments are allowed to shut down for the afternoon for one of the staff to have a birthday party or something. they say they can make up their charges. but truthfully, does that sound like an admin. thinking of the patients. oh, on those staffing ratios there are mostly at least 2 rns and then lpns and cnas make up the other numbers. we do primary nursing and the lpns and rns have the exact same assignments except the charge nurse who does all the communication with the doctors and take off orders with the help of unit secretaries. the only things the floor rns do that lpns do not are initial assessments, flushing of picc lines or centrals, fill out minimal papers that have to be done by an rn, and sign their name behind the lpn on daily assessments. we all work together very well in nursing though and don't quibble about who has what initials. however it is a challenge to get alond with the other departments. thanks for listening.

CashewLPN, LPN · Jul 11, 2001

Well... where I work it is a 60 bed rehab unit... we have a lock down/wanderguard section which consists of 10 of those beds... 16 of the beds we typically use for the bad head injuries... OSP 1 &2 mainly... and yes, we do have the cage (the bed with the net around it that zips on the outside)

We do all types of rehab here... neuro, cardiac, pulmonary, ortho.... you name it, we fix it.. or... more accurately, if it breathes, it can be rehabbed.... so, we're crosstrained in EVERYTHING....

occasionally.... our unit is taken over for med/surg... only if there are no more hospital beds, and if the ER is on divert... (on my island, there are only 2 level 1 er's... and the other hospital is always on divert as it is signifigantly smaller than ours... )

okay...

laters ya'll

--Barbara

Skywatcher · Jul 13, 2001

Originally posted by PPL
Hi. For nights we don't see a third nurse until census is thirteen. We usually get an aide for one hour only in the am, and we're expected to get everyone up/dressed that OT isn't working with on dressing and grooming. How does this sound to everyone else?

Hi, I work on a small 10 Acute Rehab. Staffing for our unit is 1 nurse whether we have 1 or 10 patients. We get a C.N.A. for days when census gets to 4. We get another C.N.A. at 5 and full staffing when census reaches 6. Hardly ever get more help and if the med surg unit has the same census as us and no C.N.A. they pull ours for the "greater need".