i just thought i would throw this out here, and thought it may get a few head shakes and giggles!
so here i was at work the other day as an agency nurse at a local hospital. i had my tubex with me which i carry around for injections when a very nice nurse kindly told me that because of infection control, those tubex are one use only (they are cleaned, not thrown away).
i thanked her very much for the info, and then grabbed the cbg machine..then thought??? ummmmm if a tubex is to be used once per room...then why do we use the same cbg machine for all rooms (hello direct blood on those)...or the vs machine? i giggled a bit. guess it all comes down to cost, washing tubex is easier than washing cbg machines..lol! (i clean my cbg machine with etoh wipes after each use by habit anyway....but still...lol!).
i mean...good rule..but kinda made me giggle a bit :chuckle
what other interesting rules do your facilites have that make you go hmmmmmm???
We have to wipe down our VS machines after each round of patients, but not in between patients. I don't see many of the techs doing this however. Whenever someome sees me clean a VS machine they look at me like I'm crazy.
Gaah! I do this too and ask that the CNA's on my night shift do it. I heard a dayshift CNA comment the other day to another CNA she was orienting that because we do it that it's "a responsibility that nights has undertaken"
I started asking that everyone also do it between patients as I noticed that there was one pulse ox being used between about 13 patients and one by one half came down with the same URI. Mostly it's only that instrument that goes room to room.
Gaah! I do this too and ask that the CNA's on my night shift do it. I heard a dayshift CNA comment the other day to another CNA she was orienting that because we do it that it's "a responsibility that nights has undertaken"
I started asking that everyone also do it between patients as I noticed that there was one pulse ox being used between about 13 patients and one by one half came down with the same URI. Mostly it's only that instrument that goes room to room.
And then the nurses use the pulse ox or bp machine on themselves too! I always swipe the pulse ox with an alcohol wipe before putting it on the next pt.
I have heard that & understand that you do dispose your gloves with each pt. However, if you are using regular gloves & have applied lotion, within that short period of time, it can "supposedly" break down the gloves & leaves you with no protection. If you use latex-free gloves, it should be okay.
One of our midnight CNA's who's been there for 15 years and has seen everything, according to her wheres the same pair of gloves from room to room when she first gets there to do her vitals! I saw, new pair of gloves for each room/patient!!! Thats a great way to spread more germs!!! And she usually has about 15 patients.
One of our midnight CNA's who's been there for 15 years and has seen everything, according to her wheres the same pair of gloves from room to room when she first gets there to do her vitals! I saw, new pair of gloves for each room/patient!!! Thats a great way to spread more germs!!! And she usually has about 15 patients.
Are we to wear gloves for vitals? I usually wash hands between patients when taking vitals, but do not use gloves. I use gloves for any personal care, or when in contact with any body fluids, or laundry items etc. I pair per patient, wash hands when removed, change gloves during care of one patient if the gloves are soiled or when going from dirty to clean areas...is this right?
I forgot about the shoes! So gross!!!! Thank God I don't have to answer them:)
I hate having to fish for the pagers, since they all tuck their shirts in:stone. I hope everyone has clean underwear on. Hopefully they all are WEARING underwear.
Let me ask your opinion. JCAHO is now making unannounced visits and the upper mgmt is going nuts. Now I understand some of their rules and the reasoning and for the most part I agree but why do they insist that no drinks be at the desk??? Yeah, I might spill it or throw it in a doctor's face but is it really a patient care issue? It's a mystery to me! What do you think?
To bring this back on topic, those of us at my facility need a doctors order AND a lab confirmed sensitivity to either the yellow vinyl or latex gloves before we can be accommodated.
Our facility used to require a doctors RX to accomodate when I started 7 years ago. Now they have completely eradicated powdered gloves of any kind from our facility. We still have latex gloves but they are not powdered. When I used to have to use the powdered gloves, my hands would get red, chapped and raw. Now that I use powder free latex, I don't have that problem anymore. Maybe the powder was leading to more trouble than it was worth.
Let me ask your opinion. JCAHO is now making unannounced visits and the upper mgmt is going nuts. Now I understand some of their rules and the reasoning and for the most part I agree but why do they insist that no drinks be at the desk??? Yeah, I might spill it or throw it in a doctor's face but is it really a patient care issue? It's a mystery to me! What do you think?
asher
That is too funny!! I think they are more concerned with transmitting germs to yourself from the nastiness that everyone else brings to the desk. You know the doc that just checked Mr SO-N-SO'S penile prosthesis without gloves and then used your phone to answer his page.
Specializes in ER, NICU, NSY and some other stuff.
Don't you think many of the rules that hake you go HHHMMMMM are instituted by JCAHO.
One of the recent ones I encountered at a hospital that I work agency at. You MUST use a dial-a-flow even when you are running your fluids in wide open. I have decided that the folks behind JCAHO secretly own useless medical supply business.
StNeotser, ASN, RN
963 Posts
Gaah! I do this too and ask that the CNA's on my night shift do it. I heard a dayshift CNA comment the other day to another CNA she was orienting that because we do it that it's "a responsibility that nights has undertaken"
I started asking that everyone also do it between patients as I noticed that there was one pulse ox being used between about 13 patients and one by one half came down with the same URI. Mostly it's only that instrument that goes room to room.