Safe, Dangerous, or Irrelevant?

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greetings guys n gals,

i'm a 48 yr old, semi-retired aircraft mechanic turned rn. i just graduated this past may. i am currently employed by a well known healthcare organization. i am currently working as a cnr on a med-surge floor that focuses on ortho and neuro. i'm looking for feedback and rationals for one simple question:

is it safe and/or wise to assign a new cnr 8 patients?

thanks for your input:yeah:

gomer

Specializes in Geriatrics, Transplant, Education.
greetings guys n gals,

i'm a 48 yr old, semi-retired aircraft mechanic turned rn. i just graduated this past may. i am currently employed by a well known healthcare organization. i am currently working as a cnr on a med-surge floor that focuses on ortho and neuro. i'm looking for feedback and rationals for one simple question:

is it safe and/or wise to assign a new cnr 8 patients?

thanks for your input:yeah:

gomer

whether or not an assignment is safe depends on a lot of factors, imo. how much orientation have you gotten? are you working with a preceptor? do you feel comfortable with the assignment? after all, it's your license.

also, i think typical load varies from place to place, so it's hard to judge. your floor sounds like you probably get fresh post-ops and the like.

i work on a transitional care unit (rehab/subacute) within a skilled nursing facility, and with back up from my preceptor i am handling anywhere from 8-11 patients on my own, but many of them are far less acute. (i'm five weeks in on orienation as a new grad and go on my own starting next thursday).

in short, it's all variable. what would matter most to me if i were in your shoes is whether or not i felt comfortable or ready to handle that load. if not, i'd ask for more orientation

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My ex was an aviation mech., did you get caught in the post 9-11 layoffs?

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clinical nurse resident? Is this a P.A? Or a NPA? Sorry, but I am confused. What do you practice under RIGHT NOW? I think when we know you position, then we may be able to give you more help.

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sorry, i thought that the term cnr may have been a universal term. cnr stands for clinical nurse resident. in the organization i work for that simply means you are a new rn with less than 6 mos. experience. the next stage on the ladder would be a cn1...cn2...cn3. our charge nurses are cn2's on up.

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no holly, i was not really affected much by 9/11 work wise. i worked for raytheon almost 15 years on corporate aircraft before deciding to switch careers. my mother is pushing 75 and not in very good health. she raised 4 kids by her lonesome after dad died and didn't have the funds put away to help support her in her twilight years. i will eventually have to move her in with me to take care of her as i do not have the funds to send her to an alf, nor would i want to. that's what motivated me to become a nurse, to learn the skills i may need to properly take care of mom in her final years. aviation is still is and will always be my first love, but priorities take precedent now.

gomer

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Specializes in psych. rehab nursing, float pool.

OK now we know you are an RN with less than 6 months on your job. How long since you have been off orientation, how long was your orientation, do you have a CNA on your team . Another factor does your unit have LPN's who are passing the vast majority of medications on your team of 8? What shift are you working? These are the types of questions which need to be answered before I could fully answer you.

You can still utilize your co-workers for questions or additional help you may need. Now 8 can be on the steep end of comfort somedays on other days more than doable. All depends on the patients and their status.. Most nurses prefer no more than 6 patients with a CNA on their team. Some teams consist of RN, LPN, CNA and teams of 12. Primary nursing which is what I prefer is me myself and I on the team. My utilizing the Rn nearest to my assignment for the things which are outside of my scope of practice. Meaning she signs off on the orders I take over the phone or the orders the doctor wrote in my charts. Signs on the dotted line as the transfusionist of blood while I end being the person who stays with the patient for the first 10-15 min watching for any signs of reaction. My RN's are my go to people when I need, and sometimes it's vice versa.

My worst day/team was 15 patients with 1 CNA .... no RN on the floor but supervisior/RN did come in to write off on orders. There was an RN on the other floor, who would come up and see if there was anything needed. There were call offs that day and they could get no other RN to come in and work. Yikes, one time is enough for me, have never been in that situation since. That was 9 years ago.

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Specializes in ER/Trauma.
i am currently working as a cnr on a med-surge floor that focuses on ortho and neuro.
1. how many techs/cnas do you have? what is the level of their experience?

2. are we talking days, evenings or night shifts?

3. what are the other rns you work with - who can you call upon for resource?

4. is this a predominantly ortho/neuro floor? (hips, knees, backs, necks and cranies?)

5. of those 8, how many are walkie-talkie and how many are post op patients?

cheers,

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