Safety Beatup

[SoundofMusic]

Well, I just got home from an hour long safety meeting, mandatory for everyone who works at our hospital. They are upset at the high number of safety events yet .... they have cut staffing, refuse to hire more sitters for elopment risks, and continue to demand that nurses provide the BEST in customer satisfaction, do their job w/ endless interupptions and administrative paperwork, AS WELL AS make absolutely no safety errors.

This is really getting to be a weird world we're living in. One nurse spoke up and told the administrator that we cannot continue to serve "so many masters." It was a brilliant statement and I wanted to stand up and cheer.

The administrator gave her the voice, and acknowledged her, but continued to offer no real solutions. He said he realized we were having more and more piled upon us, but we still should continue to FOCUS and prevent these safety errors.

Now, this same moring, we also just got a new message in our emails on how every open position will be scrutinized under all the coming cuts in Medicaire and Medicaid reimbursements to our state.

Honestly, how much longer is this insanity going to go on in this healthcare system? In this world?? You can't HAVE IT ALL, people. Something HAS to give. I mean -- if NO one can afford healthcare -- yet we are providing it for free -- couldn't we perhaps cut back a little on customer service? On something? I mean -- they want IT ALL -- and then they want to cut back on raises, on extra help.

Pretty soon the whole thing is going to implode, I fear. It already seems to have happened in SF, CA.

[feisty]

Where I work it is the same thing and if you try to say something you get pulled into each management office all the way up to the director. All along the way you get this attitude and team player speech. Makes one want to say you need a team to be a team player, but that would just get a longer speech. Grrrrr. What makes it worse is seeing them all sitting around having lunch together when you can't even stop long enough to eat.

I know there will be those that say you should take your lunch break, but there is no one there to take over your pt. load so you push through. Maybe file a complaint....see above paragraph. Oh, did I mention the speech about how we are blessed to have a job in this economy and there are many nurses putting in applications daily wanting our jobs (nice way of saying you will be unemployed if you make waves). That's called being caught between a rock and a hard place.

Now, will the government help? No, they put more requirements on us without making certain that hospitals do not institute the requirement in a safe manner for staff. I believe patient safety should be protected and I am all for measures to prevent health-care acquired infections, etc. , but would someone please just stop for a minute and include something in the requirement that would also protect the ones at the bedside.

Rant over. Can you tell I just received an email stating we are going to experience more cut backs. sigh.

[GitanoRN, BSN, MSN, RN]

Evidently, I agree with your statement 100%. However, I'm afraid you're in need of a vacation, some time away from it all, like a all inclusive Caribbean getaway for at least 2 weeks. Having said that, going back to the subject at hand, the health care system is changing but not for the better when it comes to us nurses, we may take a little step forward but 2 steps back. In addition, I just had a meeting with the CEO and other management staff, they are proposing that we should have some nurses perform the duties of the unit clerk and take care of pt.'s as well , and they can get rid off some of the clerks we now have ,this will place us back on budget; so you see this overload is everywhere you go. Following this further, they still want us to maintain our 600+ beds in full capacity, plus our clinics and in addition not to forget the safety for our patients. Therefore, I stood up and pulled out a ruler and used it as a magic wand, when they ask me what was I doing I told them that I was trying to get some robot nurses to perform all the duties they have selected for us, then I proceeded to tell then, I need every one of you to work with our nurses for one week and see if you can handle the load,needless to say that didn't go well, but they know I speak my mind when it comes to my staff. Lastly, with the economy the way it is one has to grin and bare it, the other solution is to go elsewhere and start all over again:yawn:. In conclusion, my advise to you is do the best you are capable of doing and when things don't get accomplished have the patients write to administration. We can only do so much, but don't give up, do it for the love of your patients.

[SoundofMusic]

Romano - I'd love to take a vacation, but just can't for many reasons. I'm not stressed over it as much as I am just astounded by the way things are going in healthcare, with nursing, with everything in general. As a country, we seem to be in some sort of crazy denial. We want everything, yet we refuse to want to work for it, to commit resources to it, or to support those who are doing all the work to make it happen.

I've just never seen it so bad. I'ts like living in the twilight zone anymore.

[StNeotser, ASN, RN]

In one of our recent meetings, our facility had been told of the medicare cuts AND that they were retroactive - in other words our facility needs to pay back some medicare money that has already been received.

Seems like administration is between a rock and a hard place too - they can't afford to have someone fall in the facility and be denied payment because it was the "fault" of the facility that they let someone fall. Yet staffing is being cut. Unfortunately it's nursing that bears the brunt.

Yes, I do agree that people do seem to be clamoring for more and more from far fewer resources.

[imintrouble, BSN, RN]

Med errors, labs not being drawn, appt not being made, specimens not collected, NPO pts getting meal trays... These are no longer isolated events. The above all happened IN THE SAME DAY. Everyone concedes there is not enough staff, but still insists these errors are unacceptable and should not occur. Not enough staff/errors unacceptable. It's looniness.