Should RNs do housekeeping job or is it our job?

Nurses General Nursing

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:angryfire Wanted to ask if anyone experienced similar situation and how the issue was handled. 1st of all let me mention that I work for a huge hospital that is considered to be one of the top hospitals in the nation, but it seems like there are some holes in the system that no one seem to notice. The issue I have is with the hospital's housekeeping. It appears to me that they make up their own policies. Last weekend I had a really sick patient who had vomited approximately 2.5-3 liters of green bile emesis all over floor and his bed. I had never seen anything like that! He was the 1st patient I saw coming on my shift. I Helped pt get washed and called housekeeping. Well when housekeeping came they refused to clean the room. Making it very clear that they don't clean up messes like that-it's nurses job to clean. What they can do is wipe the floor when it's clean, so it will be disinfected. I spend at least an hour on my knees and used up almost half of our supply of pink pads and towels to dry everything up. It was only after pt had 2 more of episodes of projectile vomiting each approximately 1-2 liters of emesis that the MD gave me an ok to put in NGT. My point is having 8 very sick patients that night and spending all shift cleaning up messes and with no help from anyone else, should it be our job to clean up? I am not talking a little mess here-that takes few seconds to clean up, but a time consuming accidents. I had a similar episode maybe a year ago, when a pt had diarrhea and missed the toilet. The diarrhea explosion was all over the floor and bathtub. I was 9 mo pregnant at that time and was told I have to clean it up myself. I brought that up with management last time and was told its not housekeeping job, but ours. Also we don't have any cleaning supply on the floor and must use pt's bed linen like pink pads and towels to clean up. Anyone had similar situations? I don't think it's fair that other pts have to miss out on hours of care and get their meds hours late because their nurse is cleaning someone's room. Any input is welcome! Thank you.:imbar

Specializes in O.R Trauma Nurse.

this sound so very familiar...i had the same problems at my hospital as well. i truely feel the enviromental services needs to re-educate house-keeping on how to clean up waste....yesterday my patient was vomiting post-op and house keeping threw a major beep and refused to assist bed side (keeping a 350lb

17 year old on the table) if any one works in the o.r they know that teenagers are fighters on waking up. it just burns me :crying2:

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Specializes in O.R Trauma Nurse.

this sound so very familiar...i had the same problems at my hospital as well. i truely feel the enviromental services needs to re-educate house-keeping on how to clean up waste....yesterday my patient was vomiting post-op and house keeping threw a major beep and refused to assist bed side (keeping a 350lb

17 year old on the table) if any one works in the o.r they know that teenagers are fighters on waking up. it just burns me :crying2:

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it was in the housekeeping contract (where i worked) that we nurses cleaned up the bulk and they mopped the remaining. even when an md has ordered a 24 hour stool collection, there i was scrubbing toilets and surrounding areas because housekeeping wouldn't. they didn't even have to clean iv poles or feeding pumps. sounds pretty cushy to me.

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it was in the housekeeping contract (where i worked) that we nurses cleaned up the bulk and they mopped the remaining. even when an md has ordered a 24 hour stool collection, there i was scrubbing toilets and surrounding areas because housekeeping wouldn't. they didn't even have to clean iv poles or feeding pumps. sounds pretty cushy to me.

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Specializes in HIV/AIDS, Dementia, Psych.

We have the same type of policy. We clean up the bulk and then housekeeping sanitizes. I don't think it's right, but it's policy so I have to do it.

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Specializes in HIV/AIDS, Dementia, Psych.

We have the same type of policy. We clean up the bulk and then housekeeping sanitizes. I don't think it's right, but it's policy so I have to do it.

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Specializes in Oncology/Haemetology/HIV.

No, we shouldn't have to do it.

But , yes, we certainly end up doing our share.

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Specializes in Oncology/Haemetology/HIV.

No, we shouldn't have to do it.

But , yes, we certainly end up doing our share.

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I cannot believe these posts.....I would help clean up on a night shift if there were no housekeepers but neither the cna's or the nurses do the clean up when housekeepers are on duty usually from 6a to 8p....i have never heard of such a thing.....never ever....exactly what is their job if not to clean up

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I cannot believe these posts.....I would help clean up on a night shift if there were no housekeepers but neither the cna's or the nurses do the clean up when housekeepers are on duty usually from 6a to 8p....i have never heard of such a thing.....never ever....exactly what is their job if not to clean up

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.
it was in the housekeeping contract (where i worked) that we nurses cleaned up the bulk and they mopped the remaining. even when an md has ordered a 24 hour stool collection, there i was scrubbing toilets and surrounding areas because housekeeping wouldn't. they didn't even have to clean iv poles or feeding pumps. sounds pretty cushy to me.

Now that is spoiled. A patient poops on the floor, I pick it up and they sanitize and mop. But here at least when they clean a room to get ready for a new patient, they at sanitize the IV poles and other things left behind, including bedside commodes (providing they are empty mind you. :))

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.
it was in the housekeeping contract (where i worked) that we nurses cleaned up the bulk and they mopped the remaining. even when an md has ordered a 24 hour stool collection, there i was scrubbing toilets and surrounding areas because housekeeping wouldn't. they didn't even have to clean iv poles or feeding pumps. sounds pretty cushy to me.

Now that is spoiled. A patient poops on the floor, I pick it up and they sanitize and mop. But here at least when they clean a room to get ready for a new patient, they at sanitize the IV poles and other things left behind, including bedside commodes (providing they are empty mind you. :))

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