I'm an RN, now FNP x 5 years with over 15 years of ER/CCU and ICU experience. Is it old fashioned to expect RNs to do a full assessment at the beginning of their shift?
I have a colleague/NP friend who has been in the hospital now x 1 week. I will spare the details, but she was admitted, discharged, admitted urgently to another hospital and then transferred back to the original hospital. In her whole WEEK of admission, she says just ONE RN and one MD even put a stethoscope to her back. A pleural effusion was MISSED because no one did this basic assessment. Is this the norm now? Do med/surg RNs chart their "make believe" assessment every day?? How do they do this and just flat out lie every day without being caught ? She spoke up at first, but soon tired of feeling like some crazed out NP who was being so picky about her care. She thought it would be interesting to see who would and who would not do an assessment. She says the new RN will come on shift, say hello, walk up to the in room computer and start charting a bunch of notes, pass meds and then continue with the same pattern all day. No bowel sounds auscultated, no lung sounds auscultated. Magical patient care without touching the patient !! This is at a pretty major size hospital too in a major metro area. I have to say I experienced something similar a few years ago but not nearly as bad.
