Things about your workplace that make it nice to be there

A nearby breakroom with a couch where I can go to to hide even if it's just for 5 minutes during a busy shift and put my feet up.

Back when I worked the floor, my unit had drop down charting stations outside each patient room. The charts were kept right there, and the stations were set at a height where you could either stand and chart, or sit on barstool-height rolling chairs, of which there were plenty enough to go around. It was very convenient to chart after exiting the room, and it cut down on charts going missing. Everyone from the docs to the techs would generally chart right there outside the room, although the docs would take the charts into their designated room if they had a lot to do.

A massage therapist to to work with staff.

Mgmt not breathing down our necks.

No scripting. Because I really don't "have the time."

I love circular units. You can see everyone

A max of 4 pts on med surg

ancilllary staff so that I can perform nursing dutites

To me it's all in the policies. Nothing ticks me off more than dickering over reasonable vacation requests, time card issues, or other mundane issues. Managers get wrapped up in the minutia of those things because that's what they deal with. I'm still fuming over an issue that happened over two years ago. I would have quit long ago but for a tight job market and other personal reasons. If you make your employees feel appreciated and treat them as professionals they will create an upbeat, quality environment. You should see the related post about charging an employee for a broken vial of fentanyl! I've always been told how much it costs to train new employees but managers sure don't seem to act that way. Find out what is important to your employees, then try to deliver. This is where many managers fall flat. They might ask but they already have their own idea of what's important and don't listen, or don't have the savvy to deliver. Thanks for asking!

More dynamaps with ALL parts working! Nothing like going into a patient's room, realizing that you took the one machine that sometimes dies even when plugged in, running out to exchange it for another, only to come back and realize that that one will not take a temp. (And no, we don't have manual BP cuffs on the wall and the thermometers not with the dynamaps can rarely be found). Although I think most pts realize from my quick explanation that it's the machine and not me, I always think that a few must think, "Oh great, I've got the nurse that can't even take vital signs."

But overall I really do like my unit-the people truly make it!

I think one of the biggest things is self-scheduling. I'm not sure yet how well it works on my floor, but schedule issues are a big source of stress for me and the farther in advance I know mine and can plan it as I want it (ie, 3 nights together, 5 days off in a row w/o taking vaca so I can go home, etc), the happier I am!

Another thing that would make me happy is if things could get more stream-lined, I feel a lot of time is wasted double checking things against 2 or 3 different things b/c everyone is on a different system. Oh, and, the MDs TYPING their notes (or heck, let's throw it all into the computer system the nurses use!) would save me lots of time

Absolutely nothing. Well i guess the paycheck. If money were no object I would ask for safer staffing levels, coffee would be nice, more chairs so I could sit and chart, equipment from this decade and housekeepers that would actually clean the patients rooms. Oh and food/snacks for patients on night shift. It is ridiculous that we have NO food available after 7:00 p.m.

I worked at a facility with a gym and on site child care. That was nice.

It wouldn't cost a thing to have mandated meal breaks and another nurse to cover your patients while you went to eat. That worked fine in the past. How about a decent clean breakroom just for the nurses and a nice clean coffee pot for staff only that is off limits to visitors and ambulatory patients with infected wounds. And, I've always thought each unit should have one person more than they actually need who could assist in any way you needed them to.

We need enough chairs, pillows, and equipment that works. A room that is for staff only whether it's a break room or a charting room. The nurse manager's approach to nursing can make or break a department and the job, but that's another thread.

Safe staffing levels. Without this, nothing else matters. Then, make staffing good enough that nurses (and aides) can actually pee and take those legally mandated things called "breaks".

After that, everything else is gravy. :)

Without adequate staffing, even if your hospital is the taj mahal, your nurses and patients will be unhappy, unhealthy, and possibly dead.