Thinking of LTC

njbikernurse · Aug 22, 2007

In my experience, weekends are the best time to work at a nursing home. It's generally more laid back, due to no administrators running around making people nuts. Plus physical therapy is not stealing your patients right when you need to check their blood sugar, ha ha. Lastly, the nurses I've encountered who work weekends only were always my absolute favorites. Funny and self sufficient and just a ball to be around. During the week is when I worked with mostly sourpusses. I definitely loved the weekends, actually looked forward to my weekend on!

SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN · Aug 22, 2007

In my experience, weekends are the best time to work at a nursing home. It's generally more laid back, due to no administrators running around making people nuts. Plus physical therapy is not stealing your patients right when you need to check their blood sugar, ha ha. Lastly, the nurses I've encountered who work weekends only were always my absolute favorites. Funny and self sufficient and just a ball to be around. During the week is when I worked with mostly sourpusses. I definitely loved the weekends, actually looked forward to my weekend on!

:yeahthat:

I actually look forward to my weekends on. Much easier all around. I'm on days, BTW.

catslave · Aug 22, 2007

I work 12 hour Baylor shifts on the weekend and pick up one day during the week for the benefits. Wish the weekend Baylor was 16 hours for all the reasons stated by njbikernurse. I say go for it!

mamamccoy · Aug 22, 2007

thanks for the info - anything I should ask about when/if I interview? Also, I've seen people refer to Baylor hours? what is that?

catslave · Aug 22, 2007

My Baylor shift works like this - I work 12 hour shifts on Saturday and Sunday and am paid for 32 hours plus any extra time worked on those days. I pick up one 8 hour shift during the week in order to get benefits - this is considered full time Baylor though some nurses work only the weekend Baylor and fore go the benefits but they do accrue vacation/earned time, just at a different rate. At my facility full time nurses start with 40 hours of time in the bank, accruing 8 hours of earned time for every 40 hours physically worked. Earned time may be taken as paid vacation time or any earned hours over 40 may be cashed in.

Not all but many facilities in my area run Baylor shifts though the hours and benefits may somewhat differ.

It seem that even if a facility doesn't run Baylor shifts, they're always looking for weekend nurses.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Aug 23, 2007

I work 16 hour shifts every Saturday and Sunday at a nursing hume under the Baylor plan. I have been doing this for about a year and a half.

My shifts are from 6am to 10pm on the weekends. Under the Baylor plan, my workplace pays me 40 hours for working 32 hours on the weekend.

marjoriemac, LPN · Aug 23, 2007

Go on, join the LTC community! It is rewarding and you get to use your own brain (not a docs!) and interpersonal skills! Weekends are good to work as they are more laid back but it's not as easy to get a doc if you need one!

mamamccoy · Aug 24, 2007

Thanks for all the help - I'm putting in my app!

JentheRN05, RN · Aug 28, 2007

One thing I did was make a list of all the questions I needed answered before I accepted a job in LTC/NH.

Here's the list:

Pay?

Pay during orientation (is it the same as normal pay?)

How long is orientation (mine said 10 days - which is NO way long enough - I was told 30 days should be what to expect - and that was by another nurse in the same facility - so I'm gonna ask for more orientation)

How many aides per nurse on each shift?

Insurance - if you need it

Do patients have alot of treatments? If so - how much can aides assist with?

Are there going to be any other RNs on my shift or will I be the only one (thus becoming a charge nurse)?

Will I EVER be responsible for ALL the patients in the building?

Is there ever call? (ya know - being on call, if they call you have to go?)

Do we alternate holidays?

How many weekends a month are required?

Are they flexible with school? (I am going back for my masters starting this month)

Those are just the questions that were pertinent to myself. hope they help you out in some small way.

Good luck - so far I HATE my shift. I'm thinking of asking about a Baylor shift. I've only been there 5 days so far, 3-11 and I miss my family so much. Wish I could work another shift, or baylor so I only have to work 3 days or so a week instead of 5. Any suggestions on how to bring this up tactfully since I've only been there a few days (didn't realize how much I'd hate this shift until I started it)

mamamccoy · Aug 28, 2007

thanks so much for the advice - I appreciate it! I'm putting in my app today - also thinking of a job in an md office where one of my friends is an APN, part time 3 days a week - i think i would love it as far as the pt teaching aspect, being part of a team, but think weekend position at nh would be better _ I have a 12 yo son born with hypoplastic left heart and asthma - he missed 30 days of school last year due to asthma & had 2 caths for embolization of fistulas & close a hole in his heart - he had an awesome summer & was not sick at all - today is home sick with his asthma!!!!!!! AGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!! thanks for the advice & letting me vent!!!!!

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Sep 2, 2007

I'm thinking of returning to work after 7yrs of at home with kids - background is med/surg, neuro/surg & home care but thinking of applying at NH in town - weekends. Looking for advice - thnks in advance:balloons:

They'll snap you up in a minute! LTC takes a good bit of organizing because there are so many tasks to accomplish in a shift, but if you've worked on a busy med/surg and neuro/surg unit you'll be able to handle it. I never found the patients to be any kind of big problem compared to what can go on in a hospital. There were challenges because LTC doesn't have the resources that hospitals do. I sometimes used to bring in a can of juice or a good brand pudding ('cause the kitchen only gave us applesauce to mix the crushed pills in) and I had a basket of lotions, powder and shampoo (good brand named stuff) that I had the CNAs use on some of the residents who didn't seem to have family bringing them any of these special things. I loved the residents and you get very creative in helping them to get through their little crises.

The biggest challenge for me, however, was dealing with the childish behavior of some of the CNAs. This is partly because I was a snot nosed kid myself. Takes one to know one, you know? I've run into a few that would probably put the brattiest kids to shame. I've had to learn to deal with smart alecs and insubordination. In a nursing home you are usually working as a charge nurse and that means you are supervising everyone under you. On the weekends the charge nurses are the big cheese (representative for the administration who is not in the building). Make sure you talk with the DON so you know her view on how to handle any discipline, if the issue comes up. Be clear who is on call and should be called at home if a question comes up that you need advice or an answer about. That is part of the DONs responsibility--they've got 24-hour accounting. I hope it doesn't, but I've been working in nursing homes a long time and I'm a realist. When the cats away (the administration) the mice (CNAs, kitchen help, laundry people) will play--and boy! can some of them be masters at manipulating you.

I've taken a couple of one-day seminars on how to deal with difficult people over the years. I have two books that were a help to me and a third we had to read in my BSN program that was a real eye-opener about people's behavior. I hope you never have to read them, but just in case you're looking for something. . .

Games People Play: The Basic Handbook of Transactional Analysis by Eric Berne, M.D (required reading by my BSN program)
Managing Difficult People: A Survival Guide for Handling Any Employee by Marilyn Pincus
Working With Difficult People by Muriel Solomon