Time management/coordination of cares/med passes

awheat · Jan 25, 2012

After graduating and working at my first nursing job I came to the realization after 5 months on a M/S floor that "time management" and "prioritization" is nothing more than choosing what to neglect for that shift. Sounds negative, but it helped me get done what needed to get done.

pockunit, ADN, RN · Jan 26, 2012

I can't wait for that day, but now I can't neglect anything. I have to chart EVERYTHING, including things that aren't ordered or necessary. I get it's good practice, but there's actual patient care I could be doing instead of charting.

anonymousstudent · Jan 26, 2012

The hard thing for me is that I really do get my stuff done - but I stand around waiting and waiting and WAITING on my instructor who's helping one of our 2 borderline incompetent students figure out how to open medication packets. I know I sound rough, but seriously, we are almost done and it's just pathetic. I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to get a glimps of whether or not I'm going to be able to hack it as a "real" nurse with this current system.

ChrissyRN74 · Jan 26, 2012

I can't wait for that day, but now I can't neglect anything. I have to chart EVERYTHING, including things that aren't ordered or necessary. I get it's good practice, but there's actual patient care I could be doing instead of charting.

I know you are feeling overwhelmed right now and it seems like A LOT of work packed in to a very short amount of time. What I would suggest you do is first stop and take a deep breath and tell yourself that you can do this. You also have to realize that you are human and it takes time and practice to finally "find your rhythm". What always helped me when I was doing my clinical rotations is that I always was early for clinicals (if we had to be on the floor at 6:45 I would arrive at 6:15 or so). This way I could sit down in a corner somewhere and plan my day out. I would then write down everything that I needed to do and make myself a daily schedule. I would make sure that if I was passing meds I would give myself ample time and then add in a few extra mins for everything. Just in case something happened. I also did my charting throughout the day. Don't leave it for the end of the day. Write things down so you don't forget what you need to add later. I hope this helps you a little. Good luck.