Why does the public...

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think that nurses aren't doing their job if they can't be 10 places at once as well as clairivoyant, omnipotent and blessed with magical powers?

When I am the only RN on the ward for 20+ patients and 4 of them are crashing, no I can't spend an hour chatting with you. This does not mean that I don't care or "don't want to be bothered". Calling your family and telling them that you are being "neglected" so that they come in and call the staff every name in the book will not change the fact that she has 4 patients that are going to crash out, and need her full attention.

Yes, I did tell you that I would be back as soon as I could to help you find your glasses, and I meant it because I wanted to help you, and then my cardiac patient in the next room had severe chest pain and SOB unrelieved by nitro and it took ages to sort him out. This does not mean that I "abandoned" you or didn't take your request to help you find your glasses at that minute seriously. You can file all the complaints you want, it is not going to change anything because the powers that be have made the decision to understaff the wards and freeze recruitment to "save money" and that is final. We often have one or two RN's and was aide to 25 patients on an acute medical ward, with highly dependent and confused patients.

When is someone going to figure out how to give nurses the power to astroproject, so we can be 10 places at once and avoid abuse from people who assume that we are intentionally abandoning their loved ones? Luckily my manager is awesome and tells us not to take this kind of crap off of people. The staffing issues aren't her fault and she works shifts and takes the same kind of abuse off of these people. But I feel like nurses work so hard, only to have a bad reputation with the public often due to factors out of their control. It gets me down.

How do you get past letting this stuff bother you? It is really having a very negative effect on me. I probably going to leave nursing because of it. I am sick of seeing good hardworking nurses get treated like crap by everyone. Why are some of these people so petty, and looking for a reason to complain?

Just had to get it out, it was a bad shift yesterday.

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think that nurses aren't doing their job if they can't be 10 places at once as well as clairivoyant, omnipotent and blessed with magical powers?

When I am the only RN on the ward for 20+ patients and 4 of them are crashing, I probably going to leave nursing because of it. I am sick of seeing good hardworking nurses get treated like crap by everyone. Why are some of these people so petty, and looking for a reason to complain?

Just had to get it out, it was a bad shift yesterday.

So sorry about your bad shift. Your answer is listed above.

The public does not understand the incredible responsibility you have.

They are clueless about staffing ratios,etc.

If you are in a situation where to save money, your floor is short

staffed you need to reevaluate your goals. This new age of medicine

is heartless. Nursing as a profession was not intended to be

run like the drive thru at Mc Donalds. As nurses, we have enjoyed

our profession and our patients. Now it has changed to a ."run for

your life" each shift type of existance.

Your safety and the safety of your patients comes first. If someone

doesn't get their pillow fluffed up, oh well-let it go!

Sounds like you were on target for managing your patient priorites through your shift.

Big hugs to you!

Don't make the mistake of staying in a job where you are being used and abused.

Set your heart on another goal and put on your cloak of invisibility and

disappear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Often you will find an opportunity you will enjoy and wonder why

you stayed so long in a job where money was more important than

providing nurses with safe staffing ratios.

Good luck! I hope nursing does not lose you. But if you choose to

depart, know that you have given your best to a failing medical

delivery system.........

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Specializes in ICU's, every type.

It bothers you because you care, when you no longer do.... THEN it's time to go. I hate it too when family and pt's think I don't care because I can't do more than I am and what I CAN do falls way short of what I need to.

which is, oh, almost daily.

I am upfront and tell these disgruntled folks in a very apologetic voice that I've got "12" people and "4" are very sick now, so although I'd like to speak to them I simply can't. Because my running around like crazy obviously isn't a dead give away to them that I"m busy.

I hear you and hope that today is a better day:saint:

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part of it is ignorance of what we really do. the other part is that when someone is sick, s/he often cannot think about anyone else and it doesn't help that each pt is either roomed alone or with only one other pt....they can't see you running down the hall because your pt is crashing.

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part of it is ignorance of what we really do. the other part is that when someone is sick, s/he often cannot think about anyone else and it doesn't help that each pt is either roomed alone or with only one other pt....they can't see you running down the hall because your pt is crashing.

No actually it's a nightingale ward. That is a long hall with 12 beds lined up on each side. We have two private rooms. We can all see eachother at all times. Visitors see everything that is going on (pulling the curtains doesn't actually protect privacy all that much. I constantly have other patients and their relatives beckoning me and shouting nurse from across the ward when I am at the bedside of a patient.

The next nearest hospital is over an hour away, and gas is pricey in the UK, I'd actually pay out twice more for gas and childcare for my kids than I would earn so commuting is out.

I applied for another job outside of nursing so fingers crossed!

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Specializes in Education, Acute, Med/Surg, Tele, etc.

I know not everyone has this option, but lately I have found that if I put my pager on the loudest setting it has been very very helpful!

See, I go into a room...start doing things and you know that pager is going to go off! I let it go for a second so I know the patient heard it, turn it off...give an exausted look (which I have practiced...LOL!) and say "I am so sorry, this pager is non stop! Let me see if I can get a CNA or someone to help you and I will try to get back as soon as possible...".

I have gotten so many people to realize...man that nurse is being pulled in 50 different directions! It has been helpful!

I never tell my patients about my work load however, not their probelm really, and treads on confidentiality. I simply say "holly cow, its one of those days again...I am so going to need a hot bath when I get home!" or something like that! That way I let them know I am running my tooshie off without bothering them with work or facility probelms. I have seen patients feel very anxious or scared if their nurse is too busy for them, they fear that they may die and no one will notice because they are busy...I try to avoid that ;). It also kinda quells your 'needy' patients by showing them they aren't the only pt!

Oh and who says that nurses aren't clairvoiant? I know that every time that call light goes off it is one of my patients! LOL!!!!!!!! :D

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How do you get past letting this stuff bother you? It is really having a very negative effect on me. I probably going to leave nursing because of it. I am sick of seeing good hardworking nurses get treated like crap by everyone. Why are some of these people so petty, and looking for a reason to complain?

Just had to get it out, it was a bad shift yesterday.

It always bothers me too, especially those that know damn well how many patients you have. How many PCA's (unlicensed nursing staff) do you have for that amount of patients? How bad is the acuity? Are you part of the union over there? I can't believe that the NHS has sunk so low as to do that.

When I was in hospital in 1994 things were OK. Then when my Grandma died in 2002 I had a bit of a shock at how understaffed the ward seemed to be. It seems that you are now at crisis point there.

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i worked for 7 yrs at an inpt hospice facility.

the acuity levels were high, which was one of the criteria to even being accepted.

the ratio was 4:1 rn.

one shift, i had 3 of my pts either actively dying or in uncontrolled pain.

actually 2 of them died within a 10 min period with the other pt screaming aloud. all 3 of the families were present and inconsolably upset. for the first time, i had trouble prioritizing my care. even worse, the 2 rooms (2pts/rm) were adjoined with no door to separate one from the other; only pull curtains.

ea family felt i was paying more attn to the others- no pleasing anyone that day.

i think it can be quite difficult to be objective when people are sick/hospitalized.

anyway, since that nightmare, pt ratios were changed from 4:1 to 2:1. of course i was pleased but also regrettable that quality of care was sacrificed. i almost quit hospice over that 1 shift.

leslie

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