Cletus
Looking forward to having this Friday off, even though it's the 4th of July and I'm missing a day of time and a half pay. But that's ok. Last night was a good night, considering the last few weeks or so have been quite frustrating. It was the first night where I actually worked as a nurse. Lately I've been floated around all over the place working as a tech. I try to be empathetic and understand the circumstances, but still. I did NOT go through 5 years of nursing school to work as a nursing assistant and to be jerked around all over the place. It's just frustrating, because I took this job and love what I do....but that's it. I love working as a nurse on my unit doing my thing. But I've been praying a lot and God sometimes puts us through seasons in our lives in which we don't want to go through what we are. This too shall pass. Plus, talking with a fellow co worker last night about other frustrations helped too.
I was the only nurse on my unit last night. While it's a bit irritating at times, having to call over someone else to co sign finger sticks and whatnot, there are other things I like about it too. Being the only nurse, I find that I as the "leader of the pack" so to speak sets the tone for the unit. My other co workers (or co worker last night in this case) have to report to me as I to them as well. I tend to let my personality take over when I'm by myself, and I think it helps every one. Case and point; on Saturday we had a really angry and aggressive patient who would slam doors, punch walls, whatnot. Yesterday I kind of set the record straight, introduced myself, was nice and polite, and had no problems with this patient the entire night. None. Only one door slamming instance and that was it. Plus I used my sense of humor too, which really helped with the patient's tension and mine as well; a 5'4" 130 pound something small blonde nurse facing a patient twice my size is scary for me too. I also got to talk to another patient last night about some awesome things that were going on in his life and I shared some of my unit 1 horror stories. He then said "I can't imagine anyone would want to hurt you. You're so nice." Then suggested the sock monkey key chain I carry my work keys on needed a name. On top of that, a new admit came in, got meds pulled and passed, 3 finger sticks, and we all got our breaks. Again.
For me, learning how to be organized and manage my time while on my shift has been a challenge, but I've found it has gotten easier for me. Here's an outline of what a typical day is like for me if I'm the only nurse. I try to do little things that make my life easier; for example, if I know a new admit is coming, I pull an empty chart, print off treatment plans pertinent to it, do them, get a blank lab sheet and pull the PRN med records. That way, I'm already done with most of the little things that come with doing a new admit. FIRST thing I do if I'm the only nurse is get all the bedtime meds pulled and the other meds too, because some patients have meds due at 5 or 6pm. I do the finger sticks before dinner and give insulin coverage if needed. When the patients go to dinner, I stay and do my charting, because if I need to I can always go back and add something if I need to. When they come back, I give after dinner meds. Then a new admit usually comes in around there, so I do the admit, which takes me about an hour if I'm not interrupted. By this time it's around 7:30, which is when I usually go on my break. By the time I get back, it's time to start bedtime meds. So I give bedtime meds, do report, let my co worker go on break, then it's about time to go home. That's it. I have 8 hours for a shift; it is expected of me to complete what is required of me, all the time. This is not a surprise for me. I've noticed some of my co workers consistently struggle with this. It's something I'm not really sure how to handle, but it puts additional stress on the unit. If I were seeing what I was seeing and was a power that be, I'd be asking a lot of questions. But like my co worker said last night, God gives me 8 hours each time I go into work. I freely let Him do what He wishes out of me during that time, and it's all about attitude about it. I let God keep myself accountable and I go in knowing that I have a set time to get what I have to get done. Period.
I was the only nurse on my unit last night. While it's a bit irritating at times, having to call over someone else to co sign finger sticks and whatnot, there are other things I like about it too. Being the only nurse, I find that I as the "leader of the pack" so to speak sets the tone for the unit. My other co workers (or co worker last night in this case) have to report to me as I to them as well. I tend to let my personality take over when I'm by myself, and I think it helps every one. Case and point; on Saturday we had a really angry and aggressive patient who would slam doors, punch walls, whatnot. Yesterday I kind of set the record straight, introduced myself, was nice and polite, and had no problems with this patient the entire night. None. Only one door slamming instance and that was it. Plus I used my sense of humor too, which really helped with the patient's tension and mine as well; a 5'4" 130 pound something small blonde nurse facing a patient twice my size is scary for me too. I also got to talk to another patient last night about some awesome things that were going on in his life and I shared some of my unit 1 horror stories. He then said "I can't imagine anyone would want to hurt you. You're so nice." Then suggested the sock monkey key chain I carry my work keys on needed a name. On top of that, a new admit came in, got meds pulled and passed, 3 finger sticks, and we all got our breaks. Again.
For me, learning how to be organized and manage my time while on my shift has been a challenge, but I've found it has gotten easier for me. Here's an outline of what a typical day is like for me if I'm the only nurse. I try to do little things that make my life easier; for example, if I know a new admit is coming, I pull an empty chart, print off treatment plans pertinent to it, do them, get a blank lab sheet and pull the PRN med records. That way, I'm already done with most of the little things that come with doing a new admit. FIRST thing I do if I'm the only nurse is get all the bedtime meds pulled and the other meds too, because some patients have meds due at 5 or 6pm. I do the finger sticks before dinner and give insulin coverage if needed. When the patients go to dinner, I stay and do my charting, because if I need to I can always go back and add something if I need to. When they come back, I give after dinner meds. Then a new admit usually comes in around there, so I do the admit, which takes me about an hour if I'm not interrupted. By this time it's around 7:30, which is when I usually go on my break. By the time I get back, it's time to start bedtime meds. So I give bedtime meds, do report, let my co worker go on break, then it's about time to go home. That's it. I have 8 hours for a shift; it is expected of me to complete what is required of me, all the time. This is not a surprise for me. I've noticed some of my co workers consistently struggle with this. It's something I'm not really sure how to handle, but it puts additional stress on the unit. If I were seeing what I was seeing and was a power that be, I'd be asking a lot of questions. But like my co worker said last night, God gives me 8 hours each time I go into work. I freely let Him do what He wishes out of me during that time, and it's all about attitude about it. I let God keep myself accountable and I go in knowing that I have a set time to get what I have to get done. Period.
Comments
Post a Comment
Questions, comments and concerns are always welcome, so long as they are pertinent to the content of the post, aren't rude or offensive. Thank you for reading and being respectful in sharing your thoughts! :)