Reply With QuoteI left a job about ten years ago because of inability to maintain a safe nurse/patient ratio. It was a med-surg unit in a small community hospital. I worked nights and often had upwards of ten patients and there were always fresh post ops. We didn't have clerical staff so we did all of our orders, admissions, answered the phones and so on. Furthermore, we did the phlebotomy and bedside respiratory therapy as well. We had one severely overworked LNA for twenty-five or thirty patients who could barely keep up with blood sugars, forget about vitals. It was ridiculous.
After about six months of a steady diet of that, I gave my notice. The last night I worked, I had four admissions on top of the seven patients I started with, had one go bad that I had to send to the unit, and just ran like an idiot for twelve hours. I stayed more than two hours over my shift so that I could do the admission charts, all of the routine orders and all of my documentation as if I could remember anything... Admin didn't believe that this was a problem, not only for the nurse but also the hospital. Guess why I left.
That experience let me to the following conclusions: Voice concerns over unsafe staffing conditions. If the problem persists, leave. If enough nurses gave their notice, it would eventually force the necessary changes in the institution. Nurses continuing to work under such circumstances put unknowing patients at risk, impose unreasonable liability not only on themselves but ALL licensed staff. Finally, I firmly believe that continuing to work this way perpetuates the problem. Healthcare institutions get away with understaffing because they can. I experienced chronic understaffing in only one place but wouldn't hesitate to leave any facility that practiced that way. We don't need unions to handle this problem, just enough backbone to stand up to it. Good, experienced nurses have no trouble getting positions so don't hesitate to leave a bad one.
Just my two cents.
R
