It was a new record at our hospital this week. Within 30 minutes of admission of a patient to the hospital I got three seperate pages including one from a RN and another from the nurse manager that I did not fill out their newest JACHO form. 2 hours later when I finished surgery, I went to check the patient that I had admitted and found out that no nurse had yet been in to see them. Out of spite I filled out the form and gave it to the patient as well as a copy of the incident report that I filled out. I then recalled the nurse manager who paged me and told her that the form was in the patients room.
I cant fault the nurses on the floor. They were creamed. They are understaffed because so many of them that should be taking care of patients are now walking around with clipboards making sure that the paperwork is done, regardless of the actual patient care. We now have nurses that take care of patients and nurses that take care of paperwork and manage the administrivia. The more admistrivia they manage, the more they create. The more paperwork nurses we need. Since the hospital is going broke, they cant afford to hire more nurses. The result, less patient care and more administrivia.
So I get three pages regarding a nonessential paperwork form within 30 minutes and the patient with a severe infection was not seen for 2 and a half hourse and did not get his first dose of antibiotics until 4 hours after he was admitted.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
Crazy arse backwards! And just plain wrong.
I know your talking about a JCAHO thing... but I wonder if it will get worse (staff wise/budget)when the government monies or lack thereof are involved?
I am thinking that if the patient was sick enough with an infection to be admitted into the hospital... then the patient should have had the antibiotics soon after the admit. Ah..hence the incident report.
as I read these things in blogs... I feel frustrated that doctors and nurses are seemingly powerless over these things.
You won that skirmish.. the patient could've lost the war... assuming there are degrees of infection and some..like sepsis can hit the point of no return. NOT your fault... but what can be done about it?
Now I am speaking as a pt. My doc was referring me out to a tertiary(sp?)facility for a high risk surgery because he believed I would have better post-op care during the first critical hours in a wing that specialized in urology. I can appreciate his concern and the arguments for the transition... but when I read things like this... I can't help but wonder??? There were several concerns... but a key one was the ability to pick up a leak/infection EARLY!
Sounds like the papers come first before the patients.
THAT is scary!
You must get so frustrated with these things!
I know of someone..may have mentioned it here.. who's wife was medivacced (sp?)to lgr facility because she developed sepsis after a GB surgery. The husband heard the doctor at the larger hospital tell the staff he wanted stat labs done on her because he was concerned..and they were not getting done. Hours went by and the husband had to push the staff and remind them what doctor said. (sure they loved that)he said he did not leave her side because she was too sick to speak up and didn't feel staff could be relied on.
What happens to patients like that if they don't have an advocate? I think they suffer needlessly or maybe die.
But...apparently ...the paperwork will get done!
What a stinking mess! Yet they are on everybody to wash your hands, wash your hands (which we should)to prevent contamination. We even had to document for one another that we had witnessed so and so wash their hands. There is just so much bs now. I was crazy to go back.
Totally off track... but..I just heard someone murdered that abortion doctor... Tiller.
I in no way condone murder... it was a wrongful act.
That being said...he performed 60 THOUSAND *late term* abortions???
I thought that was a *rare* procedure used for only the most extreme circumstances? The way it is discussed on the news..I really thought it was rare. Wow.
60,000.00
Post a Comment