It’s been a busy few days in work. Monday saw us initially with 2 nurses and 1 (me) healthcare assistants. Not good! We managed to borrow a nurse from another ward, and a little later, another nurse from another ward. We also had a bank staff healthcare assistant. it still meant we were very stretched, but funnily enough, the ward seems to move smoother when we are short staffed. The more staff present, the more hectic the day is, with the feeling that little has been achieved. Odd.
We had a fall on the ward, just as I was coming back from my break. I’m going to keep a note of who was present when a patient falls. The nurse from the first ward and the bank HCA were the ones in that bay. It makes it worse that they were in the cohort bay – meaning that bay should never be left unattended for any reason. I’ve a feeling that by keeping a note of who was in a bay when a patient falls will see a trend: staff present will either be bank/agency or from another ward. I could be wrong…..but when we have staff on that aren’t ‘our’ staff, (apart from the shit staff!) there seems to be an increase of things happening that shouldn’t, or things not done that should be done. Time will tell.
As I got into work on Monday (early) I could hear a nurse giving someone a right telling off. At first I thought it was a patient that had perhaps been arguing or been rude, but it wasn’t. It was a nurse having a proper go at another nurse for being lazy and not helping during the night shift, tending to her own patients (basically doing the medications and nothing else!) and not assisting with any other patients. I can believe this happened, as the nurse in question really is a lazy bitch! It is rare for her to help wash a patient or make a bed, or to assist a patient to the toilet or do a set of obs. So, I couldn’t really blame the other nurse for having a go at her. It was the way she did it that stunned me. She didn’t take the lazy nurse aside and have a quiet go at her, she yelled full blast at her. I could hear her from the ward entrance, so the patients all definitely heard it too. Very unprofessional!! The lazy nurse didn’t say a word the entire time. Sorry, but I wouldn’t have been able to shut my mouth if someone literally screamed in my face like that, even if it was deserved! But it did provide me with some ore-shift entertainment lol.
I spent the day running about between 3 bays, which was fine. In two of the bays, the patients were pretty much self-caring, so it was really only a case of making the beds and doing the obs when they needed doing. The other bay was a little busier, but again, most were self-caring, just a little more needy than the other 2 bays. Not that they really needed anything, but they seem to be the type to think that as they’re in hospital, they need a lot of attention. Either that or they are mollycoddled by their partners/families. And of course, each is sicker than the others, or have had more hospital admissions or longer admissions than the other. But they are a nice enough group, so I can tune out of their ‘poor me’ stories.
I was pretty exhausted by the time I got home. I was in bed and asleep by 10pm and didn’t waken once until the alarm went off. I didn’t even hear the husband come to bed, which is like having an elephant sit beside you as he just thumps down. He’s going to break that side of the bed before long – it’s already creaking and groaning in protest. I won’t be getting another wooden framed bed again!
Tuesday was the day from hell. I was paired with the lazy nurse who had been shouted at the previous morning. Her first words, which were frequently repeated, were that she was so tired as she’s just finished her night shifts the morning before (like I wasn’t aware and I hadn’t heard her getting a bollocking lol) and she was doing 2 long days as well blah blah blah. I wasn’t interested in being sympathetic, as I already know she’s lazy, and knew her fatigue complaints meant she really would do nothing except meds all day. So, I jumped in first and told her which patients could be managed with the help of one staff member, and which ones could attend to their own personal hygiene, and then I sat and cohorted – in other words, I babysat the rest of the patients and let her get on with it. She hates cohorting even more than she hates helping people get washed and making beds!
It ended up going from bad to worse; one confused patient trying to just walk away and trying to go home, another who pissed on the floor, and another who refused to eat or drink anything. The latter then dropped his sats and ended up on 98% cold humidification. We had a new admission coming, and needed a cohort bed, so opted for the most stable patient to move to another bay. He was furious and started ranting and raving and refusing to move, but eventually allowed staff to move him, while he complained the entire time. Another patient decided to vomit all over his tea, and the new admission just lay there like he was in a coma, (he’s not) so he could be interesting once he wakens up more. The poorly patient started to respond to the cold humidification oxygen therapy and decided he was not going to keep his mask on, no matter what we or his wife said or did. The patient who tried to leave earlier decided he was going home with his family and took a huge amount of persuading to remain in the ward. And I had a bucket load of obs to do while everything was kicking off! I have never been so glad to see the end of a shift arrive!
Today I have spent chilling and crafting. I’m back at work tomorrow for a short shift (normal shift to other NHS staff, but for me it’s a short shift) and then back in on Friday. I’m hoping we have enough staff on and that the ward has calmed a little by then, but it’s highly unlikely! I have some training during my shift on Friday, so I’ll be able to escape for a bit 🙂 Saturday will be more crafting. A lot of people, from family to friends and work colleagues, have all said they couldn’t be bothered with an arts and crafts hobby. The usual reason is they wouldn’t have the patience. I find it almost therapeutic. I have the radio on and craft away, in a world of my own, with time to think about whatever pops into my head. It helps me focus and concentrate while also relaxing me. I didn’t used to have a hobby until a few years ago, when I tried fusing glass. I loved it, but it was quite expensive and even though I sold the odd item, it wasn’t enough to cover the materials. After having a crafty hobby, I found myself without anything for about a year, and I almost felt depressed. I’d enjoyed the glass fusing so much and felt such a sense of achievement when I made something nice, and now I didn’t have anything to occupy me or my mind. Earlier this year, I decided to have a play with polymer clay. I’m now addicted to creating things! Some have worked out wonderfully, while others are disasters. But, even the disasters are good, as they help teach what works and what doesn’t. I’ll post about my efforts before long and add some photos. For now, I’m off to bed for my 5am alarm clock 😦
The life of me as I live it 