Happy Nurses' Week!

In case you missed it, the yearly celebration of nurses has begun. We got the whole week covered at the Hotel with "fun" stuff in between work.

Since the theme for this year's celebration is "healthy nurse, healthy nation", maybe it is time for some nurse-centric play-by-play from yours truly.

Yes, the Hotel has some great facilities, so we are fortunate that a lot of the celebrations occur right by our unit, but the problem: many people don't attend. Why? Because they don't have time.

So consequently, if we could get ANYTHING we asked for this Nurses' Week, here's what would be on the list.

1. Unlicensed staff that actually listen, work, and communicate with the RNs. Too many of them on our unit have a bad habit of dissing the RNs. It needs to stop. Period.

We work together as a team. If you diss the RN you're assigned to on your shift, it's a rubber-glue scenario. You make yourself look bad, too.

2. How about the Captain Obvious question: if you want everyone to document everywhere, why not make it easier at the bedside?

Just saying! If you think logging in after walking 300 feet to the nurses' station, then opening the software, then logging in again, finding the patient, then starting your note is good, you haven't taken care of a bedside patient lately.

No, rehab supposedly has stable patients, but you really need things, like computers that accept the data from the beds, the scales, etc. without double charting.

3. Since I went big on #2, why not on this one. How about a fully stocked cabinet outside each room with the basics, a la TCAB projects of the not so distant past? It would have helped if they had planned this on the last remodel, but here's some food for thought.

Having supply staff actually supply it, would also be nice. If you can't do it outside every room, how about on every wing. Steps do make a difference in a workday (you could be charting, checking labs, etc.)

Finally, no matter where you practice, I wish you a very Happy Nurses' Week. Your work matters and you make a difference.

More to come...