Channeling Florence

As promised, I am posting my thoughts of my new workplace.  After a week of orientation and another on the unit, I am wholly aware of just how different hospitals can be.  In this day and age of technology and clinical pathways, one would find it easy to assume that healthcare has uniformed into some sort of matchy-watchy system across the United States.  oh, how it is not so.

The hospital I have been assigned to has recently shed its "County General" name and business.  All I heard for a week is how they are NOT the county (s-hole) hospital anymore and are planning major changes in the near future.  How exciting a time it is for me.  With that being said,  they ARE the county hospital.  A crap hole by any other name would smell as foul.  Pardon, that's harsh.  What I mean to say is that patients define an establishment no matter where they are treated, and this hospital treats the  patients that the other hospitals reject.  Inmates, low-socioeconomic families, illegal immigrants, are all sent here.  I have no issue with treating any such people, but have to comment on the fact that people who can't pay their hospital bill make the hospital poor.  Which means I don't have use of a blanket warmer.  or supplies in the patient rooms.  or computerized charting.  or carrier robots.  or linens.  Shall I continue?  It's not like I can't do my job, but I've been spoiled.  I feel like the pretentious art-gallery owner's daughter that just got sent to teach jr highers how to paint by numbers.  I'm starting to feel bad for asking questions, because most every response is "yeah, we don't have that."  This is going to be really good for me.  Another ding on the Pro list is that county hospitals are notorious for getting all the weird stuff.  That, is sweet.  

Being that they are not on a computerized system, everything is charted on paper, like the Flintstones did.  There are 'audit nurses' (ahem, chart nazis) that are assigned daily whose sole assignment for the day is to check our charting.  "Mingni, you didn't date AND time".  ....."There's no space that told me to."....."Doesn't matter, add it in anyway."  Sigh.  OKay.  I actually don't hate paper charting, it's a lot easier to read and sort through.  I hate how much of it there is.  So far, I haven't been able to figure out how to chart the way I am being asked and still give any patient care.  I miss my kids throughout the day, because I barely see them.  I do, however, know the exact minute they peed last.  This will change.  It has to.  I work in Peds for the kids, the joy I get from them.  and for the birth control.  

Alas, this gadget girl has been thrust into this strange little city that seems untouched by the progress and advances that the nation's health care establishments (and I) have embraced so.  Pray for resilience, and send stat locks.  We only have one size.  I like the big ones.