Nancy Bickford
Unit Secretary, Memorial Campus West 3, 6/1/20
I just want to say “Kudos to everyone for how hard they are working”
I pick up extra shifts on some of the COVID floors. Some of the positive outcomes of taking care of patients with the COVID virus has been the strengthening of the TEAM WORK on all the floors. We have had new practice changes and policies take place regarding supplies, precautions, PPE, the nurses swabbing for COVID, PCA’s covering COVID patients and doing 1:1’s.
My most memorable moment:
Margaret, Nancy, and Rebecca on West 3
To see everyone working together as a team by brainstorming, helping each other problem solve, education of the PPE, bringing supplies to the COVID rooms, etc. The staff was fully on board with whatever needed to be done.
How it works on the COVID floors
The PCA’s are outstanding! They had to try to conserve PPE while taking care of COVID patients safely. They had to work with the RN strategically in caring for the COVID patients and while doing 1:1 coverage for a confused COVID patient. Some of the PCA’s were taking care of 10 patients on the COVID floors and working overtime to help cover the staffing needs.
The PCA’s assigned to 1:1 COVID patients have to sit outside the patient’s room, watching the patient through the glass window, gowned and gloved with the N95 in their hand ready to go in a patients room as quick as possible when needed.
Staff changing roles as needed
RN’s, unit secretaries, labor pool during the COVID crisis had to help in other areas than they normally do on a normal work day. Unit secretaries and RN’s had to work as runners for the floor to get supplies for the nurse’s taking care of the COVID patients. RN’s had to also come to the COVID floor from other departments and help pass meds to the staff in a COVID room. It was tough at certain times for the unit secretaries to do both roles. The desk, and as a runner to help the staff taking care of the COVID patients by delivering supplies needed when they called the desk via intercom.
The Labor Pool employees came in from different areas of the hospital such as clinics, registration, etc. to help on the COVID floors. They really did not want to go in to a COVID patients’ room because they needed education and information on PPE, what to expect while doing a 1:1, and helping on the floor in general. They were very helpful when they came to our patient floors but were also very nervous.
Communication and education are the key when any new staff get sent to floors other than their normal position within the hospital. Helping transition the employees to new areas that they are not familiar with is a big part in taking care of the CARETAKER.
Having more one to one’s from the labor pool would help the PCA’s on the floor be runners for the RN’s in the COVID patients’ rooms.
Tough Job
Wearing the PPE is very draining and tiring for the PCA’s, RN’s, and Doctors. It takes a lot more time to gown in and gown out of a room. Time management is a key role regarding care of the patient with PPE equipment. Nurses and PCA’s are caring for the patient, and they may be in one patients’ room for 1 ½ hours for total care, they come out sweating from the PPE. The patient rings again 5 minutes later and the RN and PCA must gown up again to care for the patient’s needs.
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I work evenings, staff on COVID floors are working so hard that they do not even get to eat dinner at a normal time if even at all. Staff are working 12-16-hour shifts, starting to get burned out. It is tough to eat a meal on a COVID floor. Healthy food is the key to stay sharp and strong throughout the shift. Healthy snacks do help!
Employees are now dealing with kids at home and having to be teachers too. Employees are doing a full day’s work before they even get to work. They are exhausted, but still doing a GREAT job!
Managers are doing a great job with the communication on all the new procedures and policies each day.
Staff Getting Exposed to Virus
Some patients squeaked through: They test negative twice, and on the 5th day, they were positive. We have semi private rooms so any patient under investigation will be moved to a COVID floor. Symptoms of the COVID virus don’t reveal themselves right away. All staff advised to protect themselves and wear N95. We cannot tell who is carrying the virus, so we all should be protecting ourselves in this crisis.
