We have been slowly decreasing triage out front. Days past we could have up to three nurses out front but not anymore. Now days we have one sitting at the desk with two techs who run patients back. The nurse out front types the chief complaint in and places them in a bed in the back. Rarely are they triaged out front anymore. So, our illustrious Dr. Silverfox has made comments that he would like to completely close triage in the near future.
One day a few weeks ago one of the charges decided to not even recept the patients coming in the door. Just grab them and place them in any available bed. The nurse in the back was now responsible for recepting and then triaging the patient. It makes the door to bed time almost nil but is it safe?
If I'm in a cardiac room and 2 or 3 patients show up in my other rooms I won't know it because they aren't on the tracker yet. Of course nobody tells you they just placed patients in your rooms, you're suppose to know this by freaking osmosis I suppose. Of course we still have 3 or 4 charge nurses on who are sitting at the desk with their feet up and surfing the net.
The door to bed thing has gotten out of control. Of course all the upper management types are getting big bonuses and visits from the corporate hacks praising them for their great wait times.
FML.
