Pros
The horrific nature of this job gave me the courage to leave Florida nursing and move to a state with union representation, where I love being a nurse, so I guess that's a pro.
Cons
Working for Palm Beach Health Network (Tenet) at Good Samaritan Medical Center was truly the worst work experience of my life. I felt consistently overwhelmed by the workload and demoralized about my future career in nursing. I frequently had 12-18 patients in my care, which often meant that patient's basic needs were not being met. I very rarely got breaks, let alone lunch. Ratios were unsafe- I witnessed 8:1 nursing ratios on PCU. Patients were coding way too frequently. Nurses and CNAs were quitting all the time. Management in the nurse extern program would say things like, "You should be EXCITED to have 32 patients in your care!" No, those ratios should be illegal. How will 32 sick people be cleaned, fed, and cared for properly by one individual? How can one person possibly do anything other than vital signs and CBGs for that many patients? 32 patients to one CNA means a whole lot of suffering for everyone involved. It's not something to smile about. It's not a "learning experience". It's the epitome of corporate greed. I firmly believe that patients are dying due to unsafe nursing ratios at this hospital.
