I quit

[TPFKA@W]

Thank you gentlemen. One does expect the thread to be hijacked around here though. Meanwhile they begged me to work just one more week and I caved and said yes. I am doing it for the patients mainly, they are having a very bleak Christmas season as it is. Yesterday one of my aids was sent home because she tested + (asymtomatic). Back on room confinement for 14 days, which they just got off of. You all think covid sucks for you, it sucks 1000 fold for seniors in facilities.

[Big RR]

That's for certain. My friend who is in a assisted living facility, and who can often vacillate in his understanding of things, still doesn't understand why I didn't come down for his November-December visit (I go 3-4 times a year as its a 7 hour drive each way); I tried to explain that his facility is on lockdown, but in his mind he thinks I am afraid to get Covid from him, and tells that's silly because he doesn't have it. I usually spend only a few hours with him (and also followup with the staff on his condition and what the physicians are doing), but those few hours mean the world to him. No visitors , no entertainment, and the staff very busy with outbreaks (one wing is reserved for isolation of positive cases) makes for a very bleak holiday for people who have very little to bring them any joy. It sucks.

Cudos for staying for the patents, such devotion is admirable. But enjoy your retirement afterwards.

[liberty]

I admire that kind of dedication, so I admire her and have no choice but to respect TP.

[Burning Petard]

Acccording to most christian philosophers, Liberty, if you make respect your default position for everybody, you life will be much happier.

snailgate

[TPFKA@W]

Now they are asking me to continue working for another week. This time it is NO NO HELL NO. We had 5 residents come up positive and are back in full N95 riot gear. I have a tickle in my chest and a dry cough. No fever yet and still testing negative.

[Sue U]

You tell 'em! Your days of wage slavery are over!

[MGMcAnick]

Are you going to spill over into next year and have pay taxes on one 2021 paycheck in 2022? Bummer.

[Gob]

Get out while you can.

[No Greater Fool]

Now they are asking me to continue working for another week. This time it is NO NO HELL NO. We had 5 residents come up positive and are back in full N95 riot gear. I have a tickle in my chest and a dry cough. No fever yet and still testing negative.

Don't let them con you into any more...you've done more than your share already.

[TPFKA@W]

Thank you fool. When I get some rest I will tell the tale of Bette “noBSn” sending professional but snarky texts to the CEO on Christmas Day.

[No Greater Fool]

Looking forward to it!

[ex-khobar Andy]

Can't wait. Get some rest ASAP.

[TPFKA@W]

I slept til 12:30 pm. Husband and I both are enjoying URIs, lots of coughing and sniffling. I haven't gotten word on the last covid test, but I don't believe we have covid, just another run of the mill rhinovirus.

Meanwhile at work Christmas eve and Christmas day there was not enough help in the building. On eve, day through evening, our ADON was working his ass off. He had to do meds and treatments on a heavy unit and then several employees and 5 residents came up positive with covid so room changes had to be made, orders had to be put in and families had to be called, and we were way short of help. It was way too much for one person. Four were asymptomatic and one very clearly has the virus, with O2 sats dipping in the low 80's and having heart rate of 120 and needing 5L of O2. He is bright eyed and alert and afebrile but is clearly quite ill. So a makeshift covid unit was made by putting a plastic barrier up with a zipper door and putting the positive cases behind that. This unit is an Alzheimer's unit and all but one of the positive cases are Alzheimer's cases. Now once the barrier is up one is not supposed to move back and forth between the areas to minimize spread and contamination. Normally I have 2 units to take care of, a simple assisted living and this Alzheimer's unit. Because of the covid designation I should have been one or the other, not both. Unfortunately there was not enough nurses or QMAs to provide for this. So I had to hop forth and back and forth between negatives and positives. It was insane and no matter how hard you wash and scrub you are doubtless going to carry cooties. I was fucking pissed off but it was either do that or have people go without medications.I should point out that 2 of the Alzheimer patients are wanderers and extreme fall risks. Because there was neither an extra aid nor an extra nurse the wanderers, who are normally watched very closely and kept near staff, were left to fall. Of course, fall they did. Endless phone calls and paperwork. Fortunately no serious injuries. ADON had called corporate people, who should have been in the building to help but who blew him off and went back to their Christmas cheer. So after that fucking nightmare we come to Christmas day. I see the schedule posted and they have me on the 2 units again with one aid. Oh, hell no. Fuck that noise. I have never in my life walked off before clocking in, but I was going to. I went and found the scheduler and announced my intent to walk out never to return if this didn't get fixed pronto. It got fixed and then it turned out there was a QMA who would stay on the Alzheimer's unit so I would not be cross contaminating all evening. They would though, because they were having to in and out of the "tented" area to give meds, food, do feeding, brief changes and all that goes with the job. It was all completely unacceptable.

So we have an app on our phones, you know the ones you aren't supposed to be on while you are at work yet it is how they communicate with you directly, and by using that app I can contact anyone in the company. As it happened, on the 23rd we had our Christmas party. The new executive director, who has the personality and effectiveness of a moist cat turd, mentioned our competition, another large LTC company, and talked of their evilness. He had worked for them, and so have I, they are in fact soulless, and quite evil. So I had this in mind when I hatched my plan: If we all were going to have an understaffed Christmas that made us miserable and our patients unsafe I was going to be as disruptive as possible. I got on the app and found the CEO. My opening salvo was: "I don't ever want to hear any (our company) manager suggest that (our company) has a moral high ground over (evil competitor). Today and yesterday are proof that no one cares if we drown here. And I want to add that (ADHS) worked his fingers to the bones yesterday and apparently his calls for help were to no avail. This is all on corporate shoulders." I shared this with the scheduler who thought I was pissing in the wind. No answer was expected by anyone but me. I have done this before, different CEO, when I could not get results from middle managers and I know it is effective. Everyone is instantly available and doubtless catching a bunch of heat. CEO did respond, apologizing and asking for more information. I gave information on what our staffing needs were going to be for the weekend and for the coming week. She told me that she was contacting HR and the operations team to see about their Flex force, which are essentially agency workers but who are directly hired by the company, to go where they are needed and work short term. More apologizing, (which she can stuff up her butt, just get the help). Corporate people get paid big bucks to trouble shoot and they should have come and helped get things under control. I don't imagine heads will roll but I am guessing some asses are being chewed. Maybe they will let me out of my 3 day commitment next week. If things are not vastly improved by next week I will be calling the State board of health.

[Gob]

Dear god, it sounds horrific girl. How many times is that being repeated, and around the world?

[Sue U]

This is all on corporate shoulders." I shared this with the scheduler who thought I was pissing in the wind. No answer was expected by anyone but me.

You might mention that the nursing home negligence lawyers are going to have a party with the staffing records, which will clearly show that any illness/injury/death is the result of a deliberate corporate policy of short-staffing the facility, putting profits over people. When you talk about liability, it tends to get management's attention.

[TPFKA@W]

I wonder if I can sue them.

[Sue U]

Nah, can't sue your employer, all you get is workers comp. Although you might get wc benefits if you had to leave the job because the stress was affecting your health.

[Econoline]

You might mention that the nursing home negligence lawyers are going to have a party with the staffing records, which will clearly show that any illness/injury/death is the result of a deliberate corporate policy of short-staffing the facility, putting profits over people. When you talk about liability, it tends to get management's attention.

So if Mitch McConnell were to get his liability-shield wish, would it prevent this sort of lawsuit? Just curious.

[Sue U]

So if Mitch McConnell were to get his liability-shield wish, would it prevent this sort of lawsuit? Just curious.

Well, like the answer to every legal question, "it depends." The last time I looked at proposed legislation, it would do all kinds of things to make lawsuits for covid injury/death much more difficult to file and win. First, it would strip state courts of jurisdiction so all claims would have to be brought in federal court (which I'm not sure is even constitutional); it would impose a one-year statute of limitations; it would make the burden of proof "clear and convincing" rather than "a preponderance of the evidence" (i.e. "more likely than not"); it would require a showing that defendant failed to make a reasonable effort to comply with governmental health recommendations and that the defendant acted with "gross negligence" or "willful misconduct"; and that such misconduct caused the particular exposure that resulted in the infection.

Given the exclusive federal forum, the heightened burden or proof, the conditions for liability and the proofs required, it is unlikely that many cases if any could make it through this obstacle course to a jury verdict. With this many hurdles, there are a zillion ways for a judge to torpedo a case before it ever gets in front of a jury.

However, in TPFKA@W's situation, covid liability isn't the only issue the facility has. If the fall-risk patients get hurt because there isn't enough staff to monitor them -- even if the short-staffing was the result of the pandemic -- that would be outside of the liability shield.

[MGMcAnick]

I have mentioned before that my daughter in law is an RN in a covid ICU.

We drove 2-1/4 hours to have our Christmas get together with our son and his family today. (Remember we've had covid recently, so we can't transmit it to anyone.)

While there, my DIL announced that this will be her last week in the ICU. Frankly, I can't blame her. The fact that patients seldom go home from there has been causing lots of issues. She's quitting the hospital to teach nursing at a University near their home. It's the same one where she got her BS. I suspect that she may suffer from PTSD in the future, just like a soldier in the trenches.