The manager of nurses is responsible for all nurses at the Residence e.g.nurse staffing, schedules(nurses are also responsible for assigning PSWs - Personal Support Workers- to residents) care plans,etc.- basically everything related to nursing.
The nurse and/or RPN (Registered Practical Nurse) dispenses medication, attends and assesses all incidents (falls,etc.), provides wound care,assess health status of the residents on an ongoing basis (for example blood pressure and temperature,etc.) and completes lots of paperwork.(up to 25 % of their time is spent on paperwork !)
Nurses are the floor "managers" responsible for managing all care staff on the floor - RPNs, PSW's, and all activity on the floor.
3 shifts make up a daily staffing complement:
Day shift: 7:00- 3:00. Per floor: 1 RN and/or RPN + 3 PSW's
Evening shift : 3:00-11:00. 2 RN's in the building. Each floor: Minimum 3 PSW's /floor + 1 RN or RPN .
Night shift: 11:00-7:00. 1 RN + 3 RPN's in the building. Each floor: 2 PSW's
Floors 2,3 always have an RN or RPN present. An RN must be present in the building at all times.
Staffing schedules are usually posted (by a nurse/RPN) on the glass wall of the nurse's office for residents and families and volunteers and staff to view.This info should include the nurse/RPN responsible for the floor,the PSW's and which team they are assigned to, e.g.1,2,3,4. Given the frequency of staff changes this posting is a sometimes forgotten (violating the resident's Rights) invaluable tool to easily inform the customer, families,volunteers and staff.
Due to familys' concerns regarding reaching floor nurses in emergencies(you often got voice mail) nurses are now (winter 2019) provided with phones.(Be aware that recent testing showed a 35% success rate.)
Any issues you may have regarding the daily care of a resident should first be directed to the floor nurse.
Any issues relating to nursing that are not resolved by the floor nurse should be forwarded to the manager of nursing located on the main floor.
If your issue is not resolved then completing a complaint form available from the nurse's office on each floor is the next step.
These complaint forms are then forwarded to the Ministry of Long Term Care for follow up by a local inspector.
You may call MLTC to determine how quickly they will be able to address your complaint.(They're very busy.) It's a challenging environment filled with many rules and regulations and personalities and mistakes do occur. When this happens families are encouraged to approach management first. If you are not satisfied, contact MLTC.
