Cell phones in the work place!

/////// Last edit by calidonrnstudent on Aug 16, '10 : Reason: /
Wow, that is horrible! In the patient's room?!?! Wow. My facility has a very strict cellphone policy: no cellphones, PERIOD. A nurse got fired for having her cellphone out while in the nurse's station. You're not even allowed to use your cellphones on your break time when you're in the break room. As soon as you clock in, your cellphone cannot be seen or heard. It doesn't matter if you're not using it--your cellphone must not be seen. That's taking some getting used to.

I hate cell phones. Even though I do have one and use it frequently. I keep it in my pocket and on silent mode. Not vibrate.. "All sounds off". I would never use it in a patients room and I feel weird using it in the nurses station even though theres nobody around who would tell me no cell phones.

My God - I'm stunned (although, not really surprised, I suppose). As a patient & family member, what you described would have me boiling, calling patient care, calling the DON, the CNO, the CEO. I can't stand that crap when it happens at the KFC, much less in a hospital. Find a way to discreetly inform your nurse director, I think, before your facility gets such a bad rep that the census goes down & they start cutting hours.On the flip side, how can a hospital practically ban cel phones?? Docs use them all the time, and as a new RN, I completely rely on access to the many apps available for my smartphone: drugs, procedures, terminology, and the good old worldwide web of patient resources and information. The phone is not the problem - the USER is. No professional person (or _polite_ person) would do that in front of a patient/client/customer/friend. I would be willing to bet the CNA you mentioned has other unfortunate habits as well. Find out more about those, and then go to a higher-up.

Well, I am not a nurse or even working in a health care capacity yet (working on it of course) .. but I must say there should be zero tolerance for personal cell phones on the floor. I would have no problem firing anyone on the spot who violated the rule, because as we all know there are at least 10 unemployed rule-abiding CNAs who would kill to replace them. We have grown too dependent on these devices. When I was a kid, calling my mom @ work on a landline worked just fine.BTW, I have a cell phone and use it constantly when I have it but I know when not to use it. I don't have separation issues with my phone (in fact, I sometimes feel free when I forget it @ home )

Maybe instead of having juvenile rules on banning cell phones in the work place we should spend more time teaching professionalism, and hold nurses/etc. accountable for presenting themselves in a professional manner. I keep my cell phone me at all times during work, and use it mainly at work for the references I have on my phone.

I keep my phone in my locker at work. I have worked with people (from HCSWs to RNs) who have been wiping a butt with one hand and yakking on their phone with the other. apart from the obvious issue of it being rude and unprofesional- why would you want to risk cross-infecting your phone and then touching it whilst eating?

I don't think they can ever rid people of cell phones in this day and age. Too many useful applications such as drugs, medical encyclopedias, etc that are convienent for a competent medical provider to utilize. But, as mentioned earlier, the cell phone itself is not the problem, it is the user...almost like guns. If a hunter used a gun to produce a meal for his family or community, that is not wrong, but using it to kill an innocent person is.I also carry my cell phone, but keep it on vibrate. I let everyone know that if I do not respond immediately, it is because I am AT WORK. I keep my cell in my pouch bag along with my house keys,money and wallet because unfortunately, our things are not even secure in a locker, so, I keep what is most valuable on my person.

Quote from hopefulwhoopWow, that is horrible! In the patient's room?!?! Wow. My facility has a very strict cellphone policy: no cellphones, PERIOD. A nurse got fired for having her cellphone out while in the nurse's station. You're not even allowed to use your cellphones on your break time when you're in the break room. As soon as you clock in, your cellphone cannot be seen or heard. It doesn't matter if you're not using it--your cellphone must not be seen. That's taking some getting used to.

We have to carry hospital wide phones while at work. So if I am in a patient's room and that phone rings, I have to answer it. It is usually the secratary transfering a call from a patients family member, or a doctor calling about a patient. In my opinion that is as rude as answering your cell phone!!!

I don't believe staff should be using cell phones in front of patients, however its unfair to ban completely. On an unpaid lunch break it should be OK to use. Nurses have families a babysitter may need to contact them. Phones lines on the floors need to be free for medical contacts. I see nothing wrong with a nurse using phone as a contact and returning calls on breaks in private areas.

How do the no cell phone policies relate to people with smartphone apps such as ePocrates or others that can be used in the work place? Are those forbidden as well? Just curious. I recently changed jobs and left one where I was a supervisor (around 50 people), and I couldn't imagine justifying "NO PHONES," lol. I can, however, write good reprimands on people that violate workplace directives.

I wanna know what happened to the original post..now I have no idea what happened and everyone is just talkin.