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10 Worst Time Wasters at Work
Tania Khadder | NursingLink
Culprit #2: Over-Reliance on Email
We’ve all become addicted to email as a form of communication. It’s convenient. It’s also a great way to keep an electronic trail of your correspondence (helpful if you’re ever challenged on a decision or occurrence). But a lot of time is wasted on back and forth emails that would be more easily resolved as a verbal conversation. Don’t even get me started on the oh-so-common “reply-to-all” debacle.
The solution: If there’s something that needs to be discussed, opt for a face-to-face conversation. Is the person you need to speak to on the other coast? Call them. And if you still want a written record, write up a quick email after the conversation outlining where things left off and send to all relevant parties. On the surface it seems like more steps, but it can mean the difference between an hour of work and a two-day back and forth email discussion.
jillianb
almost 2 years ago
6 comments
I work on the floor as a staff nurse. I am no where near acomputer. These solutions do nothing to help me. The assumption here is that all nurses are working at a desk. I am on a med / treatment cart so there was no help for me here.
nicolegCPNP
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
Ok, so I read the article at home, on my own time. The "nurses" the article is talking about must not be providing much patient care - EVER! They must be managers. Having been an educator and manager, I have seen all 10 things apply to some co-workers. I do work in a very large tertiary care & teaching system, so we do use instant messaging to get hold of and notify doctors/residents and management staff of things that need immediate attention - critical labs that need reporting and orders, patients wanting to leave AMA, and to order meal trays for our patients. Because of our size we do use email to disseminate information to staff so some people do get side tracked for a moment and open personal messages. As for meetings, time gaps between meetings, etc., if it can't be handled by email we will do video conferencing (Skype) until there is a need for a big, face-to-face meeting. I would have to say, it appears someone at Nursing Link read a similar article in a business magazine, had a deadline to turn in an article and so they changed some words and put "nurses" in there instead of bankers/computer programmers/Congressmen.
gwenaz
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
This article is not in the least bit helpful! If I emailed, private messaged, texted at work, etc I would be FIRED!
weelee
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
While I am sure that some of these 'helpful hints' might be applicable within some job arenas, they don't seem to be related whatsoever to the clinical/bedside nursing arena. This article sounds like it's more geared to office workers, managers, and people who are trying to organize their personal lives. I'm wondering who wrote this article and, moreso, who sits on the committee at Nursing Link and screens the articles before they are approved for publication. I am in agreement with almost every comment and sentiment made thus far. This article is light years away from what really goes on with patient care in the hospital. How can we look to you (Nursing Link) for up-to-date professional information and guidance when your perspective is so polarized from the professoinal climate of those who are reading your material? I think that a reality check is needed within your staff.... stat!
SJSEALERN
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
I do not believe that the author of this article has ever worked a day as a floor nurse. I leave my cell in the car, I do not use the internet at work for anything other than to look up medications or other work related info, and if I did not multitask I would never get anything done. I almost never receive personal calls at work because I work nights and my family is asleep so they only call for true emergencies. I also never take a true lunch break, I just cram down a ham sandwich while I chart. Yet, I still struggle with time management and was hoping for a useful tip from this article. I feel thoroughly disappointed after reading this article, it was a waste of time.
kristinaa
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
I don't have time to do any of these things at work. I work at a hospital and the hospital has blocked websites like facebook, perhaps these other companies should do the same for their employees. In a time where jobs are hard to come by I don't understand why people would slack off by surfing the web as this article suggests. I find this article offensive and not applicable to nursing.
mslaugh7
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
The writer of this article needs to walk in my shoes for one day. As a community mental health nurse, i have no time to waste for any item mentioned in the article. However, I do admit to texting a lot but only because that's one of our methods to communicate with other staff particular my fellow RN, to pass information along re: a patient. I wished I did have time to waste once in a while.
RNinCA
almost 2 years ago
4 comments
Ditto previous comments - general article not applicable to nursing. Misleading title - This ARTICLE wasted my time - perhaps the number 1 item on time wasters should be listed as looking at this site!
telenurse85
almost 2 years ago
20 comments
This is an idiotic and insulting article. Nurses do NOT have time to "e=mail" (listed in 2 of the 10 "time wasters", MUST multitask between 5 or MORE "things" (we call those things "patients", have no time for Facebook (with up to 13 Patients in West Virginia = HCA Hospital of course and a TELE floor with some patients on drips, 11 IN Ohio (yes, that WAS a TELE floor....in Lancaster, OH) II've had no time to get online/ on Facebook, etc.
Nurses do NOT set up meetings, the agenda at meetings or the times between meetings.
Texting at work? UH....WHEN does a nurse have time for that?
This article is clearly plaguerized from an article better suited for office workeers.
I, again, repeat that it is also insulting to nurses everywhere.
The author is an idiot and should be FIRED if they actually work for Nursing Link. Nursing Link should be ashamed of themselves.
Oh, and thanks for giving me the BIGGEST Time Waster of my day. I think I'll drop reading your idiotic articles in order to stop wasting my valuable personal time when off work.
yanizbt
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
This is the worst article I have read on this website, I can't believe it was even posted, 1 hour break??? I'm lucky if I take my 30min lunch break, I didn't know people still instant messaged, this whole article was the time waster on my day off.
sgriessmann
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
This was obviously an attempt to re-work an article for non-healthcare office work for a healthcare setting. Unfortunately, as others have stated, it simply doesn't work. The author obviously does not have a grasp on healthcare workflow and time constraints. I used to work in a non-healthcare office setting. Great article for that setting. Worthless rambling for the bedside nurse.
lindainman
almost 2 years ago
4 comments
What is the editor smoking? Lately I've worked in a Cardiology office and an ED. Bathroom breaks were hard to get let alone a full 30min lunch break. I found it impossible to keep up with hospital emails. Pt care comes first.
major_pain
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
What dream world is the editor living in? Time? For what? lol... Get rid of the cell phone at work, "IT DEPARTMENT" can make it impossible to surf the web. Meetings? Sounds like a place I would like to work. Understaffed, underpaid and under the radar. Maybe the article was directed at management sector and not the working feet on the floor. Reality please, lol...
marina_dilbone1
almost 2 years ago
26 comments
Most of the time I agree-we don't have time -not on days or nights to get on and instant message-but once in a while have seen especially among younger crowd-and some olderies like me where on night when patients are actually settled-time is spent in blocks looking at concerts,movies,shopping-have seen it and no I am sure not perfect myself
NancyMueh
almost 2 years ago
2 comments
I agree with everyone below me. I don't get time for a break let alone read emails or instant messages. I work and run so much that I wouldn't even feel my phone buzz in my pocket. The only I use the computer for is ordering meds and looking at VS. I'd like to work where I had any time to have any of these time wasting issues.