[33-weeker]

As a congenital heart pt. whose had countless ECGs and many echos, I will say that - though I am a nurse and I can see things from the professional's perspective - when I'm playing patient, warm gel and preservation of dignity (as much as possible) is greatly appreciated. It's different when it's YOU that's the one being exposed. Esp. with an opposite gender tech/nurse.

Usually I've been asked to put the gown on with the opening to the front. The tech lifts the gown long enough to place the leads or postion the echo device and then lets the gown fall back down covering most of me. When having to move *stuff*, a professional back of the hand/fabric barrier is appreciated as well.

The most important things of all?
CLOSE THE DOOR (curtain)
warn me BEFORE you touch me
and just be professional about what you have to do.

[TXstudentRN]

[quote=danh3190]Does the towel trick really make women feel better? It sort of seems to me that the towel sort of accentuates the invasion of space. But I'm a guy and don't really understand (on an emotional basis) what the big deal is, I just accept that some women feel that way.[quote]


Yeah it doesn't seem like much, but it really does make a big difference. It's just the difference between laying there completely exposed to having a little more dignity. Generally patients already feel vulnerable in the hospital since people come in asking about every possible bodily function and poke and prod anywhere, so it's just one little thing that makes a person feel more like a person and less like an object... at least that's how I've felt. I think age plays a BIG difference as well... most teenage girls' parents haven't seen their daughters without a shirt on let alone some random guy! Haha I know it sounds stupid but it's just one little thing that isn't hard to do that can be the difference between feeling exposed and more comfortable...

[jbird125]

We have the same problem, it seams more with muslisum female patients (i am not against the religion or racist in any way), i have noticed however that if the patient is that unwell that it needs to be carried out immediatly then usually they are more than happy for you to do it.

If it is less of an emergency then i am more than happy to get one of my female colleagues to do it for me.

Unless there are religious or cultural reasons why i should not be performing the ECG then i will explain at length to the patient why i as a health care practitioner will do nothing different to the next, and will quite happily perform ECG's on young women.

[mced]

Originally Posted by jbird125

and will quite happily perform ECG's on young women.

I don't care who you are THAT...is funny!

[EmerNurse]

I'm female and when I do EKGs on females, I'm ALWAYS careful to keep them covered. I always say "pardon me" as I nudge something out of the way, and if it's rather large, I'll ask the patient "would you mind holding this for me?". They always get a giggle out of that. But I don't expose them unnessessarily. Incidently, I try to connect the wires so they all come out in one place to the side of the gown so the patient isn't "wrapped" in wires. I've seen some poor souls afraid to reposition themselves for fear of getting strangled by a lead wire LOL. Always fix that for 'em.