[Ruby Vee]

I swear, visitors have gotten dumber and nastier over the years! Used to be the majority of them were pleasant and grateful to you for helping Mom, Dad or whoever. Now those pleasant folks seem to be vastly outnumbered!

Yesterday, I was caring for a very sick man with multiple infected wounds which were getting wet to dry dressings. Our practice is to open a bottle of sterile saline, date and time it, and then use it for 24 hours. Yesterday afternoon, I happened to be standing outside the room talking to the resident when I noticed the patient's wife take an oral swab out of his mouth, open up the bottle of sterile saline, dip the swab in, and then stick it back in his wife. I stood there with my jaw hanging on the floor, wondering how many times she'd done that, and whether we'd just figured out why every wound was infected and none of them were getting better.

When I went into the room, I explained to her about sterile dressing changes, and how the bottle was STERILE saline, the consequences of using contaminated saline for a wet to dry dressing change, etc. Her response was to swear up and down she hadn't dipped the oral swab into the bottle. "I poured the water over the swab," she said.

"That's not water," I explained.

"Yes it is," she said. "It looks just like water and I don't want to use dirty old faucet water in his mouth."

You'd think people would be more cautious about putting something in their loved one's mouth if they don't even know what it is! You'd think if you explained the consequences of contaminated saline, they'd be quick to admit that it was contaminated rather than risk you using it on their loved one. You'd think they'd believe you when you tell them what's in the bottle.

You'd think, wouldn't you?

[HARRN2b]

Peope in general are getting nastier altogether. I really cannot figure out why, may be just because of the stress of the times that we live in. I see it everywhere. Heck, even at the grocery.

[Jolie]

Please document your observation, conversation and teaching in the nurses' notes. Make a late entry if necessary. This ditz sounds like one who would sue in a minute and you need to be able to defend yourself and your fellow staff members. I wonder if the attending would be willing to order cultures of the patient's mouth to correlate with the bacteria infecting his wounds. An incident report is in order as well, and please find a place to lock up the patient's care supplies for his own good. His wife can bring bottled drinking water from home.

[StNeotser]

We had a visitor last night at 2300 who doesn't announce herself walks up to me and says "Has my Mom peeed yet?"

Why is it people don't even have the common courtesy to say "Hello, I am X and am visiting my mother, Mrs X" I usually have to ask them about five questions before I can answer their one.

Oh, and when Mom did pee, daughter didn't tell anyone but moved the bedside commode outside into the hallway next to a fire door.

[Indy]

Okay, I've had some nasty family members but night before last a man's family started asking him, as I was leaving the room, "Dad, do you want something to eat or drink?" after I'd already explained that a snack would be forthcoming. The patient said, "no, that's okay, besides she's not a waitress!"

I smiled all night over that one.

[Sabrina's Mommy]

Soooo, yesterday at work, I was in a semi-private room and was taking vitals on the patient is bed 2 (near the window) and she has to go to the bathroom. So I get her out of bed and then I hear bed 1's family knocking on the bathroom door saying "Someone needs to use the restroom!". Bed 1 is a fresh fractured hip, so she obviously can't go into the bathroom! Bed 1's family member (granddaughter, I believe, but a GROWN granddaughter) was using the bathroom and bed 2 had to WAIT FOR HER TO FINISH! I mean, come on!!!! The public bathroom was not that far away! What is wrong with people. Not to mention that bed 1 had just arrived about an hour before and now had about 7 people in the semi-private room, including two children who were less than 5! It's terrible, but our facility does not enforce the visiting hours OR visitation of children under 14 (unless it's during flu season)! It just makes me so angry!!!!! At least, they didn't ask for a bunch of extra chairs! Not that we would have had them, we were full, but argggggghhh!

[Nurse Ratched]

Ruby, I am still just flabbergasted. I hope that your patient can now be on the mend once he is truly getting sterile dressing changes.

[KeithEMU]

Originally Posted by Ruby Vee

"That's not water," I explained.

"Yes it is," she said. "It looks just like water and I don't want to use dirty old faucet water in his mouth."

Give her a glass of it to drink. Maybe she'd get the picture that it's not water. The fact that they could cause their "loved" one much suffering and just not get it when they are explained what they could have done. Did you make sure to use very small words when you spoke with them. :P

Some people are so clueless.

[Pepper The Cat]

I had someone come to the nsg station and tell me they wanted to visit their neighbour but couldn't remember the last name. So could I tell them all the names of the people on the unit and they would know when they heard it! I told them NO!!!!
Re: the normal saline - SCARY!

[Marie_LPN]

Originally Posted by HARRN2b

Peope in general are getting nastier altogether. I really cannot figure out why, may be just because of the stress of the times that we live in. I see it everywhere. Heck, even at the grocery.

I know why. Because in the era of 'customer service' it's pretty much a given as a 'customer' all you have to do is demand what you want, and by God, you'll get it, and on a silver platter at that.