Ever had a nurse or doc as a patient?

Nurses General Nursing

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So... how bad was it?

And while you are at it, ever BEEN a patient? How bad were you?

:chuckle

Com'on... be honest!

Specializes in too many to remember.

I have had a few nurses as patients and my experiences were pretty good. My husband (also an RN) was hospitalized once with gastroenteritis, and I stayed with him while he was on observation per his request. He was very clear that they WOULD NOT put down an NG tube or start an IV. They wanted to do an exploratory lap, but my darling hubby got the physician convinced that there was truly nothing wrong and he let him go home without any problems. Since then he hasn't had to be hospitalized for anything, and I thank God for that.

I know when my father in law was in the hospital and came out of heart surgery my husband was there and knew something was wrong with his dad and told the post op nurse that something wasn't right (his dad was turning blue and just wasn't doing well) and they took him back into surgery and found a bleeder. So, I think with a little tact, families that are healthcare professionals can be extremely helpful with your patient.

Harleygirl

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Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

MANY Times. All of our female OB's delivered at our hospital. Many of our employees, do too. I have also had criminal trial lawyers as patients----and pediatricians----you name it. They run the gamut just like anyone else, from the wonderful to the horrendous. They are people just like us.

As a patient myself, I kept the fact I was a nurse quiet most times. I did not feel it was really something they needed to know and I wanted my care to be like anyone else's would be.

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Specializes in OB, M/S, HH, Medical Imaging RN.

I've had doctors as patients and generally they've been very good. Only one stands out.......An OB/GYN that always said to the women in labor "it can't be that bad, cone on be a big girl". He was on our med/surg floor with a kidney stone. OMG what a big baby! I did ask him "do you think this is what it must feel like to have a baby?" He said "I'll never take their pain lightly ever again" and he didn't! I guess it's true that experience is the best teacher.

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Specializes in Medical.

I've not had a lot of problems with nurse/doctor patients, but as relatives... sometimes awesome, more often right up there among the worst on the planet. I've made a boyfriend (resident) write up meds for the (RN) patient, had a (student nurse) granddaughter accuse a colleague of using a yankeur to suction a trache, and a (former RN) daughter tell me that she knew I wasn't really busy because "that's what I used to say when I was nursing." Mm-hmm.

I've only had day surgery, so I don't know how painful a patient I am - unless you count post-op hypotension, which seems to be standard for me :)

Because I know how painful they are, when I've had rels in hospital I've tried to avoid letting on that I'm a nurse, but it's hard not to give yourself away. Both times my father's been really ill I've been underimpressed with the nursing care, and I wonder how lay people manage sometimes. One time my father's heparin was almost out - the pump alarmed, the nurse came in and reset the dose bu didn't hang a new bag. I watched it for the next twenty minutes, as the burette emptied, then turned off the pump when the drip chamber was almost dry, and told the nurse. Not even a thank you!! The only pressure care he got that admission was performed by me, which is how he developed a spongy heel that none of the staff noticed.

On his most recent admission I encouraged my mother to complain: no hygeine for four days (and even then she had to ask for a bowl and towels); an IV in for four days; known history of DVT but no TEDS; and hourly eyedrops that they decided he could self administer - with no clock in the room, and him off his head with narcotics.

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Specializes in Neuro, Acute, Geriatrics, Rehab, Oncology.

Oh Dutch girl that is too priceless!!

I worked on a neuro med floor and took care of MY OB- ...while I was 7 months along... At first I was mortified that HE was under my care after seeing me totally exposed just a few weeks before. However when he exposed his bum while being assisted up to the bathroom and turned to me and said "Now we are even, stop being so skittish" the rest of his stay went smoothly.

A supervisor was admitted with a GI bleed and she was HORRID. She decided which meds she would take and what schedule and when the GI doc wanted to do a scope she DC'd her IV and marched out of there AMA. She was back that night, very scared very anemic and very compliant.......

When I had my hysterectomy I did not say I was a nurse. I had the original Brun Hilda circa 1940 for my night nurse. She saw that I had not been out of bed yet and marched me around the corridors at 0300 for 30 minutes . I thought I was going to faint! She decided since I was doing so well that No more Meperidine for me. Lortab only! All I can say is believe your Pt...the pain is REAL!

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Specializes in OB, M/S, HH, Medical Imaging RN.
Oh Dutch girl that is too priceless!!

I worked on a neuro med floor and took care of MY OB- ...while I was 7 months along... At first I was mortified that HE was under my care after seeing me totally exposed just a few weeks before. However when he exposed his bum while being assisted up to the bathroom and turned to me and said "Now we are even, stop being so skittish" the rest of his stay went smoothly.

That too is priceless! We have a doctor who is very prim & proper who was in with a lumbar lam. When the nurses helped him up he just flung the gown up out of the way and exposed his front side and then getting up exposed his back side. The nurses who had him said he didn't seem the least bit concerned or embarrassed about exposing himself. Since his surgery he's just as prim & proper as ever. Strange.......

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We always cringe when we hear that a new admit has some form of dementia and "by the way, she used to be nurse". Like I said, I don't know what it is -- just an observation.

Yep, I can relate to that. I had one of those in a LTC setting. She made me nuts. However, there were times that I could just sit and listen to her for hours when she had lucid periods of time. Telling me stories of when she was a young nurse and she had to give IM Morphine. Crushing the tablet, the spoon, etc.

She told me about giving hydrotherapy treatments for mental illness (alternating spraying someone with hot then cold then hot then cold water, the docs would prescribe the number of sprays of each). She told me about giving her patients freezing cold baths to treat depression, it was freaky. But they believed they were doing the right thing.

I have since purchased an antique nursing textbook explaining how to do hydrotherapy in great details. Gahhh

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I had an experience like Sharon with an older retired RN who started out very cranky but truly was scared to death of her dx of colon ca. She stayed with us a long time and then went home to die. I rarely go to pts funeral either but I went to her's.

The one thing I've noticed as a patient and an RN is that nurses and docs tend to think you don't need any pt teaching since you are a nurse. I had an emergency cesarean with my last child and was surprised at the assumption that I knew what was going to happen and how to care for myself after. I finally said "forget I'm a nurse and just treat me like all the other patients".

I'm not a terrible patient because I know how hard it is to be a nurse and I'd never burden a nurse with a bratty attitude. I did as one other poster did though - I changed my linen and emptied my hat in the bathroom.

I hate to ask people for favors.

steph

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I have never had a prob with nurse or docs as my patients. But, I have had some trouble from pts (or pt's family) who work in the medical field (vet tech, CNA).

I remember I was taking care of the vet tech's mother. Her mother would get Tequin once daily IV. The vet tech came marching up to the nursing station and demanded to know why her mother was not receiving her IV antibiotics. I knew she got her daily dose in the morning and this is evening shift. So I explained that to the vet tech. Mind you, at this point in time I was not aware that the daughter was a vet tech...I kind of assumed she was a nurse because of her questioning and some of the things she was saying.

Then she asks me what the name of the antibiotic is. I tell her it's Tequin. She gets really mad and says "Tequin..I have NEVER heard of Tequin...and I am a vet tech!!"...I calmly explained what it was. She left to go back to the pt's room and the other nurses/aides at the nursing station and I had a nice quiet chuckle:rotfl: I just thought it was interesting that because she works with animals, she figured that we use all the same medications.

She actually ended up liking me the most out of all the other nurses and I think it was because I would actually explain things for her.

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Specializes in ICU, CCU, Trauma, neuro, Geriatrics.

Having your co-worker as a patient is difficult. Having your boss as a patient is even worse. But the positive side is you probably already know enough about them that when they are really out of it after anesthesia...re-orientation is easier.

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The one thing I've noticed as a patient and an RN is that nurses and docs tend to think you don't need any pt teaching since you are a nurse. I had an emergency cesarean with my last child and was surprised at the assumption that I knew what was going to happen and how to care for myself after. I finally said "forget I'm a nurse and just treat me like all the other patients".

I had c/s and it was the same situation! I actually had to come here to allnurses to find out what kind of aftercare I needed. I had my baby 4th of July weekend so my doc was not avail to talk to anyway.

Because I was the patient in this situation...it was as if all my nursing knowledge disappeared! It was strange.

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i once had an rph pt that hid his bud beer in his "full" urinal. and no, i'm not kidding. he had every intention of drinking that nasty thing. gahhhh

the absolute worst and best patients i have ever had were medical pros.

oh gross!!! i know that it was probably clean before he put the beer into the urinal, but just the thought of drinking beer (or anything else for that matter) from a urinal... ewww... just...

ewwww!!!

i betcha you guys started wondering when he became unusually protective of his urinal and wouldn't let you empty it. :)

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