grrrr

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Specializes in Med/Surg, Home Health.

Ok, I was charge the other night and a new nurse came to me saying that her patient was c/o chest pain. Well, we go thru getting vitals, calling the doc, drawing cardiac labs, EKG, SL nitro, etc. While we were waiting for the doc to come see her, this patient decided she wanted cheese and crackers. Now this was at 0200 so we have no way of getting any cheese anyway. But I told her that she couldnt have anything to eat until the doc came to see her and ruled out a MI. She was infuratiated with us and said she was going to report us to management because she didnt get her cheese and crackers. I had explained why she shouldnt eat anything until the doc saw her, etc. This patient is overweight with alot of health issues going on. We are trying to help her and all she is worried about is getting to eat! And trying to get me in trouble for trying to help her! Of course, I wont get in trouble, but its the point of her attitude.

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Specializes in Operating Room Nursing.

I wouldn't dwell on this one. You can't change a person's stupidity. :uhoh21: If a patient want to ignore the advice of docs, nurses then theres not much you can do to change this.

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what scrubby said...

and make sure your nsg notes reflect this interaction.

you may want to give a heads up to cn/nm.

grrrrr is right.

leslie

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.

Took care of a 600lb woman before who wouldn't do anything until she ate. Had to bite my tongue many times. I also get irritated when it takes five nurses to turn a 600lb patient and then they complain that we were rough even though we weren't.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
She was infuratiated with us and said she was going to report us to management because she didnt get her cheese and crackers.
It's the same when the patient becomes infuriated with staff and threatens to report people because they didn't get their Oxycodone every hour (when it is scheduled for Q4h).

Addiction controls peoples' lives. It doesn't matter if the addiction is to food or to controlled substances. The meth addict does not care if he's having chest pains, and neither does the compulsive eater, just as long as they get their fix for the day.

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food does more than feed the body it calms the nerves

you were right about feeding her when you really didn't know which direction she was going but try and let the insults and threats roll over w/o touching you

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Working in ICU once upon a time ago, I had 500lb woman on a vent with necrotizing fascitious and the family wanted me to swab her mouth with coca cola and ice cream!! Of course, I absolutely refused this. The woman lost about 150lbs and amazingly recovered. Once she was moved to the floor the family barraged her with McDonalds and Burger King.

Toq

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I now work in a acute care/rehab unit. We get a lot of pts. who are over wt, IDDM, neuropathy, and AKA's. They come to us because they could not or would not keep up with therapies at the local rehab facility. So nursing gets them for for the AKA and wound care and therapy has to work with them. We deal with this type of thing all the time. Please have faith that your facility has also seen this type of behavior. Document all you interactions, both nursing measures and "the extra's" If you do, in the end it will give a profile to this pt. That many things where done to apease this pt. none helped. This is how we protect ourselves with documentation

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Specializes in Jack of all trades, and still learning.

Sometimes all you feel like you are doing is :banghead: . You can't get through to some ppl, and then you are the one going home feeling frustrated angry and upset. I'll join you in the gggrrrrrr

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Specializes in Telemetry, CCU.

Its amazing how oblivious people are sometimes....

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Chart, chart, chart - exactly what they said, what you said, and how they responded!!

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Got this one the other night at 3:30am:

Me: "Mr. Jones, I understand you don't want an IV?"

Pt: "I'll take an IV. But these nurses have to clean up in here first."

Me: " . . . what?"

Pt: "There's stuff all over. Like those bandages, and that breathing thingy. I can't take it, they need to get in here and clean up."

Me: "You won't let them put in an IV until they clean the room?"

Pt: "Yeah, that's right. Now are you going to get them to do it?"

Me: " . . . look, I don't give a crap about whether or not your room is messy. I'm telling you as your doctor you need an IV. You want to refuse it, that's your business, but I'm obligated to inform you that refusing it could potentially result in serious complications including death."

Pt: "So you're going to have them clean my room so I'll get the IV?"

Me: "No, I'm going to go back to bed. Have them call me if you change your mind about the IV."

RN: "Well?"

Me: "Call me when he wants drugs bad enough to get the IV. Until then, tell him to [string of expletives]."

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