Hello Mr. VIP! I'm your servant nurse for the night!

[SICU Queen]

So, yeah... VIP patients. I had one for the last two nights and let me tell you how much I wanted to pull my hair out.

Old dude, post exp. lap. w/ lysis of adhesions, stable to the point of taking PO, one maintenance IV, lotso runny diarrhea (15 times the first night with 5 total bed changes :uhoh21: ), you get the picture... sorta kinda COULD be ICU material but not really - but his son is a MAJOR bigwig for our hospital so he got to stay for the better nurse/patient ratio.

He was CONSTANTLY on the call light.

Some of the reasons he called me:

"I need a sip of water." (Cup within reach on bedside table, he wanted me to hold it to his mouth.)

"I need you to pull my blanket up ONE INCH. It's a little chilly in here."

"Can you turn the thermostat down? No, not to 65, that's too much. How about to 66."

"Move my arm up on the pillow."

"Can you turn the thermostat up? No, not to 70, that's too warm. Go to 68."

"My room needs to be cleaned. Get some wipes and clean the area by the window, and get the floor mopped." (This was at 2am. I refused, as I was busy with my second, REAL ICU patient.)

This was ALL FREAKIN' NIGHT, both nights... and my second patient was truly sick (bivad, drips, lines, etc.).

Add to this the CONSTANT harassment of all the doctors and residents who were wanting to brown nose, so they came by out of "concern"... The poor dayshift nurse had FIFTEEN pages of BS orders and looked like she wanted to cry when I got back the second night. He drove her insane as well.

I cannot stand a "VIP" desgination. ALL of my patients are treated with the same diligence, compassion, and respect... and it irks the crapola out of me to be made to feel like I have to serve someone or I'm going to get in trouble. This old fart made it clear, in no uncertain terms, that the "head of nursing" would be coming to see him to see how his care had been. GRRRRRR... administration just perpetuates this superior attitude and I can't freakin' stand it. BY the time my shifts were over I wanted to stick a straw in his eye.

Have any VIP stories? How do you feel when you're told that a patient is a VIP?

[SmilingBluEyes]

VIPs run the spectrum. I have had some "important" patients who were the least demanding folks ever. Others made me scream. I have had societal "losers" who were MUCH more demanding and entitled than any VIP could ever be. Setting limits so important, but IMPOSSIBLE when management/administration and their doctors refuse to back you up. NO WIN.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

i second (or third) the advice given about "yes, you can have an ice chip just as soon as you do your incentive spirometer 10 times," and "certainly, i can get you a drink of water. you have four pills to take," etc. until you're the last person they want to make demands of. "oh, you want me to get chairs for your visitors? you have ten visitors, and unfortunately our policy allows two. but you have two chairs, so let me show the rest of these folks where our waiting room is." it works really well.

i've also been known to take it a step further.

"don't you know who i am?"

"yes sir. do you know where you are today? do you know the date today?"

or, a favorite of mine: "i'm a close personal friend of dr. jones." (the ceo).

my reply: "oh, that's nice. who is he?"

i don't believe in "vip status." i treat everyone the same, regardless of who they are. i must be doing ok, because i was asked to take care of our manager's father-in-law, the medical director's father and another cardiologist's father-in-law. the cardiologist's father-in-law told me that he didn't need to cough and deep breath (after his cabg) because he had an in with dr. smith. dr. smith, bless his little heart, happened to overhear this particular tirade and stepped up to the bed, handed the guy his incentive spirometer and bellowed "suck, dad. and don't let me ever hear about you telling this nurse "no" again. believe me, she'll tell me!" it worked!

[ladytraviler]

Worked in a small hospital with only 3 rn's and 2 cna's at night. Got one of the doctors mothers in for small bowel obstruction. He stayed the night with her and was on the call light every 5 minutes for temp, pillow, blankets turned. His mom was not even the sickest patient we had. The nurse taking care of her was in tears about 3 hours in to our shift. He was impossible. The other nurse took over her care and after 3 hours she was in tears. They called me from OB to come and answer the call light. I went in and he wanted the temp turned up. I remember telling him his legs worked just fine and this was not the howard johnson. If his mother needed something that was one thing but he was not the patient. I also told him that I was the final nurse and enough was enough. I had a preterm labor i was trying to medivac out, a code green in the ER, and did not have time for his crap. He told me he would have my job and I told him he was welcome to it. I also told him that he did not want it cause the hours sucked, the pay was not that great, and you had to put up with people who thought they were god when there was really sick people to take care of.

I also told him he could get me fired and I would have another job before he finished his phone call. I reminded him that nurses who did a decent job were in big demand and that snotty doctors were not. Who was a greater asset? He did not get back on the light all night. The next night he ordered pizza and colas for the whole staff as an apology. Apparently his mother sided with me. I think that is the only time I have lost it with a patient. You know what, shoot me for this, but it felt good.

[katfishLPN]

Ive had pts like that and they arent even VIP status.

I work in the neuro ICU so we don't get many pts that actually use the call light but when you do they are usually on it the entire night. Exs of why ive been called:

1. can you scratch my head-pt totally intact and able to do himself

2. Can you feed me a sip of water-totally intact 15yo

3.I want to go smoke by the window, if you just open the window ill just have two puffs

4.My SVNs are making my teeth hurt

just a few

My 6 year old son tells me his SVNs hurt his teeth as well - interesting.

[santhony44, MSN, RN, NP]

When I was an LPN student I had a patient who was the wife of a prominent attorney.

She had half the medical staff coming by to see her on a daily basis. She had a Foley catheter in, mostly so she wouldn't have to be bothered with a bedpan.

I was assigned to take care of her and worked my butt off. Bed bath, change the bed, foley care, even to helping her put on her makeup.

The second or third day I had her, they had pulled her foley and she was unable to pee. They were giving her a little more time before re-inserting the foley. Since our instructors were like bloodhounds for procedures we could do, mine had already ok'd with the nursing staff that one of us students would put it in.

I mentioned this to the patient. She said "Oh, no, honey, I want a real nurse to put my catheter in."

I promptly went to my instructor, who knew how hard I'd worked taking care of the old bat and trying to keep her happy and out of the staff's hair.

She just looked at me and smiled. "Well, then, that's OK. She just won't have to worry about not having a "real nurse" take care of her any more!" She changed my assignment on the spot and never did assign another student to the patient.

[momto2dogs]

This is the time I love to pull out all the post op routine procedures. Yes I will pull your blanket up but lets turn first. Lets get up and walk to the bathroom just in case your bowles have to move again. Time to get oob and to the chair again. Here is your incentive spirometer, this time when you get it to 1000 hold it there for 2 minutes...can't hold it that long? Thats why they call it an incentive spirometer. O.K. I'll give you an ice chip if you cough and deep breathe 10 times. You want to go back to bed well let's take two more trips around the unit. Pretty soon you are the last person the patient wants to see.

I love your approach to PIA patients. I'm definitely going to put those into practice!

[NurseShelly]

Worked in a small hospital with only 3 rn's and 2 cna's at night. Got one of the doctors mothers in for small bowel obstruction. He stayed the night with her and was on the call light every 5 minutes for temp, pillow, blankets turned. His mom was not even the sickest patient we had. The nurse taking care of her was in tears about 3 hours in to our shift. He was impossible. The other nurse took over her care and after 3 hours she was in tears. They called me from OB to come and answer the call light. I went in and he wanted the temp turned up. I remember telling him his legs worked just fine and this was not the howard johnson. If his mother needed something that was one thing but he was not the patient. I also told him that I was the final nurse and enough was enough. I had a preterm labor i was trying to medivac out, a code green in the ER, and did not have time for his crap. He told me he would have my job and I told him he was welcome to it. I also told him that he did not want it cause the hours sucked, the pay was not that great, and you had to put up with people who thought they were god when there was really sick people to take care of.

I also told him he could get me fired and I would have another job before he finished his phone call. I reminded him that nurses who did a decent job were in big demand and that snotty doctors were not. Who was a greater asset? He did not get back on the light all night. The next night he ordered pizza and colas for the whole staff as an apology. Apparently his mother sided with me. I think that is the only time I have lost it with a patient. You know what, shoot me for this, but it felt good.

GOOD FOR YOU!

I had a "VIP" pt. as well. I walked into his room shortly after seven, and he attempted to berate me for how bad the service was, the food, the temp, the soap ,the fact that we didn't have splenda blah blah blah. Mind you I hadn't even introduced myself yet. Then, he tried to give me a sputum sample that he swore was supposed to be down to the lab by 0700. I told that I would be back to take care of that in a few minutes (since I didn't have gloves on, and there was no order for a sputum cx, but there was for urine). He then raised his voice even louder telling me that he played golf with the CEO of the hospital, and that he was going tell him, and his primary MD that I refused to take the sputum cx, and he was going to stop donating $ to the hospital, my check was going to be less, called me lazy blah blah blah. I just lost it. I told him to tell whoever he wanted to, and I'd be sure to do the same, and that I just don't handle specimens w/o gloves, no matter who you golf with, and further more I don't respond well to being yelled at and insulted, and that if he couldn't speak to me with respect, he'd be more than welcome to request another nurse and that I'd be delighted if he did. Within the hour, his MD came out of the room and said "What an a**hole!" The pt. was d/c'd by noon, but not before his wife and son apologized and bought lunch for the entire staff.

[Sue Damonas, BSN]

Once when I worked on the Short Stay Unit we had the CEO's mom that came in for a colonoscopy. All our rooms were semiprivate and my manager hurried up and made us move the other bed and overbed stand out of the room to make a private room for her. The worst part was another patient who needed that other bed was made to wait in the waiting room until another bed opened up. I was really disgusted!!

[RN BSN 2009]

that's really sad

[ShayRN]

I had a doctor's mother who was just lovely. Unfortunately, his aunt was a royal witch. After listening to her commanding the staff for 4 or 5 days, I called him, while he was at dinner and asked if he knew how his aunt was acting and "trashing his good name." I went down a laundry list of her behavior and how "don't you know, my nephew is a doctor here!" He was completely embarrassed, never had a problem after he talked to her.

[HeartsOpenWide, RN]

VIP or not, maybe the bigwig should be pointed out that his father was taking away from the patients that really need ICU care and that they were being put at risk.

[CRNI-ICU20]

Dontcha' just wish you could intubate and sedate all these people for about two weeks????

But then, you'd end up with their wacky noodle families....ugh.

Yeah...we get the VIP people too...and it just galllllls me how sweetso pootso the nurse managers and adminsitrative people are to these louts...and WE get treated like invisi-nurse or chopped liver!

I hope they all go home and a thousand camels pee on their lawns!

ha!