"Your job is to make me happy"

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I was taking care of a patient today who told me... "your job is to make me happy".

I was taken aback, but responded "my job is to make you healthy... healthy and happy, but healthy first"

I feel a bit guilty, and I feel that I shouldn't. I'm amazed that a patient would tell me that my job is to make them happy. Has anyone had an experience like this or offer any words of advice?

When I'm asked when I graduated, I tell the truth and say last summer. Then they say "Great, I have a rookie." :(

Makes a person want to ask, "And when did YOU get your medical degree?"

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Arrg, after typing a response it all disappeared. This is not the first time that has happened to me here but I'll try again.

I had to lol as I currently have a private duty case where the woman stays in her room with her door closed. If she wants something, she used the intercom to call me. I have to use all of my powers of persuasion to get her to turn, sit, get out of bed etc. As she is well-to-do, I am guessing this is what she is used to, but she may simply be reading the local papers.

In this town, a hospital actually took out 8 full page ads reading "Patient satisfaction or get your money back'. Honestly. 8 FULL pages and the words in quotes were bolded. Now, from what I have seen when my private duty patients have to be hospitalized is that the same dismal nurse:patient ratios exist here as in most of the rest of the country. So I am wondering just what hardship this means for the nurse that also must act as CNA, housekeeper, dietary aid, transporter etc. One person cannot be all to everyone.

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Specializes in Oncology, Rehab, Public Health, Med Surg.
This so much. Or a family member leaves trash and tells the patient to "push the call button as much as you need and they'll come right away. That's their job." A family member called me a "night peon" once and felt I wasn't responding soon enough. I had been in their room and explained I needed an order for what they wanted, as soon as I got it, I would get them situated. It was definitely not an emergent situation. When I'm asked when I graduated, I tell the truth and say last summer. Then they say "Great, I have a rookie." :(

Actually, they have a skilled professional that recently graduated with the very newest EBP information as well as the skills to put yhose practices into use. 😀👍🏽👍🏽😆

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Specializes in Med-Tele; ED; ICU.

A nurse's job is to help patients help themselves.

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Specializes in HH, Peds, Rehab, Clinical.

I'd say "really? Who told you that?"

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I would deflect it back onto them with some sort of phrase such as; Happiness is an inside job. Don't assign anyone else that much power over your life.

Well said! :up: I'm banking this one for the next time a patient says this to me.

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I'm reading this and I cannot stop SMH and chuckling and thinking why?! "Your job is to make me happy!". Ummm, no. No it isn't. Just like it also isn't my job to make you a likable and decent person. I know at this stage in the game (having racked up many years of bedside experience) that shouldn't be (surprised by this kind of behaviour), but I am always taken aback when people are so bold as to foist these expectations on nurse. They are SO g-d annoying! We have one of the most difficult jobs in the world that non-nurses cannot even fathom. Thank goodness for AllNurses.com - seriously!!! My annoyance quota with patients is stretched thin as it is.

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A nurse's job is to help patients help themselves.

Exactly!

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I was taking care of a patient today who told me... "your job is to make me happy".

I was taken aback, but responded "my job is to make you healthy... healthy and happy, but healthy first"

I feel a bit guilty, and I feel that I shouldn't. I'm amazed that a patient would tell me that my job is to make them happy. Has anyone had an experience like this or offer any words of advice?

Reminds of the time during my LAST floor nursing position ( 2011) when a patient asked for a back rub.. I burst out laughing. Said something like.. "dude.. you need to give ME a backrub."

I had 9 patients.. that I was busting my butt to eye ball and pass meds on.

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Specializes in LTC, Rehab.

Oh yeah, re: the pt. asking for a back rub. One of my residents used to tell a CNA that she wanted me to come in and massage her legs. Oh sure, I'll do that in my copious free time...

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Specializes in Mental Health, Gerontology, Palliative.

I believe I would have said something along the lines of "I'm a nurse my job is to hopefully get you out of here in a better condition than when you were admitted, if you want to be happy, let me call you a comedian"

I had a patient this morning who has a habbit of being quite verbally abusive and who wanted me to find him 2 brandys before breakfast. He was going on about what an f@#$king b******d I was and how useless I was, i looked him in the eye as I walked away and said "I think the word you are looking for is 'slang for female dog'

Quietened the patient down for a whole 15 minutes

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Specializes in Geriatrics.

I worked with a elderly man once whose wife was certain she should have a personal nurse at the hospital. When the nurse at the hospital told her that she had more patients to attend to, the wife shot back, "Well, I only have ONE husband, and I'd like to have him alive!" At the moment, he wasn't in distress and she wanted someone to complain to. I was their CNA for home care and she was trying very hard to get the VA to authorize more and more hours so that he would be my only client. She was a terror and she made it difficult for anyone to work with him as she wanted to control everything. Sure, I gave him excellent care but I also became butler, house maid, and chief cook and bottle washer... it was a relief that she fired me because one day he was covered in unexplained bruises and she had threatened abuse to him before, so I reported her.

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