Customer Service at any cost and its effect on burn out and safety??

wooh, BSN, RN · Apr 17, 2011

I've flat out given up. We had a woman yelling at the nurses when they explained that the surgeon was scrubbed into surgery and would come talk to her after he was done. She wanted him to scrub out and come see her immediately to answer her questions. We've got people complaining that we come in to the room too much at night, then people complaining we don't check on them enough at night. Literally got a complaint that there weren't more organic food choices in the cafeteria.

And we reward the behavior. The ruder they are, the more we cater to them.

I used to think that eventually, someone would die because we were too busy in the next room kissing butt, and things would change. But they won't. It will just be another chance for management to tell the nurse that was too busy fetching McDonalds for the NPO patient to actually provide nursing care for the patient that needed nursing care, that they need to manage their time better.

Whatever. I've given up.

anotherone, BSN, RN · Apr 17, 2011

roseycortes said:
SO... Things are more different every day than when I started nursing over ten years ago. The advances and technology I can flow with. Some other things not so well. I have worked ICU, LTAC, Med/Surg, Peds, Oncology, Float, and PACU. No matter what the area, this customer service push follows you every where!
I have always understood that the patient is your customer, and you just cant be flat out rude or nasty, however, when did it become routine every day acceptable for the patient, their wife, and their aunts third cousin to be rude, and right out nasty to the nurse?! People more and more feel like they can do or say whatever they want in the hospital. Like basic rules of courtesy do not apply if you are their healthcare professional.
My hospital had a big customer service push with classes a few years ago, which basically was all about how to lie and be fake. This is above and beyond keeping your personal troubles at home, and giving your best to your patients. I currently have two jobs, PACU (because i love it), and LTAC for the money. If there is a problem or any type of complaint no matter where you are, you are done for.
Recently in our PACU a comment card from a patient angry that he was aroused and told to breath was taken seriously and a discussion was had with the management. At what point does this junk stop? At what point does customer satisfaction overpower safety? At what point will someone understand that the impression this junk is giving nurses is that we dont matter, and if someone spits on me I should thank them for it?? HCAPS = Burnout!
I was kicked by an a & o pt last week. I had it, and politely told him i wouldnt go to where he works and kick him, and expected the same level of respect in my work environment. Did not go over well.
HCAPS and the government and the Joint stressing the satisfaction issues simply makes this worse. People making decisions about this stuff arent the ones getting screamed at, insulted, and belittled. Politely educating your patient family member who read how to flush a line on the internet and doesnt know what they are talking about will get you fried. Telling an alert pacu patient they cant scream and curse when there is a 3 yr old in the next bay will get you fried. Telling a family member in the waiting room they cant come to recovery while you are extubating their wife will get you in trouble. Following pplicy will get you in trouble as soon as someone decides to complain they dont like the policy.
Anyways, can you tell I am frustrated? I like patient education, rights, and good customer service, but how ridiculous will this continue to get? I just need to hurry up and hit the Mega Millions. . . .

It will never end it will jsut get worse and worse. I am about to post my own vent thread ona very similar topic.

Chin up · Apr 17, 2011

MekBlizz said:
OMG! A hospital here has the nurses using this line, "Is there anything else I can do for you? I have the time." what a bunch of ********!!!

Oh hell to the NO!

PACURN1818 · Apr 17, 2011

mree said:
Dear lord, HOW do you guys in the US not go stir crazy and kill everyone? I'm in the UK, we have (at least on paper) a ZERO TOLERANCE approach to staff abuse. We just won't have it! My most recent example is a patient who screamed verbal abuse at me while I tried to assess her. I called the police, had her removed, then had our yellow/red card process started. She's on a warning now, if there's another incident during a future visit, she'll be red-carded and will only be allowed onto the premises for life or limb saving treatment. If a patient is being demanding, rude, abusive (not due to illness/injury, obviously), we TELL THEM their behaviour is unacceptable, and as long as we're not abusive, unreasonable or threatening ourselves, management will back us. Hats off to US nurses, I would've been struck off several times over by now!

Hmmm, just another good reason to head back to my uk roots! (green with envy)

chorkle · Apr 17, 2011

Opossum, I very much admire your practical eloquence--

"Craptacular d-bags"

steelydanfan · Apr 17, 2011

ruby vee said:
We're sacrificing health care in favor of customer service, and it's going to bite us all in the butt someday. I'm getting tired of being "Reported" because I won't fetch ginger ale for an npo patient (or for their able bodied visitor.) last week, my patient wanted to speak to my boss because I told her that screaming "Help help help" when all she wanted was an ice chip was inappropriate. "I'm right here," I told her. "Two feet away. All you need to do is ask me if you can have an ice chip." she told me she was entitled to yell if she wanted to because she's the customer. Yeah, and what about the other five customers in the room who are trying to sleep?
People aren't used to hearing the word "No" anymore. We're trying so hard to make everyone happy that good patient care is going by the wayside. Mr. Vap doesn't want to do his pulmonary toilet once he's extubated? We're supposed to encourage him to without being "Dictatorial" or "Emphatic" or "Telling me what to do." and if he doesn't want to do it anyway, don't make him. Of course when he gets pneumonia because he didn't do his pulmonary toilet, it's our fault.
Glad I'm going to retire in a few years!

Yeah, then joint commission will come in and say that your level of post-surgical pneumonia complications is too high, and then your ceo will implement new in-services re: is use, then on and on and on.

Tptb don't get it, will never get it, and are killing patients by not getting it.

And I'm out of here in a few years too; except I will probably be back in here as a pt. Someday.

Ruby Vee, BSN · Apr 17, 2011

steelydanfan said:
Yeah, then joint commission will come in and say that your level of post-surgical pneumonia complications is too high, and then your ceo will implement new in-services re: is use, then on and on and on.
Tptb don't get it, will never get it, and are killing patients by not getting it.
And I'm out of here in a few years too; except I will probably be back in here as a pt. Someday.

But you will understand the purpose and importance of is, and hopefully you'll do it without being cajoled, threatened or insulted.

gentlegiver, ASN, LPN, RN · Apr 17, 2011

I walked up to my daughters door during her stay after a C-Section. She was giving the Nurse all Holy Heck for some stupid little thing. I stepped into the room and flatly put her in her place! I did not raise her to be disrespectful to anyone let alone someone who was there to help her. I apologized to the Nurse for having raised such a brat. The Nurse stood there in shock and my daughter apologized to her and to every other Nurse that walked in her room ( I asked the poor Nurse to send the rest in 1 at a time when thier schedules allowed just for that purpose). A few years later, she ended up in the hospital for emergency surgery, she was a model patient, spoke with respect, did what they told her to do. I guess having Mom pull you up by the tush in front of someone taught her a lesson she wont soon forget.

caregiver1977 · Apr 17, 2011

There is a breakdown of respect in our society, not just in healthcare. One of the reasons all of this focus on customer service is now going on is because many, many innocent patients have been mistreated and talked to like DOGS by health care professionals and nothing was done about it. However some of this customer service stuff is over the top and good nurses just trying to do their job are being adversely affected.

blueheaven · Apr 18, 2011

TheMoonisMyLantern said:
Out of curiosity, are hospitals where nurses are unionized experiencing the same psychotic customer service jamboree others are facing?

Yes the psychotic behavior is not stymied by the union here. We are working for magnet status and we have had to go to a "retreat" that talked about customer service

opossum · Apr 22, 2011

TheMoonIsMyLantern, that "psychotic jamboree" has stuck with me such that the phrase pops into my head before I start each shift. I have this ghastly image of managers dancing with tamborines.

Love it! Thanks :smokin:

JSlovex2 · Apr 22, 2011

I had a man ask me not long ago if we were going to come in and wake him up in the middle of the night. This was while the cna was getting his vital signs at about 8pm. I said, "Yes, actually we'll have to come in and get them later and you'll probably be sleeping, but we'll try to be quiet and do it quickly so you can go back to sleep. We've gotten good at working in the dark."

He says, "You people are the reason I hate the hospital" to which I quickly replied, "So, why'd you come in today?" I really meant, "If you hate the hospital so much, stay at home" but I said it in a way that could be interpreted as a genuine, "What brought you to the hospital today?"

He just stared at me. I feel your pain. I bite my tongue daily, but there are always those patients who push the envelope and make it nearly impossible to provide this "Excellent customer service." he practically told me he hated me and that he didn't want to be bothered. Then go home!!

Then, later on his brief needed changing. He wanted his wife to do it so I brought her a clean one. She complained about how it was too big and horrible quality and I told her it's all we have - they are meant to fit multiple sized patients, but if she wanted to bring her own, we would be happy to use them. The next day, she complained again to which I replied, "Like I was telling you, if you have some you prefer then we'll be happy to use them, but this is what we have here." she said, "Well, I have one in my purse, but then he won't have one when we get home." okay? So shut up. That's what I felt like saying.