What is your take on multiple family members in room when they have roommate?

[hollyberry678]

My patient had a roommate who had multiple family members in the room, on the other side of the curtain. And actually a group of them came in around 1 a.m. The families' loved one (pt) had gone through a procedure that evening, true, but not major surgery.

I asked that pt's nurse about it, and she said 'oh they will go around 2", that she didnt want to say anything because that can spark antagonism (or something to that effect), and that since they were from another culture we needed to be sensitive to that.

I said, well I am trying to be sensitive to my pt...She got an attitude to me after that.

Later she told me "it looks like they are both sleeping, the family members are being quiet" i said true, but they are still in and out (to the bathroom,ect). she said I was free to say something as I "worked in that space too"

I am all for family centered care, but where do you draw the line?

[RN1982]

I've done the "I've told you the visiting policy three times already, do I need to explain it again", I don't even care who I offend. Sorry, my patient, your loved one is sick. This is ICU for cryin' out loud. Grampy is on a vent, I'm sure at the moment he could care less about looking at your baby.

[Okami_CCRN, BSN, RN]

I get all worked up when I see more than two family members visit a patient at a given time.

My hospital has a two visitors at a time rule but that is NEVER inforced and it makes giving care a huge problem. In bed A you have an AAO, ambulatory patient and in bed B you have a very confused and incontinent patient. You go to change bed B and discover that there are 5 visitors for bed A and they are all complaining about the smell...ARGH!!!

As a tech I dont like to tell anyone to leave but when I become an RN, its gonna be two at a time for any patient unless they are going to the E.C.U. then I'll allow multiple visitors.

ECU (Eternal Care Unit)

[prnlady]

Sorry, but the other patient has all the right to a restful sleep!! I'm sure they are paying for that half of the room, some way or the other. You should tell the family to have one person, quietly go in, check on the loved one and whisper that they love him/her and will see him/her in the morning at a more decent time. We are the only advocates some patient's have in the middle of the night.

Thanks for caring about that other patient!

[pattycakeRN]

Wow, I can't imagine having to work on a floor with semi privates. I have floated to some of those floors and they're a nightmare on night shift. One thing I have a problem on my floor (all privates and open visiting ) is children shrieking up and down the hallway. I caught a little girl in the hallway once SKATING on those god awful wheelie shoes, and she nearly toppled 3 stories down the atrium when she caught the railing. I told her that skating was not allowed in the hospital and she huffed back and got mommy, who promptly told me it was none of my business. I wanted to say fine, she'll land SPLAT right down in front of the ER, so I guess that's okay. I guess I don't like kids anyway, but they really should have a limited role in an adult hospital.

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Back in the olden days, when the earth was still cooling, there were set visiting hours and children under 12 were not permitted. Period. Of course, those were also the days when no one talked back to anyone, much less the nurse.

As to what santhony said - I had a LOL in for LOC and suspected MI. Her kids wouldn't leave and finally she TOLD me that she would like to sleep. *I* had to tell the hovering adult kids that Mom was exhausted. And she was of a generation who felt obligated to entertain her "guests."

God, I don't miss the floor. I NEVER, honest to God, had problems with patients. Just other nurses and the occasional family member.

[nrsang97, BSN, RN]

I remember working one night when I had a couple of women in a semi private room. Pt in bed A was a post op lumbar lami, and bed B was a r/o CVA pt. Pt in bed A her daughter was in and it was 2 hours post visiting hours. I politely asked her to leave since she was upsetting pt in bed B. The pt got all huffy with me and told me "It is my right to have my daughter to spend the night with me." I told her that her roomate also had rights not to be disturbed as well and we couldn't let her stay in the semiprivate room and she could stay in the lounge and come check on her every hour or so. The pt and her daugheter still mad and say to me "What about OUR rights?" to which I responded that they weren't the only ones in this room and they needed to respect the rights of others. The pt told me "I don't care about her rights." (No privates to move problem pt to) I called the house supervisor and explained the situatuion, and she came up. She backed me and told the daughter that she had 2 choices either go home, or go to the lounge as I suggested, or she would call security, and she had 5 minutes. It felt so good to have been backed up.

I have recently had another incident. Pt female, Arabic, and no English speaking ( supposedly understands). I had no idea until I accepted pt into room. I did make accomodations for female nurse. I didn't just place pt in private room, but in a room with a male, cordoned off by a curtian. ( we are a ICU and she was so out of it she wouldn't know he was there, and we do this anyway). Family was demanding a private room and that they spend the night. House manager was on the unit and backed me about no spending the night at bedside and we moved her to private room. Son still demanding to spend the night so he can translate, I explained that he couldn't sleep at the bedside, since there isn't enough room. He still ended up staying in room all night. I was charge and told the nurse that she should not let him stay all night because now I look like a moron along with the doc, and house supervisor. (Funny thing about this situation, The intensivest is also Arabic, and told me I had been WAY TOO accomodating for them. He said that in life and death ICU transfer they should get no say in room or nurse) They did transfer her to another hospital and tried to demand through me that they wanted a private room. I told her daughter that she could tell me all she wants that mom will be in a private room once she gets to other hospital, and she tells me she will call dr so and so and he will do it for them. I had to tell her "You do realize that you aren't there yet and that demanding that to me is no gurantee, and basically pointless since I have no control over their beds." She still didn't get it. She called dr so and so and he set her straight. This family was a nightmare.

We limit it to 2 at a time. If disruptive we ask to leave. Any gruff we call house supervisor or security.

[birdgardner]

After surgery, I neaerly went AMA because of a family in the room and their d----- loud TV and music. I did leave but with the surgeon's reluctant agreement. Boy, do I hate sharing a room. Little privacy, less rest, more stress, more noise, more infection risk. And the knowing that my own visitors, even if quiet, may be stressing the patient in the next bed.

Sometimes one or two visitors are just as bad as multiple, although occupying less space.

[santhony44, MSN, RN, NP]

W. I caught a little girl in the hallway once SKATING on those god awful wheelie shoes, and she nearly toppled 3 stories down the atrium when she caught the railing. I told her that skating was not allowed in the hospital and she huffed back and got mommy, who promptly told me it was none of my business. I wanted to say fine, she'll land SPLAT right down in front of the ER, so I guess that's okay. I guess I don't like kids anyway, but they really should have a limited role in an adult hospital.

Don't you just know if she'd skated past you and gone SPLAT it would have been ALL YOUR FAULT and mommy would've sued??? No one is allowed to thwart the little darlings, but you are still responsible if they get hurt.

Anyway, I actually do like kids but I agree with you 100%.

[AuntieRN]

I remember the good old days when kids weren't allowed to visit and run the hallways....now you see them not only run the hallways yelling and carrying on but...they are barefooted...OMG who knows what they are gonna catch...babies crawling all over the floors licking everything...licking their hands....family members ringing the call bell demanding a cola....I mean come on now.....

My hospital has all private rooms and unfortunately we also have open visiting hours....I dont understand why as a nurse I have to accept the fact that I am gonna walk into the room of the 23 year old after knocking on the door and he and his gf are naked in the bed together.....ummmm HELLO???? LOL sorry got off on another subject didnt I??

Even with private rooms its hard to manuver around with family members.....

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

visiting has gotten totally out of hand. i'm an "old nurse past my prime" (from another thread) but i do remember when visiting hours were 2 visitors at a time, no more than 10 minutes every other hour, and no one under 16 was allowed to visit. and everyone enforced those rules except for the rare occaision when a really sick parent got to see their young children or someone was headed for the ecu. these days, it seems that anything goes.

after reading numerous posts on other threads about visiting, i blame part of the problem on relatively inexperienced nurse who think it's "callous" or "uncaring" to enforce whatever rules are in place about visiting, and view the rules as "guidelines" rather than actual rules. if you follow such a nurse and then try to enforce any of the rules, you're automatically viewed as the "bad nurse."

and i think press-gainey is to blame for much of it. management is so concerned about "customer service" that "patient care" gets lost.

and part of it, i think, is the generalized deterioration of society as a whole. people in general are ruder, more self-centered and more entitled. when a started nursing, people were grateful to you for saving granny's life. now they're ticked off if you don't offer up a big enough smile (read the thread about the soulless er nurses), don't fit whatever preconceived notion they have about what a nurse looks like (obesity threads) or acts like, or if the "pillow fluffing" fails to come up to whatever standard they've got in mind.

to answer the original question: visiting hours were there for a reason. not just to let the roommate rest, but to let the visitee rest as well. two visitors at a time is plenty, and when they start trying to direct the care rather than support the patient is the right time to suggest they go home and get some rest themselves!

[santhony44, MSN, RN, NP]

I

My hospital has all private rooms and unfortunately we also have open visiting hours....I dont understand why as a nurse I have to accept the fact that I am gonna walk into the room of the 23 year old after knocking on the door and he and his gf are naked in the bed together.....ummmm HELLO???? LOL sorry got off on another subject didnt I??

Another case of, if the patient is well enough to be doing that, he's probably well enough to be doing it at home.

If there are extenuating circumstances, then at least give the staff fair warning, for crying out loud.

[Ms Kylee]

We have one FF who is in her 90's, from a nursing home (I swear they dump her on us at least once a month for the 2 week Medicare paid stay). She's no trouble because all she does is sleep. Her family shows up every morning at 9 and gets miffed when I'm still bathing her. Well, gee...visiting hours don't start till 11, and it's only 9... I need those 2 hours to get Mama bathed, fluffed, puffed, and presentable for company. One morning I was halfway through the bath and I was singing to the patient. In barges family. Without knocking. I covered her up in a hurry and very politely (for me) asked them to please come back in half an hour. Granted, I was about 10 minutes away from finishing, including linen cleanup, but I didn't want to rush and have her not look her best cause they would have complained. This patient is at least a 45 minute bath start to finish because she's nothing but dead weight, and I need 2 other people to help me roll her.