What patients/behaviors/illnesses/injuries do you HATE the most?

Nurses Relations

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I'll start with people who say "I went to nursing school" Okay, but are you a nurse?

I need my meds today. Also I can't pay for them.

Moms who let their kids run wild and scream. I get that stuff hurts, go ahead and cry. No need to run like a wile monkey or screech like you're dying, I assure you that if you were dying you'd have no time to yell like that.

And let's not get started on the drug-seekers!

Specializes in HH, Peds, Rehab, Clinical.

I've worked in dentistry for 26 years---these I find "cool", LOL!!

One of the most interesting ones: a gal came into ER, a horse had kicked her in the face, you could JUST see the white edges of 5 of her front teeth, it looked as though they had been fractured off at the gingival level. Nope, they had been pushed UP, under her nose. What we could see were the tips that you use for biting food. They all got brought back down, secured orthodontically, all needed root canals and today they are as beautiful as can be and you'd never know anything ever happened =)

Any sort of dental trauma, not sure why but it really gets to me!
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Specializes in med/surg.
I generally like "psych patients": the schizophrenics, schizoid, schizotypal, bipolar, or depressed people. Since there is a higher incidence of T2DM in these folks, I work with them a lot. I think it is more the manipulative behavior involved with people who have personality disorders, eating disorders, and addictions that is so frustrating in healthcare, and also the fact that psych services are hard to come by.

YMMV.

I too like psych patients. The really sick ones-addiction, DTs, schizos, alzheimers, etc. It fascinates me.

I would love to work on a psych floor equipped to deal with these guys.

However, there isn't one within a 60 mile drive.

On a med surg floor, which is where the medical manifestations of these illnesses end up, as well as those with actual physical problems (chole, appy, fracture, etc.) I simply do not have the time or resources to deal with both their medical problem and their psych issues while caring for 6 other patients at the same time.

They are not there to be treated for their psych issues, and many times it ends up compromising care for the other patients who must be cared for because of their demands on the nurse. It is very frustrating, and there is very little help for these people.

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giveface, I am sorry that happened to you but that made me laugh.

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1) The middle-aged female who presents with abdominal pain and intractable nausea for which no cause is ever found.

This.

And, I like the crusty old men, too. I seem to get along with them pretty well.

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Specializes in Emergency, ICU.
I've worked in dentistry for 26 years---these I find "cool", LOL!!

One of the most interesting ones: a gal came into ER, a horse had kicked her in the face, you could JUST see the white edges of 5 of her front teeth, it looked as though they had been fractured off at the gingival level. Nope, they had been pushed UP, under her nose. What we could see were the tips that you use for biting food. They all got brought back down, secured orthodontically, all needed root canals and today they are as beautiful as can be and you'd never know anything ever happened =)

Oh no! I must have blocked dental trauma out when answering this post because it freaks me out completely! I don't even want to think about it.

Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

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Dementia

C-diff

Medicine service pts (we're a surgery floor but get overflow if no gen med beds open)

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Specializes in Correctional Nursing, Orthopediacs.

I think psych pts. Are hard to deal with on the normal floor because we are not equipped for it. LOCKED units or protocols for it. We are stuck with their behavior along with the five other pts. Noone to keep them safe because our techs have 10 other pts.

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Specializes in OB (with a history of cardiac).

From when I worked cardiac/general care:

--Manipulative middle aged people, women in particular. They have everything wrong in the whole world and whine and whine and whine about it. They NEEEEED orange juice because they have a SENSITIVITY to apple juice, and an allergy to milk (they diagnosed it themselves, the allergist said the test was negative, but they KNOW it was false negative because they truly have an allergy to milk!)

--The people who still have 10/10 pain after the highest dose of Dilaudid IV alotted was just given.

--Dementia patients- now hold on...I know they can't help it. I'm sure it's a torture to have to deal with having it, but when that flippin bed alarm goes off for the 66th time in 30 minutes I feel myself going from nicey nice nursey to frusterated mommy of two young children who are not entirely of the age of reason yet, and I know yelling at this 86 year old to "get back into bed RIGHT NOW, or I have to give you a consequence" is not going to fly.

Currently in Postpartum:

The biggest one that has started to get under my skin is this: wealty to high middle class suburban couples with 5 paged detailed birth plans that MUST be followed to the T. Who take the whole "empowerment" thing like 60 miles too far to the point where they feel the need to "educate" me, the nurse about what is a necessary intervention versus an invasive intervention that is going to ruin their baby forever and ever. Who seem to think that if I take the baby to the nursery to weigh them (because I can't just grab the scale at 0000 and take it to their room when 7 other nurses need it for 20 other babies) that I'm secretly rubbing my hands and plotting to give them the HBV vaccine, the Vitamin K, and the E-myicn ointment and throw in a circ on top of it all, because I'm an evil hospital nurse and everyone knows that hospitals are cold, heartless, sterile environments where we don't have a CLUE about childbirth. Blah blah blah blah.

And on the flipside, OB's who will pull any excuse out of their fannies to do a section or talk a lady about of a TOLAC.

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Specializes in Psych.
Yes the majority of nuses don't seem to be psych nurses. But I think I've seen similar sentiments from psych nurses in the past, and I've seen psych nurses who seem to hate psych patients. I was just wondering if this is typical.

I understand we can be annoying. My mom is a saint for putting up with me! I've just been wondering about this for a while.

I am a psych nurse. I love most of my patients, but I will gladly trade assignments with someone if I have someone with a borderline diagnosis, if another coworker deals better with them. Luckily on our unit, we know which group seems to do best with which staff member and try to split up accordingly. I typically get the paranoid or homicidal psychotic patients, which is fine by me, love them.

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I cant stand patients who wont do anything for themselves and expect me to do every little thing like move something 2 inches to the left when their arms arent broken!

Also not really fond of detoxing patients

Psych patients can be very difficult. I would like to think I'm fairly understanding with them as I have close family members with psych issues but its hard because you cant reason with them. With most patients you can explain your reasoning for doing things and they'll understand but you cant do that with some psych patients.

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This is a fun topic. I enjoyed reading everyone's least favorites.

Mine would have to be, the dementia patient who is still able to walk, but not safely, who will get up every couple minutes and set off the alarm. Sit down, I will say. Other people will say, just take him for a walk, he just wants a little exercise. Sure and then after his walk, he will continue to stand up and try to walk on his own again. Soooo frustrating.

Then there's the really bad PTSD patient who has a "made up" history of living through the holocaust and every person who walks by is trying to kill her and then cremate her body. Imagine trying to explain that to innocent visitors...

The patient who is incontinent and obviously has a UTI who clenches her knees closed so tight, that you can't get a straight cath in her for a urine sample...

Besides those three, I've got a pretty good tolerance. Also, I've only been a nurse for less than a year so I'm sure I'll come across worse. haha

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Specializes in Med Surg.
Borderline personalities. 30 years in the profession and I can say borderlines can and will give you the worst shift of your career.

So true. I had one of those a couple of months back. I told my coworkers if most of my patients were that way, I'd quit nursing. It was the hardest two days of my short career.

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