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| No. 20 | 
Aug 07, 2006, 09:19 PM
 Re: Hospital or Hotel?
I think I will continue to be an "oldfashioned nurse", I tend to be gentle but firm, 'cause someone has to be in charge, or they will become like spoiled little children throwing tempertantrums if allowed. Gosh, I miss the days when visitors were limited and nurses were respected. I actually had a family member try to videotape a conversation between me and a patient to "show the others" how she was doing.
 | | Advertisement Sponsored Links | | | | No. 21 |
Aug 07, 2006, 09:27 PM
Re: Hospital or Hotel?
Reading that article did nothing but make me mad.
| | No. 22 |
Aug 08, 2006, 08:36 AM
Re: Hospital or Hotel? Originally Posted by DarlinNurseRed Reading that article did nothing but make me mad.
Same here. The hospitals will spend money on televisions, gourmet food and services, but will they spend money on something the patients really need. No. They will not put in another dime to hire more nurses. Grrr....
| | No. 23 |
Aug 08, 2006, 09:16 AM
Re: Hospital or Hotel? Originally Posted by carolbear O.K. I cannot believe my eyes that something as insane as this idea has appeared for our hospitals. My rationale for thinking this is insane? As we all know, geriatrics are what we are all in for in the 2000's and our fastest growing population. Also as we all know, hospitals are caring for large amounts of geriatric patients as it is. How do you think Mr. X and his family members are going to feel when Mr. X needs Long Term Care after being discharged from a facility as described in the article? Not too happy. We have enough to deal with in LTC as it is from our new residents recently arrived from Acute Care. They cannot understand why they don't have one nurse to 6 patients or one CNA to 6 patients. Oy vey, what a mess!! At least we won't have to worry about nursing taking the first budget cuts in the hospitals.......I hope.
Good point, this won't just happen when they go to LTC, it will happen if they go to another facility that does not offer the frivolities. The PTB do not have to deal with the fall-out they create, and what they are creating is an overindulged, pampered, self-centred, spoiled clientele with the most unrealistic expectations regarding the staff providing their care. Originally Posted by IndyGal
I applied for a concierge position at a hospital near me, but didn't get the job. (I thought it would be a nice position to have through nursing school.) This hospital does have a separate concierge staff to take care of the perks and special services... now how well that's explained to the patients, I don't know, but in theory the requests for Starbuck's should go to the concierge staff and not the nurses. Standing requests (for morning coffee or evening papers) are given to the concierge desk and handled by that department. Actually, I thought it sounded like a nice service. It's an ortho hospital so I imagine a lot of people are in a situation where they have limited mobility but are feeling well enough to be bored. It seems like patients who have a concierge number at their disposal might be less inclined to abuse the call light.
Indy, as it stands now, it is often the nurses that are the first to hear the request/complaints of their patients. That will never change, even with a conciege provided for them to call. In fact they will probably want the nurse to call for them to get that Starbuck's, and probably reheat that same Starbuck's fifty times before they finish it. What you will find true within any facility is that when other departments are short-staffed or busy, it gets dumped onto the nursing staff. The same would be true with a conseirge service, if they were short staffed or busy, it would be the nurses who would be expected to pick up the slack. The bigger problem is explaining/educating the public as to what the nurse's role is during their recovery. We are there to facility their recovery, monitor their condition, implement care designed for their benefit, etc. It is also not only one patient that we are there to provide this for, we have to coordinate the care of all our patients and prioritize that care. What we are NOT THERE for is to wait on them hand and foot over frivolities.  | | No. 24 |
Aug 08, 2006, 09:18 AM
Re: Hospital or Hotel?
I work in a very "service oriented" hospital where "patient satisfaction" is #1. There is a sign in every room (we only have private rooms) that says if you are dissatisfied in anyway with your care call this number- it is a direct line to administration/house supervisor. When that number is called administration comes right out and makes a beeline for the nurse of that patient. We are expected to instantly fix whatever problem they have.
Many times the complant is something stupid like, "My nurse won't tell me when my doctor is coming". Let's see, it's only 0752. Perhaps we should give the doctor a chance to make rounds...Let's give the doctor the benefit of the doubt that since he/she saw you IN THIS SAME ROOM yesterday that they will AGAIN be able to find you for rounds today.
If the patient is really unhappy (reasonably or not) they get a "service recovery" gift and an apology. My supervisor made me take in a gift to a patient once because I didn't drop everything and change his sheets. Mind you, he was young able to get OOB. He spilled a little water on his top sheet. I was busy with another patient (sicker patient). Anyhoo, I was ****** and my supervisor knew it. It took me about 45 minutes to go into that room. I did take him the gift and told him flately, "I'm sorry you didn't get the care you felt you deserved" I turned and walked out (still steaming)
I do try to anticipate my patients needs before they call that blasted complaint line, but I refuse to call the doctor that early in the morning and ask when they are coming... I sweetly tell them if they don't make it in early, we'll shoot for lunch but sometimes they cannot come until after office hours.
| | No. 25 |
Aug 08, 2006, 10:10 AM
Re: Hospital or Hotel?
When my husband travels for business there are certain things that are covered by his company and a fee list for items that are not...
I suppose that if the hospital is going to be ran like a hotel it should be done so in a similar way. Your insurance will be billed for your medical care, but we need to have a credit card on file for any "hotel" type services. You want room service at 2 a.m., great...That sandwich will be $13.00 and the bottle of water will be $5.00!
Laura
| | No. 26 |
Aug 08, 2006, 12:08 PM
Re: Hospital or Hotel?
I really think that quality medical care can be delivered along with these "amenities". I don't think a nursing shortage exists because "there is no money to pay us" -I think admin does not WANT to pay us..Let them pour some resources into this concierge type of program. They won't pass more bucks to us... Consider it part of a holistic approach "Customer satisfaction" leads to enhanced well being which increases positive outcomes resulting in faster healing resulting and shorter hospital stays.Patients need more education regarding what a nurse actually does-this is a great way to provide it and the process can start in admissions before the patient even hits the unit...I think nurses have to be flexible now as health care evolves-like it or not....
| | No. 27 |
Aug 08, 2006, 03:54 PM
Re: Hospital or Hotel?
I am familiar with hospitals that offer "24-hr room service." From a nurse's perspective, it was great! If a patient was hungry, they'd simply call down to dietary and place their own order, and a server would show up at their door with their food. I never had to stop what I was doing to order a meal tray, go get snacks to bring to the room, etc.
Now, to offer concierge service, internet, movies ... in my opinion if you are able to utilize all those things you are well enough to go home! lol
| | No. 28 |
Aug 08, 2006, 07:27 PM
Re: Hospital or Hotel? Originally Posted by HuggyPuglet This article was in our paper today. It's bad enough that we are sometimes treated like the hired help by some of our patients but now we have this. Right now it sounds like some concierge service is going to handle the patient requests, but what do you want to bet that these jobs will be handed off to nurses one by one as hospitals try to save a dollar or two?  http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/...Hospitals.html
Any time you have a supposed manager saying there will be no additional costs to pts when the facility is spending additional money, you know the manager is one of two things:
An idiot or a liar.
Whoops, three things. He could be a lying idiot. 
It doesn't take an MBA to figure out why any going concern has to recover its costs.
| | No. 29 |
Aug 08, 2006, 09:17 PM
Re: Hospital or Hotel? Originally Posted by ktwlpn I really think that quality medical care can be delivered along with these "amenities". I don't think a nursing shortage exists because "there is no money to pay us" -I think admin does not WANT to pay us..Let them pour some resources into this concierge type of program. They won't pass more bucks to us... Consider it part of a holistic approach "Customer satisfaction" leads to enhanced well being which increases positive outcomes resulting in faster healing resulting and shorter hospital stays.Patients need more education regarding what a nurse actually does-this is a great way to provide it and the process can start in admissions before the patient even hits the unit...I think nurses have to be flexible now as health care evolves-like it or not....
Wow. Just...wow.  |
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