We are all supposed to love our jobs and most of us do! But we are all supposed to over look just danged annoying behaviors.
My pet peeve, I do not care for drama patients. You walk out in the hall and they are laughing and having fun with a visitor, they take one look at YOU looking at them and they are hanging on to the walls to help them walk and moaning in pain. I sometimes think my mere presence causes them harm... ;o)
Me: "Great! Your temp is normal!" Patient: "Oh, if it is normal I am SICK! My usual is 72(F).
Me: "Great! Your b/p is 120/70!" Patient: "Oh, if it is normal I am SICK! My usual is 50/10."
Where to start? People who speak with a fake accent, people who complain that their PRN meds are "late" or ask when "are my pain meds DUE"? PRN doesn't mean please remind the nurse. People who cuss you out who are of sound mind and know better. And last but not least the person who thinks they are the only person on the hall. You know, the ones who demand you to stop feeding someone and change their tv channel.
Prn standing for please remind the nurse is HYSTERICAL! And you've had patients speak in fake accents? What kind?
I can't stand paranoid patients. If they are legit schizophrenic or something I give them a pass... but if they are just looking for something we did wrong that they can blame their problems on, I am not amused.
I had a lady who had been in the hospital for five days. She had such a tiny amount of MRSA in her sputum that it took the full five days to grow back as MRSA. When I put her on isolation, because of course, it was lucky me that got that lab call, she absolutely flipped out. Saying we were giving her dangerous bacteria, that she was going to die because of us, etc. I explained about ten times that the culture was from the first day she was here, but she wouldn't listen. Just insisted we were nasty and trying to kill her.
Then she started flipping out about the trash can. Of course, it was getting full quickly because of all the contact gowns. She insisted that the dirty trash filling up like that was what gave her the MRSA and she flipped out when I tried to take out the trash. She said I was destroying the evidence and I had to leave the trash can the way it was for "proof." I told her I had to take the bag out because it was full, but I'd leave the full trash bag near her toilet if me taking the trash out bothered her that bad. She said she needed to take a picture of it first.
Of course, she didn't have her phone because it was with her daughter, so her daughter and I were in on the conspiracy to keep how dirty the hospital was "quiet."
I got my team leader involved at this point because this woman was A&O and I was concerned about the stink she was making about me taking out the trash coming back to bite me in the butt later. My team leader said exactly the same things that I did, but when she mentioned patients were not allowed to take pictures in the hospital, the lady went nuclear. Screaming about conspiracies, cover ups, etc. I was glad my team leader took the brunt of that because I was getting so angry I was about ready to smack that woman across the face.
She got some Haldol and Ativan and finally went to sleep. I was glad because I couldn't have taken much more of it without getting myself in trouble.
Where to start? People who speak with a fake accent, people who complain that their PRN meds are "late" or ask when "are my pain meds DUE"? PRN doesn't mean please remind the nurse. People who cuss you out who are of sound mind and know better. And last but not least the person who thinks they are the only person on the hall. You know, the ones who demand you to stop feeding someone and change their tv channel.
Exactly. You nailed it. Except....what???? You've had patients speak in a fake accent? Lol, now that's funny.
Yes, I hate when patients do this !!!!! Make a freakin list !
This is exactly what I'm having a difficult time with. I'm not getting my meds passed on time, treatments done on time or assessments.... I'm finishing my 9pm med pass at 11pm, with no break or any charting done yet. I'm new to this facility so I know before too long they will be coming at me about not getting out til 1:30 to 2am. And that's WITHOUT an admission or any event/occurrence that requires MD and family notification and documentation on.
I don't know how to get out of patients rooms, and I've been asking for advice. If anyone has some, I'd gladly appreciate it, because I'm drowning.
Yes, I hate when patients do this !!!!! Make a freakin list !
This is exactly what I'm having a difficult time with. I'm not getting my meds passed on time, treatments done on time or assessments.... I'm finishing my 9pm med pass at 11pm, with no break or any charting done yet. I'm new to this facility so I know before too long they will be coming at me about not getting out til 1:30 to 2am. And that's WITHOUT an admission or any event/occurrence that requires MD and family notification and documentation on.
I don't know how to get out of patients rooms, and I've been asking for advice. If anyone has some, I'd gladly appreciate it, because I'm drowning.
I hate a demanding tone. And for some reason, I dislike it when residents THOROUGHLY complain about the food, especially when the cafeteria's food looks pretty tasty. It makes you wonder what kind of **** they eat in their own homes.
Pain is subjective. What might be a 5 to you might be a 10 to a person with a low pain threshold.
It's too bad you people don't take all this effort from patient bashing and use it say what you do like about your job and patients.
I agree with your first point. I have a pet peeve about nurses saying someone isn't in as much pain as they claim. I have a high tolerance. I have interstitial cystitis and am in pain of about 7/10 while working (why I will only ever work part time) but don't express it AT ALL. I smile and do my job. For me, I consider my worst kidney stone a 9/10 where I am writhing on the floor. 1 point close to "seriously kill me now."
As far as complaining, this has been a therapeutic thread for me, and as it sounds, to many others as well. It does not mean I am not a good or caring nurse. If anything, I'm too caring. So if reading and posting about annoyances relieves the stress I take on, I will by all means do it and not feel one bit sorry for it despite people like you trying to make me feel bad for voicing my annoyances with my career.
Me: "okay, if it feels tender then I'm going to have to change it and put a new one in."
Patient: "oh no, can we wait and see? So far it's feeling okay."
Me: "okay, you let me know if anything."
Two minutes later...
Patient: "see I dunno, I feel a bit of a pinch by the IV. What do you think?"
Me: "okay, it's starting to look pink and you're telling me it's pinching. We have to change it."
Patient: "are you sure?"
C'mon now!
Also I can't stand family members that hover around in the hallway looking for you, almost in a stalking manner. They'll walk to where they think you might be. Once a family member waited for me as I finished using the restroom. How rude is that! And it's not even something I can help. They're ever so anxious waiting for discharge paperwork that the doctor has to initially complete, or waiting for their requested medications be filled by our outpatient pharmacy, or waiting for their transportation to come pick them up. They act as though it's all the nurses' fault that a, b, or c didn't happen soon enough.
Another thing: when patients or family members act like they're the only patient on the unit and demand things as though you're twiddling your thumbs. Clearly they don't see that you're running around like a chicken with no head, tending to emergency life or death situations versus their need to get their stool softener on time. Give me a break!
LOL. Last night the CNA did the same thing to me and when I went into the patient's room, they asked me to pick up their urinal that had fell on the floor! I am definitely going to start asking the aides to ask what the patient wants. I don't have time for stuff like that.
Adele_Michal7, ASN, RN
893 Posts
Prn standing for please remind the nurse is HYSTERICAL! And you've had patients speak in fake accents? What kind?