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."
Not a patient...but FAMILY. Family is 99% of my stress. Storming onto the unit and right away "what's going on? How is she? What are the results of the CT scan? So what are the doctors going to do? Why is she getting this med? Are they just going to leave her here to die? Why aren't they doing anything? Is she going to have surgery today?" Sir...I'm not sure. You'll have to ask the doctor these questions when they round "what time do they round? How do I get ahold of them? Can you call them right now? I'm only here for 10 more minutes and I need to meet with them now" they're in the OR right now. "Well how am I going to grt my questions answered? Who's going to help us? Doesn't anyone care?".......every damn day.
My biggest pet peeve is patients (or more often family members) who treat me like a waitress or a babysitter. I work in labor and delivery and all too often I'm admitting an uncomfortable patient who wants an epidural (which means I need to start an IV, get fluids going, send labs, get the fetal monitors on, and do all the necessary charting) and the father or grandma or someone else with the patient keeps asking for water or a pillow or how to use the TV. It's pretty tough to keep my cool when the patient is freaking out because they are in pain and their support people don't seem to care at all.
I've got a few pet peeves I recently identified by forgot all except this one right now-
Patients who act as if they are the only patient. Even if across the hallway someone is dying, and they know it. This exact situation has happened more than once recently. I realize when we are ill it's normal to be somewhat self centered but am shocked at the callousness of some people.
The geriatric patient with 20 pills who can only swallow one at a time. Then requires 20 sips after each pill. A burp, a chest thump, and a cough after each one. Chatting in between all of that because they know they got you until the pills are all gone.
I try to act like I have all the time in the world, because if you attempt to hurry things along, it just makes them go even slower.
At the end of the day we Nurses are human and we are affected by the things we're exposed to on the job!!!
We are not robots and people forget that... they treat us with little respect or dignity, they treat us like psychological and physical punching bags... The whole profession needs to be examined and restructured because things are reaching a critical point with burnout rates becoming shorter and shorter each year. If the government and public keep permitting Nurses to be treated so inhumanely there will be NO ONE left to take care of them!
I hate the "frequent " flyer who manages to get admitted to the floor by the new doc... and is there for abd pain, nausea and vomiting, anxiety and fibromyalgia. Every hospital has one. As soon as they get to the floor they need dilaudid, phenergan, and Ativan. And they demand doses that are all ridiculous. And when you don't comply then the "crazy " comes out. They start crying, then they escalate to yelling and screaming, then they Start calling family members hysterically and telling them how "we" aren't treating their pain and anxiety. Then they take their "show" to the nurses station and yell and cry about how much pain and anxiety they have and want the doctor right now!!! I even had one throw herself on the floor in the middle of the hall.
My second least favorite patient is the one who has the overly concerned and self important, entitled family members that they are obviously manipulating for whatever reason. Such as the "sweet old lady" admitted for aspiration pneumonia, and has he of CHF. When you assume care she is just the nicest person and has no complaints and seems to agree and understand the plan of care. Then the family shows up, and suddenly the patient has been hurting, and her sheets are dirty and no one has given her a bath, and she is hungry and we aren't feeding her, oh and she doesn't know if she got her home meds. And suddenly every 5 minutes one of them is at the nurses station for something. They are too good to use the call light, oh and they have been walking around the unit and why can't the patient be in this other room. And every time you walk into the room you get bombarded with questions about her care, and it's always a different family member! Oh and there is always that one family member that is in "medicine " and asks you a myriad of ignorant questions. And every time your rear end touches a chair to chart it is an invitation for one of them to walk up and try and get your attention for some sort of ridiculousness.
I dislike the ones that question EVERYthing and tell you how to do your job. "That's not the way they start an IV on Grey's Anatomy", or why does the doctor have me on x med for my bp instead y (when they've been on the med for 10 years).
Patients that are on the call bell five minutes after you've given them their pain meds. " It's not working can you give me something else?"
and also those that DON'T report their pain (despite asking them over and over what their pain level is) and lie there looking miserable and can't participate in PT or walk,etc
and last but not least, the gangbangers who are tough enough to get themselves shot or stabbed on the street but not tough enough to handle their NG tubes or look at their colostomys.
1) when patients who who are ill but ill because they have DM and CHF and ignore their fluid restrictions and sneak out to the vending machine for sugary pop and snacks complain constantly about being in the hospital. Listen, its your life, you destroy your health as you please. But don't come make my shift hell because you put yourself here. It drives me nuts because these are super entitled people who lack any self reflection skills.
2) patients that want to know the second they will be discharged when the Dr mentions it to them. Even when I say over and over, the doc will get the orders in and then I can do my part. No, for the 50th time, I don't know when the doc will do that, if it were my choice I would have discharged you yesterday.
3) family members that are MIA for their loved ones entire hospital stay but then come the last day and raise hell about nothing. Like what is up with that?!? Clearly you weren't concerned 1 week ago when this patient was declining and no one could get a hold of you.
Not a patient...but FAMILY. Family is 99% of my stress. Storming onto the unit and right away "what's going on? How is she? What are the results of the CT scan? So what are the doctors going to do? Why is she getting this med? Are they just going to leave her here to die? Why aren't they doing anything? Is she going to have surgery today?" Sir...I'm not sure. You'll have to ask the doctor these questions when they round "what time do they round? How do I get ahold of them? Can you call them right now? I'm only here for 10 more minutes and I need to meet with them now" they're in the OR right now. "Well how am I going to grt my questions answered? Who's going to help us? Doesn't anyone care?".......every damn day.
Oh man, I get tired of when is the doctor coming? Now I just say it varies but I would happy to give you the patient advocate # if you feel something isn't happening the way you feel it should. I'm done being asked a thousand times when the Dr will be here. No matter how much I explain it will vary most days depending on their patient load. If your one of the last to be rounded on, it means your doing pretty darn well usually, so be happy with that.
Mothers who don't want to hold their baby because they think it "spoils" them. .so not true, especially in the nicu they need that bonding and as a nurse i dont always have time to snuggle with them myself wish I did!
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wish I did!
MmooreLPN
10 Posts
I have described 10 as currently having your arm ripped off by a wookiee.