Biased Care...

I'm having an abdominoplasty (T.T) in three weeks , so I've been visiting a plastic surgery forum. I am alarmed at how many post I've read about nurses being biased in giving pt. care when they find out they are caring for someone who's having plastic surgery. (Ex: leaving pt's in pain, bad attitudes etc). The majority of the posters stated, their nurse "sucked"......

Do you feel any differently if someone has elected to have plastic surgery ?

No, I have worked in outpatient surgery and have seen many plastics procedures. It was a much happier occasion when someone bought themselves some new bewbies than when a patient came in for a D & C or biopsy.

Oh, also I had a breast reduction and they were very good to me.

bumping up to get more replies....

i also had elective plastics surgery and had a really good experience with the nurses. i mean it's not a spa day or anything like and perhaps those posting on the plastics forum were expecting such treatment?

Surgery is surgery from my point of view. Nursing is wholistic, we recognise that to feel confident and comfortable with oneself it may be necessary to have surgery. There may even be a physical reason for it. I had to have a BCC removed from my nose. Quite extensive and needed a 'double flap'.

If nurses are judgemental then they shouldn't be in the job. Is this a specific clinic or hospital you are discussing?

I worked on a floor that had quite a few abdominoplasty patients. I never knew of any nurse who treated these patients any different from our other surgery patients.

I do think that a lot of the abdominoplasty patients did not understand what the post op recovery period would be like. They often did not expect to experience that much pain. I often wondered if their surgeon wasn't giving them a clear picture of the post op pain because he was afraid he would scare them off and lose out on some money.

I work in outpatient surgery and have dealt with a number of abdominoplasties. The patients all received good care and I never observed patients who were "whiners." In fact, they tolerated the pain much better than would be expected for the most part.

In my personal experience plastic surgery patients tend to be well dressed middle-aged women struggling with depression. Just an observation, it does not apply to all the plastic cases, but there is a definite trend...

No, I believe most of the Pt's that complained were ones that had post op infection and were readmitted to a hosp (not surgery center) or treated by an ER.

Take a look......

http://messageboards.makemeheal.com/viewtopic.php?t=75626

BTW.....I'm not middle aged or depressed, but I'd agree I'm well dressed! :thankya:

No, I believe most of the Pt's that complained were ones that had post op infection and were readmitted to a hosp (not surgery center) or treated by an ER.

Take a look......

http://messageboards.makemeheal.com/viewtopic.php?t=75626

BTW.....I'm not middle aged or depressed, but I'd agree I'm well dressed! :thankya:

oh gawwwwwwwwdddd!!! :rotfl:

some of those nurses sounded like beauts...

as did some of the pts.

oy vey.

tanzanite, may you be blessed with the perfect nurse.

and if not, you can always act like one of those pts. :)

leslie

bumping.......

I've never seen a problem with nurses having issues with plastics patients. Elective surgeries are what keeps hospitals and surgicenters in business, meaning nurses have jobs.

I do know that a lot of the plastics patients I have seen that ended up with infections also did not follow instructions for care. Some even "forgot" their follow up appts - after all, it was an elective surgery, not something done for an illness or injury.

Maybe the people that you got the info from felt bad after they got a stern talking to from their doctor or nurse and the patients knew that they didn't follow the aftercare rules right. Can't tell you how many women I have seen that thought it was ok to go sunbathe after surgeries and then ended up swimming, or being dunked - all because they didn't want to tell people that they had surgery and the incision was not quite healed yet.