All of us at one time or another have seen or heard of a nurse doing the most idiotic or blatantly stupid thing that goes against our grain of "good nursing". What's the worst you've ever heard? Here's one for you:
At a LTC where I worked, (this was LONG ago...) we had one nurse on 3-11 shift that all the other nurses kept complaining about because it was "common knowledge" that she always gave her 4 pm meds with her 8 pm meds. Of course, I never actually saw this happen and rarely ever worked with this woman. However, no one else would dare to approach this nurse as she had worked there "forever", and always got her way with whatever she wanted. She would leave the building and not clock out for her breaks, and spend a couple of hours at Walmart then return to work. I was told once that a family member approached her about a resident who thought was having a heart attack and this nurse told them "I'm not her nurse, you need to inform someone else"....this while she sat at the nurses desk filing her nails. Anyhow, one evening our DON just "happened" to check this nurses med cart...and guess what. Supposedly, all the 8pm meds had already been given (or at least they weren't in the med cards) Needless to say, she doesn't work there anymore. Actually, I believe she retired!!!
I don't understand how some nurses can be so PLAINLY unprofessional - not even attempt to hide it! EDIT: Just a reminder, this is what I had heard, not what I had witnessed. Had I witnessed anything close to this you better believe I would be on the phone with someone...and fast!!!
this is a funny that happened to me. when I was young I was in ICU with both legs in skeletal tx. the student nurse was told to give me a fleets, I got the fleets but this student missed the proper opening. best part was they reported good results. I found out when I c/o about being constipated.
ahhhh the stories I can tell about nurses just from experience. during my 3 months in the hospital I only remember the name of one nurse and that was because she cared and wasn't afraid to go out of her way to help. when my traction got messed up the other nurses just left me suffer until the ortho tech came in during the day or on monday to fix it. this nurse went to the doc and got permission to be taught how to adjust my tx. the others just said" we're not allowed to touch the tx" took this nurse a whole 5 minutes to learn and prevented me from hours or days of agonizing pain.
My Husband was recently in the Hospital for 3 weeks with what started as a biopsy with a 24 h observation but turned into the afore mentioned 3 weeks which included 3 days in ICU.and in that entire time I can only give you 2 names of nursing stafff and yes it was the only 2 nurses that were worth 2 cents.
I should probably start another thread about being the RN family member....
While working as a CNA at a new job I experienced something I will never forget. I had a pt. with a halo, only a couple hours old. (halo, not pt) I was told he needed to get up, I was afraid to move him by myself so asking an other aid for assistance. Please note that this aide took one look at me when I came on the floor, and hated me instantly.
When we entered the room she asked if I wanted top or bottom to move this pt. I said I did not feel confident taking the top so would take the legs. She was so angry that I had asked her to assist me she reached right down, grabbing the newly inserted halo and lifted that man!!!!!!
I almost fainted right then and there! I reported her to an RN but he said, "She has worked here for years, I think you are mistaken."
Later, the pt spoke to me crying, saying he just wanted to die and refused rehab. I was determined to see this through, I spent every spare moment in that man's room. I finally talked him into going to rehab.
The day he was released from rehab, he made a point of coming down to see me, hug me and with tears tell me if it were not for me, he would not have gone to rehad at all. All this I might add was done at the nurses station with everyone there......including super CNA.
I was pleased with the results of course but it was how the results came to be.........spending time, talking, and what he especially liked, was his "get well cards" were placed on his table. He could not turn his head to see them to remember he was missed and loved..........so I taped them all to the ceiling over his bed.
Specializes in ICU, ED, Transport, Home Care, Mgmnt.
While working as a CNA at a new job I experienced something I will never forget. I had a pt. with a halo, only a couple hours old. (halo, not pt) I was told he needed to get up, I was afraid to move him by myself so asking an other aid for assistance. Please note that this aide took one look at me when I came on the floor, and hated me instantly.
When we entered the room she asked if I wanted top or bottom to move this pt. I said I did not feel confident taking the top so would take the legs. She was so angry that I had asked her to assist me she reached right down, grabbing the newly inserted halo and lifted that man!!!!!!
I almost fainted right then and there! I reported her to an RN but he said, "She has worked here for years, I think you are mistaken."
Later, the pt spoke to me crying, saying he just wanted to die and refused rehab. I was determined to see this through, I spent every spare moment in that man's room. I finally talked him into going to rehab.
The day he was released from rehab, he made a point of coming down to see me, hug me and with tears tell me if it were not for me, he would not have gone to rehad at all. All this I might add was done at the nurses station with everyone there......including super CNA.
I was pleased with the results of course but it was how the results came to be.........spending time, talking, and what he especially liked, was his "get well cards" were placed on his table. He could not turn his head to see them to remember he was missed and loved..........so I taped them all to the ceiling over his bed.
That was a NO! NO! YES!!!!! YES!!!! experience. A great thing you did for him.
While working as a CNA at a new job I experienced something I will never forget. I had a pt. with a halo, only a couple hours old. (halo, not pt) I was told he needed to get up, I was afraid to move him by myself so asking an other aid for assistance. Please note that this aide took one look at me when I came on the floor, and hated me instantly.
When we entered the room she asked if I wanted top or bottom to move this pt. I said I did not feel confident taking the top so would take the legs. She was so angry that I had asked her to assist me she reached right down, grabbing the newly inserted halo and lifted that man!!!!!!
I almost fainted right then and there! I reported her to an RN but he said, "She has worked here for years, I think you are mistaken."
Later, the pt spoke to me crying, saying he just wanted to die and refused rehab. I was determined to see this through, I spent every spare moment in that man's room. I finally talked him into going to rehab.
The day he was released from rehab, he made a point of coming down to see me, hug me and with tears tell me if it were not for me, he would not have gone to rehad at all. All this I might add was done at the nurses station with everyone there......including super CNA.
I was pleased with the results of course but it was how the results came to be.........spending time, talking, and what he especially liked, was his "get well cards" were placed on his table. He could not turn his head to see them to remember he was missed and loved..........so I taped them all to the ceiling over his bed.
you could have gone over the RN's head to a supervisor about what that CNA did. That was dangerous, just think if she did that right i front of you what does she do when alone with patients. And congrats on being there for the patient, those "thank you's" form our patients make the job worthwhile.
Thank you. To be honest, I am not sure I knew I could go over his head, for another, I really needed/wanted this job. I am sure I would have been the first out the door, deemed a trouble maker, hard to get along with, etc. Working in an all female or 98% female enviroment is brutal!!!!!!!! I am however shocked by the RN.....shame on him!
At the last facility I worked for, we had a DON who was horrible. I worked 11-7 there. This was a rehab hospital, less than 40 beds and always had to have one RN on duty along with an LPN and 3 CNAs. Well, the 3-11 RN had called out so our DON had to fill in, including starting an IV and administering a gram of Vancomycin at about 4pm. That night when I got there and was doing my midnight rounds, I noticed that the patient's arm was swollen, cold and discolored. I turned on the light, pulled the sleeve of the gown up to see how far the swelling extended- and there was the tourniquet she had put on when starting the IV 8 hours previous. And it was TIGHT. So not only did she forget to remove it, she ran a gram of Vancomycin into an arm with no blood flow. The patient went back to the acute care hospital after that, not sure of the outcome.
I am a new nursing student so I haven't been in clinical very long. However the other day I got to see the charge nurse change the dressing on a couple of stage II pressure ulcers that were on the coccyx of a pt w/MRSA. She was not wearing gloves. :uhoh21: The CNA who was hlping hold the pt on her side was wearing gloves at least. I was stunned. Reported it to my Clinical instructor, don't know what happened if anything.
I have seen this as well. I had a patient with MRSA and primary nurse touching cellulitis with ungloved hand.....
I think that is why soo many nurses are so hard on nursing students because we remind them of the correct way to do things.....
no, i think so many nurses are hard on nursing students because so many nursing students act like know-it-alls!
on the other hand, maybe nurses are "hard on" nursing students because they want you to learn something!
yes, i'm sure there are many nurses who want nursing students to learn something and don't "eat" the students everytime they have legitimate questions. but, imo and from my experiences with the nurses on my clinical rotations, i've seen a lot of deviation from universal precautions and standard procedures by the nurses. no gloves during iv sticks, nurses touching wounds infected with mrsa without gloves, etc. additionally, the nurses were very, very rude and made it clear that the nursing students were in their way.... in my opinion.
speaking for myself only. no, i do not think i know everything, but i do know nurses are supposed to wear gloves to avoid contact with blood. i saw many nurses who just weren't. and yes, i called them on it. i just wanted to clarify that point. i didnt mean to generalize "all nurses", and i think i did say "many".
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
yes, i'm sure there are many nurses who want nursing students to learn something and don't "eat" the students everytime they have legitimate questions. additionally, the nurses were very, very rude and made it clear that the nursing students were in their way.... in my opinion.
speaking for myself only. no, i do not think i know everything, but i do know nurses are supposed to wear gloves to avoid contact with blood. i saw many nurses who just weren't. and yes, i called them on it. i just wanted to clarify that point. i didnt mean to generalize "all nurses", and i think i did say "many".
maybe i'm just cranky from working night shift, but something about the tone of your last post just grated.
i've had mostly good experiences with students, and would love to have more contact with them. but there are a few -- and your last post struck me this way -- who think that after so many hours of lecture and textbooks, they know everything. and it's very, very hard to teach someone who thinks they already know everything. some of those students have been hired to work in our unit, and as "experienced" nurses of 2 or 3 years, they still think they know everything, and consequently miss out on a lot of educational opportunities.
if you think you see an experienced nurse making a mistake, perhaps you could ask why she's doing it that way instead of the way you learned. you might learn something new -- or you might tactfully be reminding her that she's missed a step.
tricia1
9 Posts
My Husband was recently in the Hospital for 3 weeks with what started as a biopsy with a 24 h observation but turned into the afore mentioned 3 weeks which included 3 days in ICU.and in that entire time I can only give you 2 names of nursing stafff and yes it was the only 2 nurses that were worth 2 cents.
I should probably start another thread about being the RN family member....