Do you have to do constant interaction with your DD patient?

iwanna · Jul 24, 2010

12 hrs. is a long shift. What hrs. do you work? And, how old is your dd patient? I am just asking out of curiosity. I am thinking about applying for home health shift work. Do you work through a nursing agency? I know that I could never work 12 hrs. and especially with a dd! My 3 y.o. grandson wears me out for just a few hrs.

ArwenEvenstar · Jul 24, 2010

Are you allowed to relax and watch TV with your DD child? I am trying my best but 12 hours of constant interaction with this child is wearing me out. Mom says No more TV watching. Mom reminds me everyday that she wants him to have constant interaction with the nurses.

Parents can be demanding and have unrealistic expectations. But then there are lazy nurses out there (unfortunately) who would just let the kid watch non-stop TV! A happy middle is needed! Some TV should be fine, but the nurse should spend time interacting with the child too. Maybe try and talk to the parent about what amount of TV would be acceptable? Maybe have some type of schedule. Easier said than done, I know. The nurse can't be expected to "perform" for hours on end!!! The parent could not do this either!! I always loved it when a parent expected/demanded the nurses to do something that they, the parents, were NOT willing to do themselves. Grrrr....

I had a pt (child) who was TV obsessed. She was a quad and on a vent, but boy could she be controlling. She would throw fits if the TV went off. Nurses and parents developed a schedule...times that TV could be on, and times that it must be off.

txredheadnurse, BSN, RN · Jul 24, 2010

I work with DD clients daily. No one, absolutely no one, needs constant interaction regardless of their cognitive impairment. DD clients usually thrive with schedule but within that schedule there needs to be a variety of activities and types of interaction to include some passive things like TV watching in moderate amounts. The TV watching allows them to engage different parts of their brains and can be used as training aid too. I have trainers who will discuss the plot lines with clients after watching a show together or, if the client has a lower functional level, maybe do a counting game during a TV show with the client.

The brain needs an opportunity to incorporate whatever training or interaction is presented to it. In order to do that a person needs periodic breaks and rest periods like naps. Remember back to cramming for finals as an example. After a bit didn't your brain just turn to mush and you got so foggy that you had a difficult time recalling material you learned months before? Constant interaction is like cramming for a test. After awhile you overload the brain to the point that it is counterproductive and downright irritating.

One more point I would like to make. Constant interaction is not a social norm. DD clients need to learn social norms like everyone else. IMO we do them no favors by not showing them or training them in how to interact with others in non-socially offensive ways. They may be slower to learn but they can learn that they are not the center of the universe and that there are times to let others speak or engage in activities while they politely wait their turn to do the same.

Just my :twocents: worth.

caliotter3 · Jul 24, 2010

She has unrealistic expectations for a 12 hour shift. Those are unrealistic expectations for an 8 hour shift. I suggest you look for a new case before she gets angry enough to call the agency and fire you to get the next victim in the house.

Blackcat99 · Jul 24, 2010

Thanks to all of you for your very good advice.:redbeathe I am glad to hear that you think Mom is being unrealistic. I work day shift and the child is 6 years and is severely DD. I personally think the child is annoyed with me for bothering him all the time. I think both he and I need to have some rest breaks from "constant interaction". I do believe it is irritating him and is counterproductive for him. I think if Mom keeps bugging me about doing "constant interaction" that I am going to look for a new case. Maybe I should start looking for a new case now before Mom calls the agency and reports me. :eek:

smartnurse1982 · Aug 15, 2010

This is the reason I do nights

Blackcat99 · Aug 15, 2010

Thanks. When I joined this agency I specifically asked for night shifts but they had none. So I had to force myself to do day shifts instead. I wanted a steady income so at that time I requested the day shift opening because that's all that was available. Of course, once I accepted the day shift opening then of course they started getting new night shift cases. :mad: . I have now recently again asked the agency if they have any night shifts available to let me know and have not received any calls. :crying2: I think I am cursed. :mad: Whoever put that "day shift curse" on me please remove it."

elkpark · Aug 15, 2010

Perhaps it would be a good idea to arrange a meeting with the family, the agency, and whatever mental health and/or education professionals are involved to discuss what a reasonable, therapeutic daily schedule (and variety of activities, including some TV :)) would be for this child. Parents and other family members can want lots of things for their loved one, but that doesn't mean they know what is most helpful and productive for the individual.

If you go the "summit meeting" route, that keeps the situation from being an individual struggle between you and Mom, and it becomes a matter of what the team has decided.

Blackcat99 · Aug 15, 2010

Thanks. I think Mom has already changed her mind. She removed the radio from the child's room for 2 days after she said she wanted the child to hear music instead of TV. When I arrived at her home last Thursday she already had the TV on. I think maybe Mom realized she was overdoing it.

fkpecina · Oct 5, 2010

quick question...what is DD?

sharpeimom · Oct 5, 2010

dd= developmentally disabled