Do give up your seat for a doctor?

[Pmkn10RN]

In the unit I work on attendings come in the rooms/pods to round with residents on pts. All of the older nurses leap out of their seats to let the doctors sit. If I 'm charting or doing some other sort of meaningful work I will remain seated (if I was reading a magazine. I 'd get up). I thought it was old school...nursing giving up their chairs for doctors

[NotFlo]

I work in a SNF. By the time the doctor finally makes it in he or she has a ton of work to do and usually has to pull all of their patient's charts, address any issues, write progress notes on all of them, write orders, etc. Of course I give them my chair.

[Belle Epoque]

Seriously, it's called a NURSES station for a reason!

We had this come up during staff meetings especially since we have many docs, residents, interns, med students, nursing students etc etc and especially first thing in the am - chaos ensues!

The nurses complained LOUD and HARD about not being able to sit to get report, go over charts, access labs on the PC, do their worksheets etc and we won! The docs etc were told to make their stay as brief as possible and go somewhere else for their little powwows. Some have complied others not. But it still gets pretty crowded at times....

[Caffeine_IV]

Who has the time to sit down?

No seriously, at night..they are a minimum amount of doctor's around and giving up a seat is not an issue. During the daytime, I'm doing walking rounds and whatever charting needs to be done...I do it at my COW.

If I'm in an area where someone else needs to be and I can do my work elsewhere I will move..be it nurse, social worker, MD or student.

[BluegrassRN]

The hospital is a business and not only are the patients our customers, but so are the doctors. It's not about who is busiest at that particular moment; it's about the fact that the doctors are who brings us patients and without them, we wouldn't have jobs. We should not only gladly give up our computer for our doctors but we should also ask them if they woud like a nurse to round with them on their patients. LoL.

I don't buy this. As long as we have an ED, THAT'S what brings in the patients, not the docs.

The docs I work with are either in a practice that is owned by my facility (making them my coworkers), or are only in business because the hospital allows them to admit pts; in other words, we're doing them a favor. No way am I waiting hand and foot on a doctor (or CEO, or anyone else).

I give up my seat to any coworker (doc, RT, nurse, whomever) if I'm not doing anything meaningful at that time, and there aren't any other seats available. If there are other seats available or I'm busy; sorry, my work is just as important as theirs. I don't expect everyone to give up their seats to me, why should I be expected to give up my seat automatically for anyone else?

[linearthinker, DNP, RN]

Honestly, LOL@the notion. No, and I routinely kick them out of my chair. They have chairs in their offices, the nursing station is effectively my office. I don't fetch their charts, coffee, or dial the phone for them either. And, fwiw, I'm an old nurse. I am either the same age as, or older than, most of the physicians I work with. They ought to be giving up their chairs for me, lol.

And physicians are NOT my "customers." I don't have customers, I have colleagues and patients and visitors. I will not subscribe to this so called customer service model.

[linearthinker, DNP, RN]

I don't buy this. As long as we have an ED, THAT'S what brings in the patients, not the docs.

The docs I work with are either in a practice that is owned by my facility (making them my coworkers), or are only in business because the hospital allows them to admit pts; in other words, we're doing them a favor. No way am I waiting hand and foot on a doctor (or CEO, or anyone else).

I give up my seat to any coworker (doc, RT, nurse, whomever) if I'm not doing anything meaningful at that time, and there aren't any other seats available. If there are other seats available or I'm busy; sorry, my work is just as important as theirs. I don't expect everyone to give up their seats to me, why should I be expected to give up my seat automatically for anyone else?

ITA w/ you, but I think the author of that quite was being facetious.

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

Only if I no longer wanted to sit!

[wondern, ASN]

...and only if it's been warmed up adequately. :chair:

[NurseCard, ADN]

It depends. The last med/surge unit where I worked, we were actually expected to clear out of the nurse's station at a certain time of the day so that the doctors could come in and use the computers. They all generally arrived about the same time of day. I guess that was OK; the docs needed to look at labs and such and there wasn't another area of computers set aside for them.

But in general, no, I'm not going to give my seat up for a doctor if I'm busy doing something, just because they show up. If I'm sitting there yakking, then sure, I'll offer my seat to a doc who looks like they need to get some work done. Or, if I'm just sitting there doing some light work and they ask nicely if they can sit there for just a few minutes to make a couple of phone calls or whatever.

[hecallsmeDuchess]

I will give up my seat if I'm done charting. Most times when I sit down I don't sit just to rest, I sit to do some work so I won't give up my seat. The person (doc or whoever) can walk to the general nurses' station and use one of the computers there if they want to. However, there is only one doc I would ever give up my seat for even if I'm busy and this is because he is elderly and very cute too.

[back2bRN]

I give my seat to anyone who may need it more than me....courtesy, not because of the MD behind their names. I've had docs and other co-workers give their seat to me when I needed it as well. Although sometimes my contrary nature takes over and if they expect it or feel entitled just because they are a doc, well I find it way more difficult to be nice! And shockingly enough sometimes I'm not courteous!

[ALO75]

I think it depends partly on the culture of the organization or unit. Personally, if they appear to be older than me, regardless of title, i wil give the seat up...or offer to every time. For younger Md's it may take a couple of meetings coz i feel that giving up the seat is an indication of respect, so i would have to get some sense that it was deserved.