Do nurses actually teach patients assigned to them?

[Blackheartednurse]

Ok so I'm aware of the fact that patient teaching plays an important part in nursing care. However, now looking back at my nursing school experience and having flashbacks I must share with you a very dissapointing thought; the nurses that I had an opportunity to work with didnt seems to put too much emphasis on patient teaching...Just brief example;Once I was taking care of a patient who was post MI (he was discharged the same day I had him) I was soo surprised how little he knew about bleeding precautions (and the man was to be discharged in the matter of minutes) Of course he was going to be on cardiac meds (I doubt they even tought him how to take his pulse as I have assesed him and he did not know!),blood-thiners,aspirin all the standard drugs for a hear disease.And that is not even the end of it. After he took a shower, I went in to clean up after him and I could not believe my eyes; there was a "regular" shaving blade lying next to the sink. When I informed him that he should switch to an electrical shaver he was so very surprised. I understand that nurses have an extreme busy job,and keeping up with all the work can be so chalenging but come on. I think that man deserve to know essentials like that! Anyway, I must sadly add that I have seen more cases like this happening. I'm not talking about being book perfect but I just think that it is a nurse duty to educate patient about potential threats to his or her health!! It really doesnt take that much time to perform a brief teaching session.

[proudnurseRN]

Sometimes it's about priorities. I once had a patient in for a seizure who's drug screen lit up like a Christmas tree. She had lost her kids to foster care, her boyfriend beat the crap out of her on a regular basis. Guess what popped up on my little suggested teaching screen? Smoking cessation. So I went in their armed with handouts, put them down and said, "Here's some information on how to quit smoking, but let's be honest, on life's to do list quitting smoking is probably near the end for you. Let's talk."

My teaching focused on getting her referrals for drug abuse and getting Socail Services to see her to get her a safe place to stay. Whether it worked or not...I don't know. But had someone came in and asked about smoking cessation, no I didn't teach much about that.

Overload a patient with information and they forget it all. Priorities first.

[silentRN]

Could just be a liability issue too, why some nurses don't teach. We have printouts we can always give to the family that the hospital provides. Most of the patients I see are TBI and in the ICU, vented and sedated, and the family isn't usually there overnight.

[caliotter3]

I work in home health. I do my teaching and document it so that my agency is in compliance. When the DOCS or nursing supervisor gets on nurses for not doing teaching, they always compliment me on my teaching and documentation. I don't like negative conversations with the bosses so I keep my tasks up to par.

[Blackheartednurse]

And its imperative that patients and family members ask questions-whether the training was done or not. The nurse may have been busy, thought doctor or another nurse gave training or simply forgot. I know, I KNOW... this is unacceptable! But I am the ONLY nurse at my radiation oncology practice and I encourage my patients and coworkers to let me know when patients aren't understanding something. Patient education is ongoing.....

Often patients feel intimitated and for that reason they may simply be too scared to ask,you know the "I dont want to be a burden" song that was taught to us in nursing school.

Also for those nurses who consistently teach;dont you ever get tired of walking and repeating the same information for ten hundred time?

[Chewie_123]

Half the unit has been closed for a quick remodel. As a result, we have enough staff to provide adequate coverage. :anpom: I have had some time to do some great, in-depth teaching that is so nice to do instead of the bare-bones stuff that is usually all I have time for. Did a nice presentation for a Pt. on a heparin gtt, complete with graphics. It was awesome.

[Virgo_RN, BSN, RN]

I always enjoyed my post MI teaching. If I ever leave the bedside, I might become a cardiac educator. For some reason, these people are almost always hungry for knowledge, and arming them with what they need to know is very gratifying.

[Blackheartednurse]

I always enjoyed my post MI teaching. If I ever leave the bedside, I might become a cardiac educator. For some reason, these people are almost always hungry for knowledge, and arming them with what they need to know is very gratifying.

For the very similar reasons posted above I would like to work on cardiac floor rather than med-surg. It seems that cardiac patient are more motivated to learn.

[Virgo_RN, BSN, RN]

For the very similar reasons posted above I would like to work on cardiac floor rather than med-surg. It seems that cardiac patient are more motivated to learn.

Not always, but yes, in general. Many post MI patients have a sort of PTSD response, and a reevaluation of what is important in life. They really want to know how they can keep from having another MI! One of my most touching moments with a post MI patient was a guy who had been a smoker. I went in to give him his Chantix and discussed the potential side effects with him. He told me he was very motivated to quit smoking. He told me that when he was in the ER, having that crushing substernal pain, and the cardiologist came to his bedside and asked him "Do you smoke?", he said "Not anymore!"

I've got tons of stories like that. Plus I just like cardiac physiology. It's interesting and dynamic!