Do nurses get mad when..

I will tactfully remind families that 2 at a time is our rule. Families accept this and will take turns.

Large families are fine by me as long as they are not "problem families" with lots of theatrics.

I like it when the patient gets to be alone for some part of the day to get rest.

Sometimes the large families are what the patient needs/wants...but when grandma is reprimanding the screaming running children from her hospital bed...or the room is so fulll that you cant move..thats when limits need to be set. I also come from a large familly but insist that we take turns going (or at least use the family room on the floor to rotate thru) makes the nurses happier and the pt isnt so overwhelmed.

I agree with all of the above. I had a patient recently who had a large, rather loud family who were reluctant to move out of the way when I was doing procedures. Plus they took up all of the chairs in the room and asked for more chairs from other rooms! When the pt in the other bed kindly asked them to keep it down to a low roar, they got mad at her! It was at that point when I started kicking them out and allowing only 2 at a time. Also one family member got into a fist fight with another one while in the room. :angryfiregrrrrrr

I only get annoyed when there are tons of family in the room and they keep bugging me with petty/annoying requests. More chairs, cups for the entire family, mom has an eye booger and it needs to be wiped away like RIGHT now etc type of stuff and of course none of the ten people in the room can get a tissue and wipe it away type of nonsense puts me in a really foul mood.

If they feel well enough to have a party then it's time to go home. 2 maybe 3 visitors, no small children for longer than 10 minutes. I'm strict but after all the patient is there to get better. I have run people off and afterwards been told by the patient, Thank You I really did feel up to entertaining. Come to think of it I don't think a patient has ever complained about their loved ones being run off.

It totally depends on the patient and the family. I'll often act as the bad guy and kick out visitors for a patient who is obviously exhausted, but the family just won't take the hint. The problem with visitors in the ICU is that they don't understand what is going on and are very very anxious, causing the patients to become more anxious than they already are. If the family can be calm, understand that they don't understand the alarms, recognize that I know what I'm doing and that I can't sit and talk to them for three hours, then the situation can be beneficial for everyone. The patient has their comforting presence, the family is able to feel involved, and I get an extra set of eyes in the rooms. I don't have a problem with the visitors acting as a patient advocate because that is very important and if they have a problem with something going on, I would rather they would talk to me about it so we can get it taken care of so that the hospital experience can be a good one for them.

However, no patient needs more than 2 or 3 visitors at a time. The hospital room is not a good place for family reunions. The hospital is no place for children, especially young children. I had a family try to bring a baby into a MRSA isolation room so that grandma could hold her. WTH?

Also, visitors need to see it from the patient's point of view. I'm laying here with half a pair of pajamas with no underwear, I haven't looked in a mirror for a week, I haven't washed my hair in a week, I'm in pain, there is a possibility I could poo myself, my urine is in a big bag on display for everyone, I haven't slept in a week, and I haven't eaten in days. Not the best timing for visitors.

Honestly, most visitors are respectful and understand that we have rules for a reason. But there is always one patient in the unit whose family is horrible. They are argumentative, noisy, demanding, and rude. I had a visitor come in staggering drunk once to a very critical patient and try to fight with me when I wouldn't let him in. We also have had visitors sneak in drugs and use our IVs to give it. It is these families that drive us crazy and make us say we hate visitors.

I don't care how many visitors are in the room, children or adults,as long as they get out of my way when I need to care for the patient, and aren't making a lot of noise/being disruptful, or asking me to get them coffee/soda/Tylenol/etc.

Also, if you're a visitor, please don't ask me to take your blood pressure or interpret all of your recent blood sugar readings. Thanks.

I, for one hate a crowded room. It is true that families can rally and be positive support for the patients and even nursing. However, intrusive familes can also hinder patient care when they ALL feel that we have to run and get them coffee, order extra trays, follow the staff around with insane demands and just agitating the nursing staff.

Also, I, for one get very nervous when ANYONE, may it be family or employees are standing above and eyeballing each and every step I take. It would not fare very well, because then, I get clumsy when that is not how I normally perform daily, routine skills.

There's a lot of people in a patients room at once? I come from a Mexican family and there's a lot of us in a room usually.. Sometimes family members disobey the limits, and then when the nurse comes in it feels really awkward.

When it negatively impacts my ability to care for the patient then yes!

Loud talking!

Different people coming out to the nurses station to ask me questions every 10 minutes.

Demanding juice and food for the little ones.

Not being willing to find their way back downstairs to their cars so I have to walk numerous people out to the elevators multiple times when I am trying to work.

Making me go and fetch 10 folding chairs so the whole brood can get comfy is ridiculous too.

Not moving when they are in the way of my beeping IV pumps.

Keeping screaming children on the unit way past their bedtime and expecting me to find something to occupy them with.

In short, family members/friends/ significant others etc... are welcome when they conduct themselves in a manner that shows they have common sense. If the room can barely fit the patient and the bedside table, the whole family shouldn't try to squeeze in there. Keep the visit brief and utilize the telephone.

We have limit of 2 (immediate family members) at a time in the ICU. They are supposed to call each and everytime before entering the unit. Which doesn't happen often. Sometimes when we have the door propped open for housekeeping or something, people take it as an open invitation and herd in.

What irks me are these big families and each set of people that come in ask the same questions over and over again. I try to designate one person to relay the information to the rest of the family. That way I can give my other pt some attention.

there's a lot of people in a patients room at once? i come from a mexican family and there's a lot of us in a room usually.. sometimes family members disobey the limits, and then when the nurse comes in it feels really awkward.

big families per se don't bother me. big, rude, entitled, demanding and obnoxious families make me so angry i could spit.

if the nurses ask you to limit visits to two people at a time, do so. don't argue, wheedle, whine or try to sneak in 7 or 8 more people when the big bad nurse is busy elsewhere. feel free to take turns. no one says it has to be the same two visitors all the time. (unless the patient does, and that's different.)

be courteous of other patients, especially the roommate if there is one. don't use the patient bathroom, the roommate's chairs, the roommate's bedside table, etc. and please don't go rifling through the roommate's belongings. (or the nurse's, either.)

if the nurse's charting station is in the room, respect it. don't sit in the nurse's chair, try to use the nurse's computer or (and i swear i've had this happen) rifle through the pocket's of the nurse's lab jacket which is sitting on the nurse's chair. no rifling through the nurse's bag, either, if she's had to leave it in the room because there is no locker space for her to use.

no food in the room -- especially if the patient is in isolation, if there is a roommate, if the patient is npo. in fact, no food in the room, period, is a good rule. ditto drinks. if you're hungry or thirst, take a break and go take care of those matters.

family members who sit and take notes all day annoy the crap out of me. usually, they're looking for "evidence" for the law suit they're planning to file if things don't turn out their way.

visiting families are ambulatory -- they're perfectly capable of fetching their own food and drinks. they're also capable of combing grandpa's hair, helping grandma cut her food and helping mamma brush her teeth.

if the visiting family member is not ambulatory, please don't leave them there for me to take care of. i don't want to toilet the visitors. really. i don't want to take their blood pressure, check their blood sugar or make recommedations on a new doctor for them, either. i actually had a patient ask me to toilet his mother because his wife (who brought the old lady to visit) "doesn't like to do that."

if you simply must spend the night, do not complain when i come in at midnight and turn on the lights to check the patient's wound, skin color, transfusion or whatever. i don't care if you're not getting your beauty rest. and no, i won't adjust the thermostat so you're more comfortable, fetch you some orange juice, provide sleepwear or find you a shower to use. it's not about you.

and please don't move into the hospital room bag and baggage because "hotels are so expensive."

if the family becomes high maitenence, i will ask them to leave. i don't care that they've driven seven hours to get here and haven't seen grandma in a decade. when it becomes about meeting the family's demands rather than the patient's needs, the family is free to go. if they have trouble with that concept, security can sometimes help them see the light.

do not expect me to entertain you. if you're bored because the patient is non-verbal and you want someone to talk to, go to the waiting room and find someone to talk to. even if i'm "just sitting there staring at the computer," that doesn't mean i have the time to discuss the upcoming election with you.

i'm not interested in your gall bladder surgery, your great uncle's cabg, your cousin's brother-in-law's heart transplant or your neighbor's lung reduction surgery. i don't need to hear about any of that, and believe me when i tell you it's not at all interesting. i'm here to take care of the patient. if i'm listening to you blather on, i can't take care of the patient.

if you're upsetting the patient, i will ask you to leave. even if you demand that the patient tell me you're not upsetting him/her, that rising blood pressure is a big clue. take the tactful suggestion and leave. or the next time it won't be so tactful.

no matter what you've seen on "er", "grey's anatomy" or "hopkins," the hospital is not the place to indulge in your penchant for drama. leave the hysterics, fist fights, manipulations and other drama at home. shrieking is not the proper response to bad news. flinging yourself bodily onto walls, patients or health care staff is not usually well-received. and no i won't get you something to "calm your nerves".