Do nurses make the worse patients?

[laynaER]

Some of my friends seem to think nurses make the worse patients partially due to the fact that we're so knowledgable and aware of what is going on. I think it works both ways. I think due the fact that we're so knowledgable we sit there and worry about all of the possiblities and complications of our treatment/procedure, but it's also good to have that knowledge because we understand what is going on with our bodies the most.

My experience?

Some nurses have been patients in hospitals that i've rotated in and nobody ever wants to take them on. Some of them question your IV technique, they ask you if you know why you're doing something, just give their nurse a really hard time as if they don't know what it's like to have an annoying patient.

Family members who are nurses?

They are the worst sometimes as well. "What are you doing to my mom/dad?" "Come clean my mom/dad!!!'' "That's not the way you pack a wound!" Some of them can't help themselves. They can't sit there and let you do your job the best way you know how without adding their 2 cents.

Like I said, everything has its positives and negatives. I think healthcare professionals are more likely to be on point and not bs around when they know a family member is nurse. It just gets to be overwhelming at times when it seems like they're being difficult on purpose.

[laynaER]

I hope I made myself clear: I don't think there is anything wrong with advocating for yourself as well as a family member. There is a way to go about it with class and respect and some people just lack one or both. You don't need to be a nasty person in order to advocate for yourself.

[TakeTwoAspirin, MSN, RN, APRN]

Due to a chronic medical condition, I have the misfortune to spend quite a lot of time as a patient. I have to say that I have only ever rung my call bell once and that was because I had passed out trying to go to the bathroom on my own, and literally had fallen and couldn't get up (because of my weakened state)! I felt terrible that I had to have people come run to help me back into bed. Because I know how busy everyone is, I think I am actually less of a bother than most other patients.

However, I have also taken care of other caregivers (nurses, doctors and other caregivers) and I understand that not everyone is as considerate of their colleagues!

[Dalzac, LPN, LVN, RN]

I know I was not an ideal patient but I have saved my own life once and ******* until someone paid attention to me. I had Hysterectomy and had a slow bleed and I kept showing them my swollen belly and my swollen periarea> And then I went into shock and told them that. They ignored me until the Doc caught it on a H and H. I coded in front of OR. I told them for 4 days I was bleeding.

The second time was after my hip replacement I knew something was wrong but didn't know what it was. I was in way too much pain and I just couldn't do PT due to the pain. The sad thing was because I complained no one would answer my call light. I had to go to the bathroom and no one would help me The doc found me stuck between the rail and the bed, yelling for help, helped me back to bed and raised a stink about the neglect. and took me to get a CT scan The prosthesis was coming out the back of my femur. I had to go back to surgery and get a new hip

So yeah I think nurses are tough to take care of and I think the caregiver probably is deeply intimadated. But the thing that caregiving nurses need to know is your patient has medical knowledge and they know thier boddies and will tell you what is going on Believe them in fact believe all your patients wheh they tell you something is wrong.

[kenyohunt1]

I have been a patient in the hospital, my nurse told me I was the best pt she ever had. I think it was because I didnt bother them at all. I had a mastectomy and even when in pain I didnt ring the call bell because I didnt want to bother them. I only asked for something when my nurse came to check on me, which initally was not very much at all. This changed when she found out I was a nurse, not from me but by my hubby.

I have also have had the pleasure of working in hospice where I have had plenty of family members and pt that were nurses or retired nurses, never had a problem. Then again Hospice is a different beast entirely, people are so greatful for what you do there are very few complaints.

[cookienay]

I don't think it is being a nurse that makes you a bad patient or family member. It's the being crazy part.

Seriously, I had a pt's daughter wig out on me one night. She just waltzed up to the nurse's station, got her mother's chart out of the rack and started looking through it. I had no idea who she was (not that it would have mattered). I gently removed the chart from her hands and asked if I could help her. She said something about checking a lab order- blah, blah, blah. I asked what her question was and I would be glad to answer any question she may have. She storms off and returns about 5 minutes later and slams down some piece of paper and starts spouting off some gibberish about something (apparently it was her nursing license that she was waving around). She leaves and a half-hour later the supervisor calls me and tells me we are moving this woman because the nurse was rude to her. LOL!!! So, I gladly call report and send this woman to another floor for this crazy woman to harass someone else.

And I really love the family members that progress in one week from CNA to LPN to RN to NP. And then they want to do their family's IV, foley (creepy), meds, etc... ummmm, don't think so.