Doctor stole my stethoscope

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So, this week hasn't been fun. My lovely Litmann that I received as a Christmas gift has been stolen by a doctor. I've even gone so far as to post fliers around the unit. I know that many nurses have their stethoscope stolen. My thought is "If doctors are stealing our stethoscopes, why are the facilities not paying us for those EXPENSIVE things?" Take it out of their paychecks. Every stethoscope stolen results in money taken from their paychecks. Or make them pool money together to supply us stethoscopes.

Needless to say, I miss my stethoscope. Who else has these problems? How do you track your stethoscope down?

About a year after my husband lost my scope, a strange resident came on the unit with a familiar dark green Littman with red tape around the tubing. I was pretty sure it was mine from the tape, but seeing my name engraved on the bell when he put it on the patient's chest sort of clinched it. The resident insisted it was HIS, that his family had given it to him. I waited until his attending was present and then I asked to see his stethoscope. He was kind of boxed in there, and sure enough, "Ruby Vee" was engraved right there for all to see. He didn't have much choice but to give it back when his attending was watching. He complained about "what am I supposed to use?" And was nasty to me for the length of his residency, and one time muttered "Thanks for embarrassing me in front of my attending" to me. I told him I wouldn't have to have embarrassed him in front of his attending if he had just returned my stethoscope to me when it was clear it had my name on it.
1. I want to fist/chest bump you through the screen for that. You. are. awesome. 2. I would have killed to have been a fly on the wall to witness that encounter. :D 3. To the OP, I've had the same stethoscope for 21 years and I have never had it walk away, because I am mean about taking it right back after people use it. I think I'll have "MINE" engraved on it. ;)
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If you know who took it then just ask for it back. It was probably done unintentionally. He or she may not even remember where they got it from. Putting your name on it is a huge help. Keeping track of it another huge help. On the flip side, I once found a stethoscope in the locker room bathroom. I posted fliers all over the OR, pre-op and PACU for over a month. No one ever claimed it. Perhaps this is a similar situation.

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Specializes in Cardiology, Cardiothoracic Surgical.

My name's engraved on my Cardiology III and I wear it on my neck (the only place I can be aware of its presence at all times). We get a lot of off-service patients on our unit, so stethoscopes have been known to walk off with interns or residents.

Just the other day I had a resident ask if she could use my stethoscope. Nope! Her pouting didn't impress me as I pointed her towards the supply room with the isolation scopes. I suppose it's a miracle a resident wanted to listen to a patient, but still.

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Specializes in Med-surg, school nursing..

I have this cute little clip that has a picture of my kids on it, got it off Etsy. It's super hard to get off and everyone knows it's mine, because ya know...my kids.

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Specializes in Adult MICU/SICU.

I lost a Litmann Master Classic while working at the Tucson Heart Hospital (THH) in 1998 (to be clear, this was the one I used all through the College of Nursing, and post licensure).

It just walked away one day and boy was I steamed (I worked a full time job, AND a part time job at the time, and not just because I loved what I did - I needed the money, and every penny counted). It was an older model that had seen better days, but I spent more than I could afford at the time as a starving student, plus it was MINE - clearly marked with my name.

At the time I worked (5) five 12 hr shifts a week - it's not easy going to a uniform/medical supply store after a full day at work, even if they were open so late. This was before everyone and their brother had a home computer with internet access, so shopping was done in person - no online purchases with next day shipping for an exorbitant sum if needed. Plus, I could hardly go to work the next day without a stethoscope!

I bit the bullet and shelled out more hard earned dough on a Litmann Cardiology model - only one model was higher grade at the time, and it cost plenty: it was burgundy colored (to match our required uniforms).

Soon life went on as usual and I moved that stethoscope theft to the back of my mind. A couple of weeks later my previous stethoscope just reappears on the unit - like I had just set it down or something. Looking slightly worse for wear, but back again. I figured some MD picked it up to assess a pt because they left their's in the car or elsewhere. No one knew who had it, or who brought it back again.

I never left it unattended again. It was a pretty stupid move to begin with - it wasn't the first big ticket item I ever lost on a unit (and I've lost stranger things at work - such as my breast milk which I pumped and stored) but you would hope people would have better manners and integrity than that. However, just because people have professional licenses of all sorts doesn't automatically make them honest people either.

Sorry about the lost of your stethoscope my friend.

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Specializes in Adult MICU/SICU.
:facepalm:
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Specializes in Adult MICU/SICU.
About a year after my husband lost my scope, a strange resident came on the unit with a familiar dark green Littman with red tape around the tubing. I was pretty sure it was mine from the tape, but seeing my name engraved on the bell when he put it on the patient's chest sort of clinched it. The resident insisted it was HIS, that his family had given it to him. I waited until his attending was present and then I asked to see his stethoscope. He was kind of boxed in there, and sure enough, "Ruby Vee" was engraved right there for all to see. He didn't have much choice but to give it back when his attending was watching. He complained about "what am I supposed to use?" And was nasty to me for the length of his residency, and one time muttered "Thanks for embarrassing me in front of my attending" to me. I told him I wouldn't have to have embarrassed him in front of his attending if he had just returned my stethoscope to me when it was clear it had my name on it.

What a cry baby! He/she wouldn't have been embarrassed if they WEREN'T A THIEF!

And this is someone whom had taken a Hippocratic Oath, pt's are supposed to trust with their lives, and is theoretically a paradigm of integrity?

I'm not surprised though: I've seen interns lift other people's lunches, and eat from a box containing a fancy decorated cake one of the nurses had in the unit refrigerator for a private party outside of work.

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Specializes in Pediatric/Adult Oncology.

Engraving it means nothing. Mine was a unique color and unique bell with my name engraved right on top and it still was stolen. I just bit the bullet and bought a new one.

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Specializes in Peds, Neuro, Orthopedics.

This is why mine is cheap junk. I don't work in cardiac or pulmonary, so I figure I don't need to hear that well. :) I always find it returned to the nursing station when borrowed.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Off topic posts deleted

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Where I work there are unit stethoscopes, so you just grab one and go. Our doctors never even think of them belonging to one of us. I honestly don't think they give it one thought as to where it came from, they just grab one and hurry on. If it is decorated and obvious, they are more likely to think it might be someone's. Surely it wasn't intentional. Good luck finding it.

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Specializes in CVICU.

I've been a nurse for coming up on seven years, always in an acute care hospital. Other, more veteran nurses always warned me to keep an eye on my "ears," as they've had many a pair stolen themselves. About two months ago I left mine at work over the weekend and sure enough, upon my return it was missing. Finally, it had happened to me.

I work in a teaching hospital, so residents are continuously circulating. I'm friends with many of them on social media, and made a polite post about "keep your eyes peeled" for my stethoscope, which also happens to have my NAME ENGRAVED IN THE TUBING. Still, it was never found.

I imagine a physician had to come see his one patient in our unit, couldn't find a stethoscope to do his half-assed exam, grabbed mine, used it for 3 seconds, tossed it around his neck, and then onto the floorboard of his S-Class as he left the parking lot.

Screw you, dude.

My stethoscope was given to me for X-Mas 2008 from my grandparents. I was in school and promised them I'd use it for my entire career.

I'll never have the heart to tell them someone stole it.

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