Help!! Visitor Problems!!

Nurses General Nursing

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I work on a med/surg floor in a large teaching hospital. The big problem I am having is with the visiting policy. Visiting hours on med/surg floors are from 8a-9p, there are no restrictions for children/babies and overnight stays are limited to one person in a private room only. However.... we have patients admitted who bring immediate family, extended family, friends, acquaintances, infants and bunk in for the duration. I'm not talking about family at the bedside of a dying loved one..I'm talking about any diagnosis/situation. As charge nurse, I have been confronted with issues such as people stealing from other patients, from our clean utility room, staff lockers, wandering halls at all hours, falling, demanding pillows, blankets, food, allowing children free rein, use equipment, sleeping on floors, sleeping in isolation rooms, chairs, clean beds, request nursing care for themselves, baby-sit their children; you name it. I certainly understand and have seen great results from those patients with supportive families but this is down right dangerous and disruptive to say the least. Enforcing visiting policy, I have met with suggestions that patient and family satisfaction come first. Of course it does but where do you draw the line? Does anyone out there have similar experiences and if yes, how do you handle it!!! Cath

How about the babies crawling down the hall past the MRSA isolation rooms? That REALLY gets me - and the answers I've had when I have politely reminded people that it is a hospital they are visiting, with GERMS, and to please keep the baby off the floor (YUK!!!!).

Specializes in Med-Surg Nursing.

Visiting hours. The bane of my existence.

Some RN's in my ICU enforce them and others don't. Makes those of us that enforce the visitation rules look like a bunch of b**ches. " Oh, no-one ever told us only 2 people were allowed in the room"

It bugs me when a patient treats me like I am a waitress. Get me this...do this...fluff my pillow....bend my straw....not one please or thank you. Really torques my butt!

I think it is hilarious when the docs get caught by the visitors and actually have to talk to them!!!!!

This is in response to "when something doesn't go right, a nurse has obviously done something wrong" that was mentioned in mattsmom's post. I have a personal policy, now, where I don't take the blame for things that are not my fault. For instance, if the doc barking to know what the labs are and they are not done, I reply: "It's unfortunate but they are not done yet." I am through starting evey sentence with "I'm sorry" when I have nothing to do with it.

I work at our hospitals skilled unit, visiting hours are supposed to be 1100-1900. I have found a few things that have aided this problem. We now have scheduled therapy times and pts have the times posted each night for the next day. When I approach to do an assessment or wound care I usually provide an approximate time with my first quick visit, with the usual, barring nothing unexpected occurs. Of course I apologize if I am detained or pop in and let them know. I also ask all(except maybe the spouse) to step out for assessments, wound care it's up to the pt. I have never and never will provided information over the phone to someone that was not an emergency contact/listed to receive information. I always address them to the family. Of course, my charge nurse and several I work with give out way to much to my cousin Sue 5 states away. I always add that legally I can't provide them with information regardless of my own desire to do so....I've never had a rude comment or complaint YET from this line. I'm fortunate that my area is subacute (most of the time). In other areas I wouldn't be well received. I'm the witch that requires the sneaky smoking (not just cigarette) pts keep doors open with all visitations also.

How's this for a visitor getting in the way? We recently had a quad who was intubated. If he had a mucous plug that we couldn't get to, his sats would drop and his heart rate would go to the 30's, then 20's...

His girlfriend (who he lives with, who has actually resuscitated him in the past) was in the room once when this happened. Whilst 2 RN's on either side of the bed were trying to get him suctioned and get Atropine into him, this girlfriend was actually offended because one nurse asked her to step aside!

She'd been right at the bedside, trying to coax the patient awake, like she was trying to talk him out of a heart rate of 30...

Geez...

Specializes in Renal; NICU.

This customer satisfaction is getting out of hand...The loaded labor room is something else! I work NICU and we attend the high-risk deliveries. One morning at 0200, the RT and I stepped into room for a thick mec and the room was absolutely full! As I stood at the warmer waiting for the little darling's arrival, I whispered to the RT, "When the baby gets here, there will be 24 people in this room!"

This 20-something couple had their SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS in there and more in the hall. One of the women was holding a 2 week-old newborn. As the mom-to-be started to push, they started having a regular prayer meeting! Now, I am a Pentecostal Christian, but the Amens and Praise-the-Lords were even a little much for me!

Hadn't they ever heard of a telephone prayer chain, for Pete's sake???

The thought of that one still stuns me to today...

hey guys..all the postings are right. i work nites in a small icu, and i love it when i get"so and so let me in" and the best all around is "dad/mom/grandma/dad won't sleep unless i'm with her/him"- my next response is..well i'm so sorry i'm not her and i'll be sure to let her know how well you liked her nursing care,

and she'll be just fine,you'll be in the waiting room,RIGHT!!?? i'm really not all b***h--i'm the first to break a visiting rule when it's needed,but jeeze-WE need a break from all the families too!! thanks for the venting time!! :-)

Our visiting hours are over at 8pm. If the pt is in a private room, we really don't enforce the rule. However I do enforce it if the pt is in a semi-private. I can't believe that family members actually think that they can stay overnight in a room with two pts. How would you like to have total strangers in your room while you are sleeping. I work 12 hours 7am-7pm. I tell visitors before I leave that visiting hours are over at 8pm. I cannot tell you how many times I have come in the next morning to see a visitor sleeping in a chair with pillow and blanket. How rude. And they use the pt bathroom--GROSS! I also feel that pt phones should be somehow shutdown at say 2200. How would you like to roommates with someone on the phone all night?

Specializes in Telemetry, Case Management.

Our pt phones are turned off at nine thirty to incoming calls. But they can call out all they want.

Thank you for all the posts. At least now I know I am not the only one with the problem. I work in one of the trauma centers in Los Angeles, California. I can personally relate to EVERY one of the visitor issues presented. I have been a nurse 27 years. I have seriously considered changing professions because of the rudeness of the visitors and the lack of support from administration.

Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
Originally posted by OBNurseShelley

you think YOU got visiting problems, try working in L&D, for those patients delivering their first baby, they tend to call EVERYONE at the sign of the FIRST contraction and before you know it, uncle bob, cousin joe, their dog, aunt edna, baby jane, and 6-7 close friends are asking for MORE CHAIRS to watch the show! IT"S F***ing ridiculous, these ppl have no manners and no common courtesy, and when asked to leave, are very offended, It's one of MY BIGGEST PET PEEVES, and I have no quams at all about sending ppl to the waiting room and calling a supervisor/security if they don't cooperate, I once ran smack into a visitor because I ran out of the room to get something and their ear was plastered up against the door while the patient was pushing! AS YOU CAN SEE this is a touchy subject for me! I wish we were locked down with only 2 visitors per room, would make my life easier!!!

Yep it's the spectator sport of the 21st century. I hate it and it never gets better. The obnoxious visitors are what make my job difficult; not the patients, docs or their closest loved ones. THEY ALL FEEL ENTITLED to WATCH, and RAID OUR KITCHEN. IT makes me nuts. OB is by far the WORST area for visitor problems cause these women are by and large healthy so restrictions on visitors and hours are few.

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