Patients & Pet Peeves

[SisterofMary]

I am a nurse of 2 years and a recent hire on a acute medical/surgical floor.

I'm learning so much, which is great. However, it also feels like a whirlwind.

Does anyone have any pet peeves - behaviors that patient's have that make you frustrated?

However, I so dislike when patient's who are A & O curse in conversation. Or if they openly belch when I am nearby them or speaking to them. Thankfully, these are only minor incidents. Of course I always mask my inner thoughts and treat the patient with all due respect.

Anyone have any pet peeves? How do you deal with the situations or do you just let it go?

[goodgirl319]

A lot...but how about this:

Frequent flyers who know how to take advantage of the system.

Amen!

[goodgirl319]

How about children and grown adults getting on a neighboring clean bed for another patient. It is one thing for them to be on it (dirty) but to put their feet with tennis shoes on it?

Children unsupervised running down the hall.

*I need to write a book and call it the nurse venting book.

[Nunya, BSN]

On hold for awhile? Most lay people don't know all our duties and what's not ours to do. I think many ask for whom they trust. That's a compliment. Just educate, no need to punish them.

Do you really think most people don't know that a midwife doesn't schedule appts, that her desk staff does it? Because every other doctor does their own scheduling right? C'mon....

[Nurse SMS, MSN, RN]

Oh yeah!

Husbands from those tribal countries where women are not allowed to speak or ask questions ,everything has to go thru him.

Women in veils refusing to take off the gloves to wash their hands,yet carry the latest expensive cell phone,and wearing bright red fredericks of hollywood push up bras under that cloak.

Parents who shop for answers from everyone.

Patients that complain about the water pitcher,the mirror .

Patients who ask where are you from and expect you be an interpreter even though they speak perfect English.

Parents who scream when they see child is sporting a new IV site.

Inconsiderate selfish parents who wake a sick sleeping child and yell at you:it is my child and I can do whatever I want!"

Stinky women ,unwashed hair,bad breath even when they have private room and shower.

Visitors with pants hanging down exposing underwear and expect to sit on nurses chairs.

Doctors who do not wash or change from job to job

Only stinking women? Stinky men are okay?

[ljconnolly8]

Thank you for pointing that out. My mother has advanced dementia and her caregivers can't seen to get that her behavior is part of the disease.

[kclady]

No, you do not have a right to record a conversation between two other people, without their knowledge or consent but in most US states a person has the legal right to record a conversation between themself and someone else whether or not the other person knows they're being recorded. Of COURSE you can't just go around a unit making videos of other patients. That would be an invasion of their privacy and a breech of confidentiality if anyone else saw the video.

[kclady]

I used to have a neighbor who did that. She has Asperger's Syndrome.

[Sour Lemon]

I used to have a neighbor who did that. She has Asperger's Syndrome.

If you hit the quote button before you respond, people will know what you're responding to.

[Lady_Leijing, BSN]

I had the husband of a patient that took a shower in the patient bathroom, which wasn't a huge deal for the postpartum unit I worked on at the time. The problem was that he came out wearing only the towel wrapped around his hips while I was doing the patient's assessment; that towel barely covered his butt and didn't meet at his hip. He was one wrong move from revealing everything, and I had the hardest time keeping a straight face.

[RN-dancer]

I could rant about peeves for days

I'm an ed nurse so here's my peeves

1. Too many damn family members in the room or too many rotating visitors.

2. People who abuse ems services ex mild rash, stubbed toe, sprained ankle then family shows up immediately after ems....

3.parents who dont medicate their children then you give them tylenol or motrin then they bi*** and say I could have given that at home or is that all your gonna give her for her fever??

4.parents who are on the phone instead of consoling their children, or having half dressed children with no shoes or shirts

5.patients who cuss, talk too much or try to flirt

6.patients who are so sick that they need the remote blanket snacks and pillow 5s after you triage them

7.patients who dont know their meds but are a&o independent but IQ of 3

8.family who is so overly concerned for their loved one buy wont do anything for them or come pick up their loved one

9.patients who

10.families who make a huge scene after a death for example pt expires during a code daughter runs thru the triage knocking people over screaming at the nurses station demanding to see the deceased and know what the cause of death when foul play has yet to be ruled out. Needless to say she was escorted away by security. Another one was a son wanting to see his mother and I insisted that I cannot allow that until the physician has discussed their impression of cause of death and he cussed me out.

11.man babies

12.patients who of age and have their mummy and daddy tend to them like their 2 it's disgusting grow the hell up

13.when patients cant talk for themselves when their totally capable and even worse when you tell the family they can speak for themselves and you need to hear it from their mouth they get an attitude

14.the patient or family with a md degree from Google university

15.the patient who changes their chief compliant when the doctor comes in.

16.the patient who tries to get their freak on in the hospital

17.the pateint who ask to go for smoke. Like no jerk you in afib chf possible pe....jeez c'mon

18.do the full work up find an abnormal result and patient signs out ama...seriously....

18.the ladies who bring all their 8 kids with them and they need a pelvic exam....

19.the patient whos lover had an STDs and they wanna see if they have it immediately after finding out...health Department

20.the home hcg test and the patient wants the er doc to confirm it so she can show her baby daddy...home test just as accurate.

Being a nurse has opened up my eyes on how dumb and shi*** people really are. How cruel the world is and how their is no hope for humanity. Yet I still love coming to work everyday.

[K9lover, ASN, RN]

I don't object to the minor stuff but when patients threw out racial epithets I put my foot down and told them they could hold all the unkind attitudes they wished but they were not going to call whoever they hated racial/ethnic slurs around me. I told them I have the right not to hear that crap.

[K9lover, ASN, RN]

Amen! When I discovered a whole world of non-bedside nursing I ran not looking back. My only regret was not doing it sooner...