Stupid questions/comments made by doctors!

Nurses General Nursing

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What kind of stupid questions have you been asked by a physician? You know, the kind that just make you want to scream. I had a patient the other day who was having big time mental status changes. I finally convinced the doctor that something wasn't right, and we needed to try to find out why. He ordered some labs. I called him with the results which included a high potassium, a low sodium, and a glucose over 300. The elderly patient had no history of diabetes. The physician called me and was asking me why the patient's glucose was high. Never mind the potassium, he was freaked out over the glucose. He kept asking me why it was high and kept stating that she had no history of diabetes. This doc is oriental, so his English is broken. Anyway, after the third time I said," I have no idea why the glucose is high. You're the doctor, you tell me." I could have just jumped through the phone and slapped him!! Don't you just love it when the docs ask you these kind of questions? :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :confused: :confused:

Specializes in Community, OB, Nursery.

Got a cute little babe in the wellbaby nursery the other night. Mom had gotten 20mg Nubain less than 1hr before delivery. So of course she's screaming and screaming and then CRASH! quits breathing. Stimulate her & she breathes. Cycle repeats a couple more times in the next hour, so I'm on the phone with the NNP....(this is about 0100)

Me: "I'm calling you about baby girl ABC, born at XYZ time, Mom got 20 of Nubain less than an hour before she delivered. Baby has had several episodes of apnea x 30 seconds & subsequent desaturation to low 80s."

NNP: "Ok, so I'm trying to gather what your concern is."

:banghead:

Long story short, a little Narcan worked a big wonder.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.

It doesn't build our profession up, or make me feel about it any better about myself to bash physicians, so i won't.

If on a doctor's thread there was a "Stupid Nurses" thread how would you feel?

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Specializes in Emergency.

If on a doctor's thread there was a "Stupid Nurses" thread how would you feel?

I wouldn't feel bad. There ARE stupid nurses out there - lots of them; along with stupid physicians, lab techs, xray techs, etc. One of the biggest parts of my job is keeping track of stupid people in general. I don't mean that in a mean way, but somebody has to keep an eye on them. ;)

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Specializes in Cardiac Care.
It doesn't build our profession up, or make me feel about it any better about myself to bash physicians, so i won't.

If on a doctor's thread there was a "Stupid Nurses" thread how would you feel?

Ditto, that. To do so clearly creates a we vs. them environment which isn't healthy for anyone. We should be trying to work together; you know, same goals and all...

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Specializes in Community, OB, Nursery.

Plenty of stupid in this world to be evenly spread among all professions, walks of life, socioeconomic strata. Just venting, IMO.

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i went with my bf to see his psychiatrist earlier this year b/c he wasn't doing well and wanted me to give the psychiatrist my view on his behavior/moods. so he/I explain how things are going downhill - he ups his meds, gives some lunesta, and sends him on his merry way. fyi - he's struggling with severe depression at this point.

less than 2 weeks later my bf makes a failed suicide attempt that lands him in ccu for awhile (he's doing much better now though). his psychiatrist comes down b/c he's the resident on the behaviorial health floor in the hospital to do an eval. and i kid you not, the first words out of his mouth:

"What happened - I thought you were doing well?"

:angryfire

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Specializes in home & public health, med-surg, hospice.

Had a doc stop at the nurses' station with his MA (i think they're dating too btw) and tell me that pt X's IV line had infiltrated b/c the IV pump was beeping. The VTBI had just been completed - that's all. BIG, blinking screen even said so!

Oh, but gosh, he got to look soooo smart, letting the nurse know something was going on that she wasn't keeping an eye on...:uhoh3:

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It doesn't build our profession up, or make me feel about it any better about myself to bash physicians, so i won't.

If on a doctor's thread there was a "Stupid Nurses" thread how would you feel?

I'll eat my hat if there's NOT a thread like that out there somewhere.

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Specializes in ICU;CCU;Telemetry;L&D;Hospice;ER/Trauma;.

after my 93 year old patient was wheeled septic into the ICU; and after his doctors (yes...there were five on his case) had sat on his increasingly acute belly for FIVE DAYS, and after the surgeon finally correctly diagnosed him with a perforated colon; and after he was intubated, lined, labbed, and sent to OR.....his primary doctor comes in and says to me:

"is there anything YOU need from me???"

ugh.

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It doesn't build our profession up, or make me feel about it any better about myself to bash physicians, so i won't.

If on a doctor's thread there was a "Stupid Nurses" thread how would you feel?

I think we have posted several different times about stupid mistakes we have made ourselves et mistakes we have seen other nurses make. I laugh at them et post there too!

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Specializes in Corrections, Cardiac, Hospice.

I had a resident write an order to feed the patient. Called him and said, did you not see the swallow study? Patient flunked. He said, well, just feed him anyway and see what happens:uhoh3: Told him I KNOW what will happen, he will aspirate and get pneumonia! I called the Chief and asked him if he would please call his resident and go over swallow studies again, oh and I got the order for NPO.

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Specializes in Neuro, Critical Care.

My pt. is seizing, lucky for me her neurologist was sitting right outside her room! I proceed to knock on the window and tell her that our pt. is seizing. She runs into the room and looks at me and says...uhhh...oh shes having a seizure, what should we do?????

I say..uhhh...ativan?

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