what is your overnight policy for family members in a double room?

Nurses General Nursing

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The wife of a patient refused to leave the room and go to the family room. She was on her cell phone, talking to her husband and all lights on in a double room and refused to leave... What would you do?

Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.

I would tell her that out of respect for the other patient, who needs to rest, that she needs to go.

I understand her wanting to be with her husband, but I can also imagine how hard it must be when your roommate's family won't leave.

overnite familymember only allowed if there was not a roomate....

Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

I work in an OB unit, and we have two semi-private rooms. Our policy is no guests overnight if there are two patients in the room. However, depending on who the charge nurse is, if both patients and both guests (usually her partner/spouse) are okay with the arrangement, then we will let them both stay.

Specializes in ICU.

All our med/surg rooms are doubles, and we only allow 1 family member/guest to stay overnight when there are 2 patients IF the family member/guest is of the same sex as the patients, AND if both patients agree.

It's caused some problems, but our hospital is right next to a hotel, and the hotel offers discounts to family members/friends of patients, so we just send them that direction. If there's resistance or the family member/guest is being loud and obnoxious like the woman in your situation, our security guys are more than happy to come and explain the situation and/or escort them out.

I had this kind of situation. Well I was drug into the middle of it. This lady was in the hospital for a few days after being found unconcious. Her condition was serious due to some form of cancer. Her daughter refused to leave the hospital and this was a shared room. She got in verbal arguements with her poor mom and other family members. The daughter has a very distinct... body order issue... that can quickly overcome a room. I tried putting some common sense out there stating that while everyone is very concerned for the lady's health, it would be best for her to just rest and be left alone except for a few hours during the day. The advice wasn't heeded. I always felt so terrible for the roommate to be stuck with some white trash hillbillies (sorry but it is true). I wondered why the nurses let this go on, but no one ever kicked them out. I would have!

We ask them politely to leave. Then we call security.

A floor nurse notifies the nursing supervisor and lets them deal with a situation where visitors are not compliant with the nurses requests. You need to have a basic idea of your hospital's over night policy, but even then the over night policy can be, or should, be somewhat flexible. Let the "management" deal with this, that is why they get the big bucks.

Thanks for the replies. She was not concerned about the roommate, said "there is a curtain". Insisted she stay or "If I dont get a private, we will leave in the morning" Charge RN spoke with her, then let her stay in the room as she was so argumentative, and no one wanted to make waves...I requested not to have this pt back again/

Specializes in LTC.

I'd move the roommate to a private room and then give the cranky pt and family member the most confused ripping of clothes fingerpainting with poop roommate.

Otherwise I agree with others. Have security come up and explain things, if the family member is still being disrespectful of the roommate have security escort them out.

Specializes in Gen Surg, Ortho, Urology, Vascular.

I work on a surgery floor, and we don't have a policy that states whether or not family members can stay overnight- management leaves it up to our discretion. We do have a few private rooms, but the majority of our rooms are wards. It isn't unusual for us to allow family members to stay overnight with a patient- especially if the patient is confused, palliative, anxious, young, or if he/she doesn't speak English. If we know that a patient tends to have a family member to stay overnight (especially if they're palliative or don't speak English) we try our best to get them into a private room. If not, they're generally free to sleep in a chair/the family room if they're quiet and respectful.

In your case, where the family member was being neither quiet nor respectful, I would have done just as the other posters suggested: I would have asked him/her to leave, and if that failed I would have contacted security.

Specializes in Med-Surg, Intermed, Neuro, LTC, Psych.

On intermediate/med-surg floor, visitors cannot stay the night in a double room... period. There are hotels/motels within walking distance that give discounts for patient families, and there are couches in the waiting room. It's disturbing and disrespectful to the roommate... and it's a hospital, not a hotel. Thankfully most of our rooms are private, but we do have several doubles. Private rooms are randomly assigned and they cost extra... if a patient/family requests one, guest services comes up to explain that insurance usually does not pay for private rooms and they will be responsible for the cost.

That being said... if a patient truly warrants a private room (i.e. very sick/dying patient, needs a sitter r/t dementia, etc) they will be moved to a private room as soon as possible. In a private room, guests can stay overnight as long as they are not disruptive.

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