Home Health DISASTER!! Venting..

[ICU_RN_BSN]

I love love my clients that I work for in their home...they have a number of kids all who of which are middle-aged and horrible...the family is very wealthy and none of their children have worked a day in their lives....yeah. Mostly, they never came around but tonight 2 of them came from out of town to visit for a few days for the holidays. One is rude and no people skills but has never really ofended me. But if you know home health you know that only the clients are your job to take care of. But this other daughter calls 2 hours prior to arrival and requests spaghetti and meatballs to be served for dinner...keep in mind its not even our job to feed them...only the clients. So I make handmade, homeade meatballs and the whole thing.. Everyone eats and I put away leftovers thinking she can heat up a plate when she gets in. So she comes in and doesn't achnoweledge except to tell me her bags are in the car....I get them. She sits down at the dinner table and asks where her spaghetti is......I said in the fridge..they ate an hour ago.

then she has me reset the table for her and make her plate. Asks for refills on her coke like I am a maid or waitress!!! OMG!! Then as she finished not one word that it was good or thank you....just wow. She walked away from the table and laid on the couch next to it...leaing all her dishes and trash for me. I was like 'sh she serious?!' I dealt with it andf just got through the night...she was so rude...bad ppl skill and it was just horrible. Families will really take advantage at all costs...and my boss says just wait on her hand and foot as she expects you to..its only for a couple days- we need this client....don't get me started on my boss. So if I say no, there goes my job.

[nursel56]

That's pretty bad alright! I am so glad my agency would never put up with that if family members treated us like domestic servants for the family, whether they are home health aides or licensed nurses. I hope you can find an agency that would back you up on their written policies about the limits of our role to the client/patient's needs!!!

[caliotter3]

Strange, but when I have worked in the homes of the wealthy, I have usually found them to be super cool, with one exception. I expect that kind of behavior and am prepared to deal with it to the best of my ability because I know how much my employer values the high rollers. But, the truth be told, it is the bottom of the economic ladder that acts that way and I see way too much of that in hh.

[caliotter3]

Oh, and BTW, miss prissy would not have liked my cooking!

[ctmed]

That is the reason I do not like Home Health...

It is like I have described in previous posts..

They want a CNA, a Waiter, a Chef, a Butler, a Maid, and sometimes a Chauffeur all for the extremely low price of just a CNA.

What is worse is there are no tips... at least when I waited tables, they would break me off a few bucks.

[nursel56]

Oh, and BTW, miss prissy would not have liked my cooking!

haha - or "whoops! What happened to that meatball? I'll just look under th---- whoops! What happened to that plate of pasta? Oh dear! You're wearing a pasta hat! Let me just get that icky sponge from the kitchen. . .the potential mischief is really limitless here. . .lol

[interceptinglight, CNA]

to hs90: Next time she does that, hand her a bill for services rendered and state that you work only for the client. Meanwhile look for a better job from an agency that will back you up and make you feel valued.

[ICU_RN_BSN]

I wish it were only that easy....the problem is this, I have worked for two other HH agencies and they were even worse...and at least with this one its like perfect hours, and I LOVE my clients (without their family members) which is MOST of the time and we get our own bedroom to SLEEP in at night.....so its pretty nice...except for when this stuff happens...I have much to much pride to put up with this. I would rather wipe a patients butt than serve her that dang spaghetti!!! Because it would be my job...

I'm going to make lemonade out of that sour, fat, disgusting lemon (clients daughter :) )and use her as only more motivation to keep pushing through school. Nursing school BSN program starts in Jan...cant wait to be an RN... CNA's are so often the bottom of the food chain.

[caliotter3]

Well, it seems that the good outweighs the bad. Just chalk up the bad as payment in order to get the good. Good luck in nursing school.

[fuzzywuzzy, CNA]

Wow! I'm sorry that happened to you. I got mad just reading about it.

[CNA2day]

EEEK! I could not have put up with that I do not think! I would have told her I was NOT her maid!

[bakpakr]

I currently work HH and when I took the job I made it perfectly clear with my employer that I do not cook, clean the house or other domestic tasks. I will only do what is required of me in the performance of my duties as a CNA. That is not to say I will not absolutely do those things. But that I do not want it to become a habit and expected. I will prepare the occasional meal and other tasks.

I love my clients as well but would not have put up with the families behavior that you did. I would have let them know in no uncertain terms that I am there for the client and not for them. If they have a problem they can call my boss who happens to own the agency I work for and he would have pulled me out and ended the contract. I have seen him do this on several occasions. There is just to much work here and to many agencies available to worry about it. I can get a job in any agency here because I have developed a reputation of providing great care. Word of mouth is great. I have had some of my clients use other agencies and have that agency try to get me hired with them so that I can care for the client again. It is not uncommon for other agencies to call me for positions even though I do not work for them.