Horrible Visitor Behavior!! Help!!

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Hey guys. I had the most horrendous night last night. Unfortunately, we have 24 visiting hours (that's a whole other topic!). I have this patient who always has at least 2 visitors, and they are always very needy and pushy. Well last night around midnight, one of them asked if they could get some soda. Now, this visitor was a male probably no older than 25. I told him where the nearest machine was. He replied, "Isn't that your job to get me that?!! :angryfire" I told him no, I was here for my 8 pts to look after.

Well, about an hour later the call light for that room came on. I went in and the patient needed help to the bathroom and the rude visitor was saying goodbye..he was leaving. Right as he was leaving he said, "thanks for nothing" towards me and tossed his *full* cup of soda in the trashcan near where I was standing, and all the soda splashed on me and was running down my scrub bottoms. He saw what happened, burst out laughing, and left the room. I was infuriated! I felt like doing something, but I didn't know what to do. It's not really a crime or anything, but Im trying to think if i should get this visitor banned from the floor. Any suggestions?:confused:

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Yep - needs to be reported. Sorry this happened to you.

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I'm sure if you had called the police they might say it was assault. What a scumbag!

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.

I would have told him to hurry on out because I would be calling security after getting covered with soda. Behavior like that is not tolerated at my hospital. I had one patient, GSW to the head, family member (male) wanted to come up to the unit with no shirt on because he had a new tattoo and his shirt was bothering it. Security said to put a shirt on or no go. He complied.

I'm sorry that happened to you. Some people have no common sense or respect for other people.

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.

Next time you have a visitor like that say "If it's for the patient, I'll be more than happy to provide the patient with a soda otherwise there's a soda machine around the corner. Is there anything else I can do for you because I need to go care for my other sick patients."

I can't believe the patient didn't say anything in your defense. People like that infuriate me. No I don't have time to address your needs. You are not a patient. I have other patients who need their needs addressed. Do you want me to care for you or the patients?

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Report it. And next time call security. That's unacceptable.

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Specializes in School Nursing.

sorry you had such a crappy night. that guy needs and real "attitude adjustment" !! :argue: hope these kinds of shifts are few and far between for you. oh...and don't hesitate to call security whenever you have these kinds of butt-heads !!

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Specializes in Maternal - Child Health.

Even though he was leaving, it was not too late to call security. They could have met him at the door and informed him that he was not allowed to return. I would encourage you to file an incident report as well. Does your facility have a list (and/or photos) of visitors who are not allowed to return?

I don't believe that filing a police report is over the top. I doubt that anything would come of it, but it would send a clear message to this jerk that his behavior will not be tolerated.

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.

Whenever you have a visitor who displays this behavior make sure you let your charge nurse and/or manager know. I would also document it in an incident report and notify security who can then tell the visitor this behavior is not tolerated.

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Specializes in Maternal/Child, Med/Surg, Psych.

You mean that caring for your sick/dying pts is more important than being a good waitress...silly nurse. :banghead:

Really people like that make me think evil thoughts :devil: must go channel happy thoughts now.

And they wonder why there is a nursing shortage.

:saint::saint::saint:

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We also have 24 hr visitation, however after 8 pm visitors must enter through security. Security calls the visitor to the floor to give us a heads up. We are allowed to refuse visitors if they are in a double, unless they can visit in solarium. We can also refuse disrupted visitors. I would inform my manager of visitors behavior, she can talk to the patient and tell them that disruptive visitors will not be allowed . I to have frequently been asked to get food for visitors. If it's the wife or husband of a patient whos been there all day, I don't mind, infact if we have extra meal trays I will offer one to them. But some families take advantage, I had one women who grandchildren helped themselves to ice cream every night. I don't think its the nursing staff responsibility to be on fthe food police. We had locks on the kitchen door, but those were removed (deemed not patient friendly). Now management constantly complains were over our food budjet.

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Specializes in FNP, Peds, Epilepsy, Mgt., Occ. Ed.

That's just horrible.

I'm sure people get tired of hearing about "back in the day" but, when I started in nursing, 25 years ago, as an LPN on the floor, this would never have happened.

I honestly don't recall a patient's visitor ever asking for food, beverages, etc., or otherwise behaving as if the staff was there to look after them and not the patients.

Of course, we had set visiting hours, and even the patient's room phones were turned off after a certain time in the evening.

What happened? Is it the change in "customer service" focus in facilities, a change in our culture ("it's all about me, me, me") or what?

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