In the new Good Housekeeping...

UM Review RN, ASN, RN · Oct 21, 2005

They are doing a big articles on healthcare hints, etc. But this one was a bit out of line...
From Dr. Michael Roizen of the Cleveland Clinic...
"In the hospital, designate a friend or relative to ask questions or complain. That way, you won't be viewed as a "problem patient" which can often mean less attention from the staff"
Hello dude, ever heard of HIPPA? Or a PITA family that can mean people will avoid your room even more? Ugh.
I liked this one too...it doesn't say who suggested it...
"The first person you meet at the ER is the triage nurse, who decides how quickly you need to be seen. No matter when your problem actually started, never say more than 4 hours ago, it will seem less pressing (but tell the doctor exactly when symptoms began)."
Man, who writes this stuff???
Have a response...email [email protected] I believe I will!

First of all, I do have a family member stay overnight with me in the hospital. They're not there to ask questions or cause trouble, they're there to help me with things I cannot do and also (yes, flame away!) keep me safe, comforted, and pain-free when I am too ill to advocate for myself.

I think that is a good thing, by and large, and does promote healing in most people.

As for the 4-hour symptom lie, I would never do that. I do hope it wasn't a medical professional who recommended doing that, because it's just plain stupid as well as potentially dangerous to lie about your symptoms. Imagine, if you will, the patient who comes to the ER with a bad cough, and says it just started 4 hours ago, when the truth is, the patient's had the cough for over 2 weeks and it has persisted despite a round of antibiotics. Kinda changes things, doesn't it.

The long and short of it is, if the patient doesn't prove trustworthy with their reporting of symptoms, they're also regarded as unreliable with everything else.

SouthernLPN2RN, MSN, RN, APRN, NP · Oct 21, 2005

I just wish that article had said bring your own maid. The symptom lie thing gets me too. What if someone has had rectal bleeding for a week decides to lie and say it's only been 4 hrs?

SouthernLPN2RN, MSN, RN, APRN, NP · Oct 21, 2005

Angie, you oughta send that post to them in an email!

Nella · Oct 21, 2005

The article should have said designate a friend or family member to be the one to ask questions, and then inform the rest of the family. It's been my experience that it was very helpful to keep 1 family member informs of pt's status, instead of having to speak w numerous family members and going over the same information upteen times.

The 4 hour time frame is just awful. I cannot believe someone, let alone a doctor, told people to say that. There is a reason for the triage process. If it's based on lies, it screws the whole idea. What a dufus.

BittyBabyGrower, MSN, RN · Oct 21, 2005

Angie...exactly...when you have a family member stay with you it is to provide comfort, not to chase down the staff with a million questions and complaints. First off, I know where I work, we can NOT give any info out to anyone but the patient if that person is able to hear and understand what is being said, otherwise we are in violation of HIPPA. They can designate one person, who has to be documented in the chart to be the recipient of updates, etc. The only exception to this is peds/NICU, only parents, no one else.

The ER one really :angryfire that is totally unthinkable!

LydiaNN · Oct 21, 2005

I just sent them an e-mail expressing my "shock and alarm" at the suggestion that anyone lie about symptoms to a healthcare provider and spelled out several negative outcomes that might result from their little suggestion. Will be interesting to see what/if I hear back.

SmilingBluEyes · Oct 21, 2005

Typical of such magazines. Without a thought as to the consequences for their medical care (or that of OTHERS who may be more acute) they make suggestions like this. And as if we don't have enough work dealing with pitbull-like family members asking inappropriate questions, they advocate this???

YES every patient should have family and friends in his/her corner. But there is a line they need not cross....this article encourages over-the-line behavior, and I agree, a letter/note needs to be sent. Consider me another one who will rebut this politely.

nurse4theplanet, RN · Oct 21, 2005

Since when does GoodHousekeeping Magazine start thinking they have the authortity to distribute faulty medical advice? A letter to the editor and a call to Fox News seems quite appropriate....Millions of people, especially the elderly who are already paranoid about their quality of care, read this magazine and deserve APPROPRIATE AND SAFE ADVICE:madface:

meta4 · Oct 21, 2005

In regards to having a family member of friend present to act as your advocate and helper during your hospital stay, I think this is a necessity as sad as that may seem. I base this opinion on my extensive and international travel nursing experience as well as personal experience. An advocate can assist with bathing, linen changing, turning, oral care, ambulation, going to the bathroom, passing the kleenex etc etc. Of course there are times when this is not appropriate however I think that if the family member communicates with the RN and checks to see if these activities are ok for them to help with then this can only be a win win situation. Also in some places the care is so substandard that the only way a pt is bathed etc is if a family member does it.

For example my husband had a big abd surgery for cancer a few months ago and I had to stay around the clock because the nursing care was sooooo poor. Although I didn't plan to , I ended up doing everything for him. Despite being pleasant and helpful and checking with each shift to see if it was ok with them if I ambulated him etc.( so that the nurses wouldn't feel that I was treading into their territory) the care was still horrid. The one time I left him for 5 hours to go home and see our babies I checked in with the charge nurse to let her know that I was leaving for a few hours (the floor nurse was busy) and politely drew her attention to the fact that his output far exceeded his input (numbers provided) and that he had not made any urine for past 3.5 hours and had no iv fluids running(I was also doing all the I's and o's because if i didn't things would overflow) and sugested that perhaps she could call the intern and perhaps consider some IVF's. Five hours later I call my husband to and find out that he is so dehydrated that he almost passed out reaching for the telephone on the bedside table while lying in bed! No one had been in to see him the entire time I was gone and no one had acted upon my earlier communication with the charge nurse. This is just one example of the truly shoddy nursing care at this particular teaching hospital. I shudder to think what would have happened during this stay had I not been there.

tridil2000, MSN, RN · Oct 21, 2005

They are doing a big articles on healthcare hints, etc. But this one was a bit out of line...
From Dr. Michael Roizen of the Cleveland Clinic...
"In the hospital, designate a friend or relative to ask questions or complain. That way, you won't be viewed as a "problem patient" which can often mean less attention from the staff"
Hello dude, ever heard of HIPPA? Or a PITA family that can mean people will avoid your room even more? Ugh.
I liked this one too...it doesn't say who suggested it...
"The first person you meet at the ER is the triage nurse, who decides how quickly you need to be seen. No matter when your problem actually started, never say more than 4 hours ago, it will seem less pressing (but tell the doctor exactly when symptoms began)."
Man, who writes this stuff???
Have a response...email [email protected] I believe I will!

can you please provide the month of the magazine it was in, and perhaps the page this was on. as an er rn i plan on writing to them. i plan on using all the little letters after my name when i do too! hehe!as far as hippa, i had a personal problem with it. my grandmother, who was not from this country, had her 1 son take care of her affairs. she did not even live with him. when the rest of us (and we're a huge family....about 25 others!) would come in to visit, no one would tell us a thing. however, my uncle wouldn't know what was going on and refused to tell us anything.... including my father, and my grandmother's other children! then HIS WIFE took over (not a relative) and told us all that she was now in charge of our grandmother's care bc my uncle was so sick over the whole thing he couldn't cope. now my father and my aunt (grandmother's OWN children) were pisssed! it got very, very ugly. my grandmother couldn't tell you what hippa was from a hole in the wall. she would never want some of her children not knowing how she was doing. she DID NOT say or approve such a thing. however, my uncle's wife went in there and acted like she owned the place. scared the life out of half the staff.i called for a meeting with administration over the situation. which by the way, i was shrugged off. i sat in the chair and told them i wasn't leaving until i spoke with the don. she soon arrived with social work etc. the entire situations was addressed and my uncle's wife was put in her place. i told them i wanted their staff to be inserviced on hippa once again or i was calling the case in.just bc a family member says they're in charge does not make it so. the patient is always in charge if they are able to say what they want.... and we should ask them.... 'your son is asking about your condition, is it all right that i tell him?'

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Oct 22, 2005

"The first person you meet at the ER is the triage nurse, who decides how quickly you need to be seen. No matter when your problem actually started, never say more than 4 hours ago, it will seem less pressing (but tell the doctor exactly when symptoms began)."

Great, encouraging people to lie. It's hard enough trying to drag the truth out of people without articles like this.