Is there such a thing as a "VIP" patient?

NICUAngel23 · Apr 24, 2005

that's crazy. i do not think that patients should be treated differently due to financial contributions to a hospital. all patients are created equal in my book.... :rolleyes:

galfromnairobi · May 1, 2005

We are expected to give the royal tx to our bariatric pts. apparently they are big money makers for our hospital. they come to our med-surg floor on post op day #2 from the icu. on our floor, thats where the work really begins. the foley has to come out, the pca gotta go, and physical therapy has to begin. last week, one pt reported me to the surgeon stating that they were not getting that fuzzy feeling they received while in the icu.this pt did not like having to get out of bed to use the toilet,or have to ask for prn pain meds.i think if u can use ur hands to use the call light, u can surely put vaseline on ur lips. this pt wanted me to wipe her forehead with a moist cloth q15 minutes and reapply blistex the same. well i taught her how to do this herself and of course how to clean her own behind but she did not like it. she wanted this done for her.she was not limited phisically as far as i could assess, she juz wanted the royal tx. the MD told me to be sensitive to her needs but of course the interpretation of this is to kiss up to her. there are nurses on my floor who will not be assigned this pts because they have said it-they will not fluff and puff. on a med-surg floor with all that goes on,it is impossibe to do this but it seems that nobody but the nurses understand this.it is this types of pts that burn be out.i become resentful and find myself judging em for their current conditions. i know this goes against the very fiber of nursing, but then, on rare occassons, i meet pts who restore my believe in what i do, and evens it out, and that keeps me going.

susannyc · May 1, 2005

"We are expected to give the royal tx to our bariatric pts. apparently they are big money makers for our hospital. they come to our med-surg floor...."

Galfromnairobi:

Where are you located? I'm in NYC, a nurse and a bariatric patient since 2001. Here, bariatric patients do not routinely go to the ICU, they go right to a med-surg unit and are expected to be up and walking within hours of surgery! I had my surgery on a Wed AM, got to my room at about 10PM. By 10:20 PM, there was an RT in my room with a spirometer giving me instructions. I was out of bed by 9 AM the next day, in the bathroom, showering with minimal assistance. My surgeon arrived and said I looked so good that he was going to give me a patient care assignment! Fluff and puff for a bariatric patient? Up and walk is more to the standard of care!

galfromnairobi · May 2, 2005

hi susan, my hospital need to take a lesson from your hospital.like i said,bariatric surgery is the newest thing in my hospital, management believe for word of mouth to get out there,the pts need to feel pampered.we nurses totally disagree with this and like earlier posts suggested, vip tx for one pt means less time with the nurse for another. the nurse manager does not usually make rounds on pts,but when there is a bariatric on the floor, she personally goes to the room and introduces herself.these pts are not put in regular private rooms, they occupy an entire semi private room, we have two designated bariatric rooms, so that means we have two less pts on the floor because two beds are closed. upon discharge, they receive a card signed by everyone who took care of them and a teddy bear. how about that for vip tx?!!we have raised the concerns that,it should'nt just be about downsizing someones stomach, these pts need to be adequately prepared to change their lifestyles and this should be stressed b4 surgery.at times i think it's all about making money and not much care about what happens afterwards to these pts.by the way, i sincerely hope you've been a huge success post ur surgery.

susannyc · May 2, 2005

The nurse manager doesn't usually make rounds? I find that very odd. Every place I ever worked, the NM or "head nurse" in the old days was expected to know every patient on the floor!

As for the bariatric patients, you're right, the surgery is NOT just about downsizing the stomach, it requires major, permanent life changes. This was pounded into my head before my DS in 2001. I was seen in the hospital by the 2 nutritionists affiliated with my surgeon who re-inforced all the pre-op teaching I had been through. I was given multiple packets of info pre-op, and encouraged to do internet research. This is true for bariatric patients in this area today also.

Incidentally, there is a shortage of hospital rooms in NYC, so a patient only gets a private room if the patient requires isolation or is extremely ill or is will to pay the extra $500 or so per day for a private room. That ruled me out--I had a very annoying roomie for the 5 days I was in.

Thanks for asking--I lost well over 100 lbs, and am looking into plastic surgery to get rid of all the loose, droopy skin that is pulling my back and neck out of alignment.

If you're interested in bariatric surgery, I suggest you visit www.obesityhelp.com. You'll find information about all types of bariatric surgery there, as well as what other hospitals consider good post op care. Good luck!

jude11142 · May 4, 2005

I refuse to kiss ANYONE's orifice. What I do for our so-called VIPs is no more and no less than what I do for everyone else........I'm nice to everybody. And since I've never had a single patient complaint, I must be doing something right! :)

I 100% agree with you. I have seen this happen and it makes me sick!! All patients should be treated equally. Yeah, some may need more attention than others but that's something totally different. It upsets me also when a coworker will say "so and so is my best friends mother, make sure she is treated extra nice"..WHAT??? Extra nice?? LOL, I happen to be a nice person first of all, second, I like to think that I treat all of my patients well. We are there to care for them, not to make them like us etc...

If anyone tried to tell me that somebody is VIP and to take extra care with them, I would tell them how I feel. I'm also not going to kiss anyones you know what.

JUDE

sweet4dalejr · Jun 11, 2005

This is how I see it. ALL PTS ARE VIP'S. I treat everyone the same. I had a similiar incident a few years back. I was working on the Cardiac unit and the CEO's daughter was admitted for a stress test. When we were informed that this person was coming to our unit we were told to respond to the call light no matter what as quick as possible. So me being me said " What if I am in a code, what am I supposed to do stop doing CPR,giving meds ect to go give this peron whatever they want, I DONOT think So". Needless to say a situation has arised,but not a code and the "VIP" had to wait to get another blanket.

"EVERY PT SHOULD BE TREATED LIKE THEY ARE ALL VIP'S"

talaxandra · Jun 11, 2005

I work in a large public hospital. Private patients are told very clearly that single rooms (we don't have 'private' rooms) are allocated based primarily on medical need. Should there be nobody who has need of a single room then we would be pleased to allocate it to them, but this is on the understanding that they will be moved out of the room should it be needed for someone else; such a move may occur at any time.

sbic56, BSN, RN · Jun 11, 2005

I have always felt if these Patients are so vital and important then they should be assigned a private nurse and let the hospital pay for it if they choose. But to take away from my other patients because one patient has been labeled "special" is rediculous and IMO unethical.

I like this solution. After all, as the OP said, the hospital wants these people treated as VIP's because there was a monetary kickback to doing so. In that case, hire a private duty nurse and treat it as an investment. Leave the rest of the nurses out of it so they can give great care to everybody else.