Least Favorite Things Patients Say

Nurses Relations

Published

What are some of your least favorite things that you hear from your pts? Of course we are all nurses to help people, but some responses from pts make for an instant eye roll. My least favorite thing is when pts ask to take their morning medications when they "wake up". I work nights, and I hear that ALL the time. This is one of the few times that I can be firm with a pt, especially if they are on something like vanco and need specific blood levels or I will usually just tell them that I can come back in 15-20 min, and if they don't want it at that time then I will "pass it to day shift" which usually means it won't get done. (Not knocking day shift. It just happens that day shift wont pass meds for a couple of hours after report and the med might be do again. So they just ask me to document against it./say they refused it.)

There are plenty of instances where the pt gets to make decisions like when they take their meds, but I'm not staying late to pass meds because a pt not wanting to wake up at 0630.

Codey looking patient: "I'm just not feeling right..."

Specializes in Public Health, TB.

"Can you have the doctor come back, I forgot to tell him something." No ma'am, she's got a bazillion other folks to see, and 4 nurses and 2 consultants trying to speak with her. You're lucky you got as much time as you did.

Anything whispered.

Specializes in Hospital medicine; NP precepting; staff education.
Anything whispered.

/whispers in Acute's ear

What do they whisper? :nailbiting:

"What is his/ her weight today?"

....asked of the critically ill, intubated, barely-hanging-onto-life baby with 20 drips, tubes everywhere, on HFOV and NO, who has coded 10 times in the last hour.

Specializes in Urgent Care, Oncology.

Me: Do you have any chronic medical conditions?

Pt: No.

Me: Do you take any medications on a daily basis?

Pt: Simvastatin, Metformin, Losartan, Amlodipene

Me: So why do you take all those medications for?

Pt: Oh, I HAD diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure but I take medications for those issues so now I don't have them anymore.

*Head, desk*

Pt: Can I get a note for a week off work? (Pt. has minor cold)

*eye roll*

Me: So you're here for a drug screen today?

Pt: Yes, but I just peed 5 minutes ago in the waiting room. I can't go now. (Pt. waited 6 minutes in waiting room.)

*sigh*

Me: So what brings you in today?

Pt: I'm sick.

Me: Can you be more specific?

Pt: I don't know, I'm just sick.

Me: What are your symptoms?

Pt: I have a cold.

Me:......

What do they whisper? :nailbiting:

You have to stop what you're doing, walk over to their bed and lean in real close and it's usually something like, "is it raining outside?"

Specializes in PACU, pre/postoperative, ortho.

"You only get one stick!"

"Anesthesia always has to start my IVs."

"I'm allergic to morphine, codeine etc. It makes me puke."

Me: Do you have a DNR?

Pt/family: Yes, you should have a copy.

Me: We have a Living Will...

Pt: Yep that's it!

Me: So you don't have a DNR.

Pt: Yes it is written in that Living Will form, no CPR.

SMH

Specializes in Urgent Care, Oncology.

I had a pt. the other day that said he had to be stuck 14 times the last time somebody drew blood. I got him on the first try. :)

Specializes in Urgent Care, Oncology.

Oh, another one:

Pt: My mom's cousin is allergic to Penicillin so I'm allergic to Penicillin too. :sarcastic:

Specializes in Hospital medicine; NP precepting; staff education.

I get annoyed when I ask height and weight and they specifically only give me one but not the other AND if they give it to me backwards. It messes up my quick charting flow.

+ Add a Comment