Man Diff...

Sorry you're on that end of it. I see it happen all the time. Me - I'm looking for the person that can help me the quickest and don't care what gender they are.

The only thing I really hate is that, even as a student they will pick me, who isn't mr buff by any means, to go lift a patient, when there are 2-3 women standing around doing nothing except talking about american idol. It just seems like team lifting has gone out the window when a man is on the floor.

why dont you just vent your frustrations? I know if that happened to me slowly i would get more and more annoyed until i snapped

but i guess thats me,

as i moved just about every pt in this 12 bed CCU unit twice this shift, i am looking to vent about a man diff. i say 3 dollars more an hour would be sufficient. it seems every time i sit down to do some charting i get called into a room to help move a pt! they could easily call another female but "theres that strapping young male he will help". any others agree?

You need to learn to set boundaries. Tell them that you are busy with charting and that they need to get someone else to help them with the lift. It is not your job to be the lift team.

Unfortunately, I can't say that this will change any time soon. The (elderly) patients will usually request you to move them up in bed, etc. because they are accustomed to the male being the one who should do the physical labor.

Your co-workers will ask you just because. I don't mind it, really.

Years ago, before I'd started nursing school, my job was a combination of pt transport and housekeeping--sort of an all-purpose slave. One evening I helped a nice lol reposition herself so she was more comfortable. Next night, she had transfered to our sister unit--same floor, other wing--and when she needed moved in bed she asked the nurse to "please call Mike--he's trained for this." The nurse didn't find it quite as amusing as I did. In truth, though, I had had a lot of OJT getting people into and out of bed, turning pts with total hips and spinal Fx and whatnot.

I still get called a lot for lifting help. But I work on a unit that works well together, so I don't have to beg when I need something. If it ever got to be too one-way, I agree that a person would just have to set some boundaries.

i agree with everything said and im quite sure we will never get a "Man Diff" but i needed to vent a little. im totally down to help those in need but lik previously said it sucks when theres 3 female nurses shooting the breeze and here i am behind b/c ll i freaking do is lift pt's. hahaha! oh well!

I too thought this was a male version of C Diff. I do feel for you, man, but I think we are all in this boat together. No matter the position, the "men" are the one's who have historically been the ones to do the physical labor. Just think of it as a way to continue the theory of evolution for the human species. I simply look at it as this, "The pts need a skill performed, and if I am the one who is accepting/willing to do it, then they will see the true side of me...the one I went into nursing for (compassion)." I know that this is a tad bit of a stretch, and we all are unhappy to perform certain skills at certain times, but these are necessary skills that must be done.

how about when your back gives up on you? alot nurses complain about back pain, with their own patient load, if ur taking on other RNs loads, how long can ur back last?

I remember one winter break from college working at Sam's and being chosen over and over to leave the ladies at the registers and go push carts in the snow.... strange how none of the females had to do that... and we were all getting paid the same...

That's what we get for having _______s.

:cheers:

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Very True!