New Nurse In TEARS...

racing-mom4, BSN, RN · Jan 9, 2009

My adivice as simple as it is ---go to bed and get some sleep and I swear you will feel better once your fully rested.

The Dr should not have yelled at you for the Na drop. She didnt drink her water and you know that---I have had pts with a lot lower Na than 126!!

The daughter was mad in general and you were her target, you did what was right.

As long as you do your best every night and do what is right for your patients--let them yell, soon it will not get to you as bad as it is getting to you now.

Go get some rest!!!

Kyrshamarks, BSN, RN · Jan 9, 2009

The daughter cannot sue you nor can the man. There was no damage done to the man and that is a requirement of malpractice.

also next time a doc starts to yell at you either tell him or her to stop it, that you will not be talked to like a child or just walk away from them. Do not tolerate that. You do not work for the doc.

classicdame, MSN, EdD · Jan 9, 2009

Sorry you got the brunt of this. I bet the family has aggravated the MD so much that he finally took it out on you. Take a deep breath, and just continue to do a good job. Remember, accepting verbal abuse is NOT in your job description.

RN1982 · Jan 9, 2009

Yeah, they can't sue over having to stay another night in the hospital. It's their choice. They either stay or they go AMA and have to deal with the insurance company possibly not paying for the entire stay. You are new. You will learn in a short time to stand up for yourself. Next time, a doc yells at you for something as stupid as a pitcher in a patient's room say "You have no right to raise your voice to me like that." and walk away.

Now go to bed and get some sleep.

JB2007, ASN, RN · Jan 9, 2009

The daughter cannot sue you nor can the man. There was no damage done to the man and that is a requirement of malpractice.
also next time a doc starts to yell at you either tell him or her to stop it, that you will not be talked to like a child or just walk away from them. Do not tolerate that. You do not work for the doc.

I totally agree with this post. The doctor felt like being a jerk at that moment and you was the target.

There are just days that you have to tell yourself nobody died or was hurt by what I did or did not do, so that is good enough. You will forget things because you are human. It does not sound like your patient was hurt, so try not to let it happen again.

BlueBug · Jan 9, 2009

I agree with the above posts. Getting some rest should help alot. When other people freak out like the patient's daughter and the doctor did, it usually has very little to do with you and alot to do with something else the person cannot deal with. When yelled at like that by a doctor stay calm and tell them that when they can handle themselves in a professional manner you would be more than willing to discuss the patient's care, and then leave the area if the bad behavior doesn't stop. You are not there to be abused by doctors.

Get yourself some insurance regardless of what happened today... it is fairly cheap and covers YOUR butt. Not having it is NOT WORTH IT!! You also need to have it before anything bad happens as it will not cover what happened before you had the insurance. (you cannot wreck your car, go get insurance a few days later, and then expect the insurance to fix your wrecked car... ).

Hope you feel better soon, and that things improve for you. Make sure that you document problems like you were having with the leads staying on, and everything that you did to fix the problem. If it means that you write a little blurp in the nursing notes every 1/2 hour because the leads will not stay on, then do it because it shows that the problem was being addressed and what steps you took to try to fix it. Anyone can pull the file and see that you were addressing the problems with the leads, and not ignoring them. They can accuse you of what ever they want, but you have documented that you were providing adequate care and trying to resolve the problem.

~BlueBug

NightNurse0711 · Jan 9, 2009

thanks for all the responses...i feel better knowing that i cannot be sued since no harm was done...that is a total load lifted

Rascal1 · Jan 9, 2009

I absolutely agree that you need some good sleep. Then you can gain a better perspective on the events that have upset you. Stay open to learning and you'll feel better about yourself.

huntryss · Jan 9, 2009

Document everything! If you are unsure than write your nurses note. If it were me, I would write a brief blurb each time I went in his room and had to mess with the leads. In LTC, at my facility, we are told to CYA in all circumstances. Sure it is additional work but it may well be worth it in the long run! malpractice insurance? I got mine befoe I even went on a job search! Hope I never have to use it but I feel a lot better knowing it is there!

meandragonbrett · Jan 9, 2009

Ignore the physician. After a while you will feel confident enough to call the physician out on their yelling. There is ZERO reason to yell at another human for this kind of stuff. I have physicians get ugly and raise their voice with me....I simply turn around and walk away or I hang up the phone.

There will always be that patient that complains about you or the family member who requests not to have you or complains about you. Most often that not it occurs secondary to loss of control. They feel that this is something they can control. Nothing unusual for the charge nurse or manager to let you know that so and so's father doesn't want you back because of xxxxx. It's generally nothing to even worry about.

Flare, ASN, BSN · Jan 9, 2009

You'll get used to bratty patients - and even brattier families - threatening to sue you over things that you actually have no control over. I was once threated by a patient who had been discharged, but was upset that I couldn't get in there right away to give them their discharge instructions because another one of my patients was coding.