Non-clinical management telling a Nurse how to be a Nurse

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:angryfireGotta vent!!! I work in an outpatient office setting. Today, while trying to tend to 2-3 pending patient situations, I asked the lady in Medical Records to call a physician's office and ask for a copy of an EKG. Now this EKG had already been interpreted by the physician that did it. AND the NP had ALREADY talked with the physician about the results. The office manager heard my request. She wanted to know WHY I was asking Medical Records to do this. "That is the nurse's job," she said. Now this task requires NO nursing judgement. I ended up calling for the EKG, never once spoke to a healthcare professional. Phone call took 10 minutes. I talked to someone in MEDICAL RECORDS!!! I get so disgusted with those NON-CLINICAL manager types without ANY nursing experience telling me what nurse's job is. I do understand that I need to make these types of calls sometimes, BUT DON'T tell me that only "the nurse" can do it.

Thanks for listening!!

Oh I feel your pain on this topic....

The other day at work I had a pt who projectile vomited all over the bathroom walls and floor, then threw up in the sink, causing it to clog. I got a few towels and quick wiped the floor, then called housekeeping so I could get this poor gal some phenergan. Housekeeping came up, took one look at the place, and told me they could not clean up the vomit because "We can't touch bodily fluids." So here I am scrubbing walls and wiping vomit out of the sink with towels. Your job is housekeeping and you cant clean something up? I just don't get it.

Also I hate dealing with people from other departments that call and say....."The doctor ordered this x-ray/lab draw/ultrasound(or whatever) but he ordered it wrong. Can you change it?" Why can't THEY change it???!!

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Specializes in Ortho, Case Management, blabla.
Oh I feel your pain on this topic....

The other day at work I had a pt who projectile vomited all over the bathroom walls and floor, then threw up in the sink, causing it to clog. I got a few towels and quick wiped the floor, then called housekeeping so I could get this poor gal some phenergan. Housekeeping came up, took one look at the place, and told me they could not clean up the vomit because "We can't touch bodily fluids." So here I am scrubbing walls and wiping vomit out of the sink with towels. Your job is housekeeping and you cant clean something up? I just don't get it.

Amazing they'd say they don't touch body fluids when a patient is in a room but I bet they'd clean up body fluids if the patient had been discharged or it happened in a visitors bathroom? What if a visitor accidentally pees on the visitor's bathroom floor who cleans that up?

When I was a nurse aide I had a housekeeper lead me into a room, and tell me it was my job to clean up a spot of diarrhea on the floor. I looked at her, looked at her cart with bleach, cleaning solutions, etc. I told her, "It is not my job! You're standing right there! You found it!" She said, "Oh yes it is your job!" I looked at her, looked at her mop, looked at the poo, left the room, clocked out, and went home. It was literally the end of my shift and I was 20 minutes late leaving at that point like I'm gonna stay another 10 to clean up poo!!. She cleaned it up, she didn't like it. She wrote me up. I got called on the carpet, I told the DON the situation and that I thought it was dumb that I had to clean it up with no access cleaning supplies (we couldnt have the cleaning stuff around outside this locked closet only the housekeeper had a key to - to keep confused residents from drinking it I guess...some kind of safety thing). That was the last I heard about it, I never got in trouble over it. To be honest, I don't even think it was against the rules what either of us did. Just neither of us wanted to do it, despite the fact that she was the lady with the mop and all I had was a rubber glove and a cheap piece of brown paper towel with water. Sometimes you just have to say enough is enough and put people in their place.

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I love when pharmacy calls and says that I have to come to the pharmacy to get a med instead of them bringing to us like they're supposed to do. They can't bring it to the floor because they're "short staffed." Like they're going to come give the meds to the patients if we're short staffed. If anyone else is short staffed, nurses have to pick up the slack. If nursing is short staffed, we still have to pick up the slack.

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Yep, if nobody else wants to do it, it's the nurse's job. Because we all have to work together. Why "we all have to work together" isn't an excuse to tell a non-nurse to do something, I don't understand. But if I complain about doing a job that could just as easily be done by housekeeping, dietary, respiratory, supply, secretary, anyone that's not a nurse, I get told "We all have to work together to take care of the patient."

The old adage, "If you want something done, give it to a busy person," seems to have been taken to heart by many non-nurse personnel.

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Specializes in ER, Home Health, OR, Mental Health & Psy.

You guys have made me feel a bit better. I just wish that those outside of clinical care could at least TRY to see the other side. And it may be stooping down to a much lower level, but the next time "they" ask me for help with their non-clinical, non-nursing function I may feel like saying "that's not the nurses job." Sad thing is that I have NEVER said those words, because if someone needs help I try my very best to assist. And if I'm going to be doing my job along with their job I think I need to ask for a raise in salary.........hahahaha uh-huh yeah right!!!!

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Specializes in Addictions, Acute Psychiatry.
I love when pharmacy calls and says that I have to come to the pharmacy to get a med instead of them bringing to us like they're supposed to do. They can't bring it to the floor because they're "short staffed." Like they're going to come give the meds to the patients if we're short staffed. If anyone else is short staffed, nurses have to pick up the slack. If nursing is short staffed, we still have to pick up the slack.

The pharmacist who killed a patient who was sentenced was short staffed. They really do run the pharmacies anemic sometimes and couple that with how many units and how many meds only to a couple people?

The best hospitals hired pharmacy runners and volunteers. That system worked out great.

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Specializes in Ortho, Case Management, blabla.

No, the best hospitals installed tube systems.

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Specializes in LTC, Memory loss, PDN.
You guys have made me feel a bit better. I just wish that those outside of clinical care could at least TRY to see the other side. And it may be stooping down to a much lower level, but the next time "they" ask me for help with their non-clinical, non-nursing function I may feel like saying "that's not the nurses job." Sad thing is that I have NEVER said those words, because if someone needs help I try my very best to assist. And if I'm going to be doing my job along with their job I think I need to ask for a raise in salary.........hahahaha uh-huh yeah right!!!!

Don't go changing now. I think most of us are just venting and really don't mind helping where we can. It'd just be nice sometimes if someone would ask, " do you have time", or, "what can I do for you"

Here's the difference between nurses and other staff:

Staff does the best they can to get the job done.

Nurses do whatever it takes to get the job done.

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Specializes in med-surg, psych, ER, school nurse-CRNP.
Oh I feel your pain on this topic....

The other day at work I had a pt who projectile vomited all over the bathroom walls and floor, then threw up in the sink, causing it to clog. I got a few towels and quick wiped the floor, then called housekeeping so I could get this poor gal some phenergan. Housekeeping came up, took one look at the place, and told me they could not clean up the vomit because "We can't touch bodily fluids." So here I am scrubbing walls and wiping vomit out of the sink with towels. Your job is housekeeping and you cant clean something up? I just don't get it. quote]

I had a housekeeper call the desk one time to have the charge nurse send me in to a room she was cleaning. I asked what was going on, because there was no patient in there. Her response? "She needs the speci-pan emptied".

There was a bedpan of urine in the toilet, and all that was required was to tip it and pour out the urine. No touching of fluid needed, and she would not do it. I refused, it was that ridiculous. I never got in trouble, and I never had to put up with that mess again.

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The pharmacist who killed a patient who was sentenced was short staffed. They really do run the pharmacies anemic sometimes and couple that with how many units and how many meds only to a couple people?

The best hospitals hired pharmacy runners and volunteers. That system worked out great.

we collect urgent meds.

have a book to request regaul meds and pharmact orders thesse and are delivered to the ward.

pharmcay techs will auidt pt drug supplies weekly and supply.

we have stock drugs and borrow from other wards stock items and ooh a non narcotic emergency drugs cupboard

on the w/e if a drug is low out of stock porter collect drug cards(kinda like MARs) with a note to request a med and are senmt to pharmacy and deliver the drug about 12.00ish it works well.

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The pharmacist who killed a patient who was sentenced was short staffed. They really do run the pharmacies anemic sometimes and couple that with how many units and how many meds only to a couple people?

This is what I'm talking about! Pharmacy is short-staffed, they then HAVE to be careful, and nursing has to bend over backwards and help pharmacy do pharmacy's job. Which is fine, if I have time, I go to the pharmacy quite often. But when nursing is short, does pharmacy come do nursing's job? DOES ANYONE? Housekeeping, radiology, pharmacy, physical therapy, admissions, ANYONE IN THE HOSPITAL is short, we all have to pitch in. Until it comes to nursing. If nursing is short, well, then nursing just has to do the best they can. It's not just phramacy that's run anemic. It's every department in the hospital, especially nursing. But every department can expect nursing to help them out, because we'll bend over backwards to do whatever it takes to help the patient. But if we're shorthanded, it's either not in their job description or not in their scope of practice or simply just not expected of them to help us out.

Nurses absolutely CANNOT do everything. But as long as we continue to accept being expected to do everything all in the name of "teamwork" we're going to continue being dumped on.

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Specializes in ER, Home Health, OR, Mental Health & Psy.

"Here's the difference between nurses and other staff:

Staff does the best they can to get the job done.

Nurses do whatever it takes to get the job done."

Hallelujah and AMEN!!!! You NAILED it directly on the head!!!!

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