"Customer service" and nursing

Nurses Relations

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I've seen a lot of people talk about 'customer service' in a disparaging manner, as if that is not what nursing is about and it's making their lives harder to provide it.

Could someone explain that more for me?

Personally customer service is another way of saying good bedside manner. It doesn't matter what you know if you cannot present it in a way that encourages others to follow you. Many of the things I hear people complaining about for "customer service", could be solved by patient/family education and a less adversarial relationship between staff and family.

What are your thoughts?

I think we need to do everything we can to make our patients happy and comfortable, but we should not do it at the expense of their health or that of our other patients. If I have time to get extra blankets or snacks or whatever, great, but I'm not going to stop chest compressions on one patient to get another patient a cheese sandwich. I've had patients complain over things like not getting enough stickers in the ER, nurses not having change so the family members can buy a soda, and patients not liking the color of the bedspreads. More often than not, I think the nonsense complaints stem from something else...anger, guilt, fear, etc. I have no problem with my manger making me aware of the complaint, but I don't think things like not having change so my patient's boyfriend can buy a soda should not have any bearing on my annual eval.

Understaffing is also a huge issue. When you are the only CNA on the floor for 22 residents and your charge nurse has so many meds and treatments that she cannot help you, something is going to be left undone. If you have 5 stable patients and 1 patient that is crumping, the stable patients may have to wait for their showers and I may not have time to run to the cafeteria to get them a milkshake. Sometimes adding 1 more person to the team could make a huge difference.

Specializes in Med/Surg; Psych; Tele.

And I will go so far as to say....yeah, gonna say it...if getting your coke with ice is going to prevent me from getting to the cafeteria on time before they close, causing me to miss my lunch....NOT GONNA HAPPEN. I cannot think straight on an empty stomach - I just cannot. I shouldn't have to. I shouldn't be expected to run like a maniac for 12+ hours without some kind of nourishment in between. That would not be fair to my other patients...or to me.

Believe it or not, I get a lot of recognition cards from my patients for the great care they feel they've received from me. And I'm pretty sure not one was given because I got their coffee in a timely manner.

I have had family members in ICU.....one survived, one did not. In both cases I wanted the nursing staff to concentrate on the PATIENT, not me. I can look after myself. Just keep me in the loop and treat me politely, but take care of my mom/dad. If I am in the way, tell me and I will get out of it. I will not ask for a glass of water, but I may ask where I can get it from.

Most of the people who complain about nurses not fetching them a soda or not giving them 1/2 of our lunch are not the type that will give any good comments anyway. I've found that most of my positive comments to management come from patients who are really sick and I've done nothing for them other than providing good, competent, and compassionate care. The ones who have nice things to say are usually not the ones who want soda for their boyfriend's 18 month old daughter or fried chicken for an NPO patient.

I work in LTC/Rehab. Last week we had to deal with the very demanding daughter of a new rehab patient. She actually said she did not care about any of the needs of the other 19 patients we were caring for, she only cared about her moms needs and we would meet all of them right then no matter how long it took or how trivial they were. They were sooo rude and nasty. My co-worker says it best, "This isn't Burger King and you don't always get it all your way!" She would never say that to a patient, it just helps to say it after you get screamed at because you cant meet 158 demands right then.;)

Specializes in Telemetry, Case Management.

True customer service story:

I had six patients on a step down unit.

In room with MD removing staples on post op pt. Pt dehisces in front of shocked family onlooking. Running back and forth, getting saline, dressings, hollering for the UC to order cooling blanket, stat IV ABTs, getting stat pain meds, etc, etc, calming family, doing everything that minute to get this pt stable and keep freaking out family from freaking out further. MD freaking out, cursing, hollering.

Pt in next room, their family member stops me in the hall as I am rushing to the unstable pt's side with meds and bandages, "Grandma needs a coke." Told family member as pleasantly as possible, "I am in the middle of an emergency situation with another patient, I will be a while, can you please go to the desk and ask someone else."

I got called to NM's office next day and yes she understood the situation entirely but I still got written up because the Grandma-needs-a-coke person had complained that I told them I was too busy to get Grandma a coke. That was "poor customer service." Told NM I don't have customers, I have patients, the one with her guts lying all over the bed came before grandma and her coke, and he could jolly well have walked his big butt down the hall and got Grandma the coke himself.

Customer service, my eye.

I was on the other side of the bed last month, had kidney surgery. Other than asking for pain meds the first day as often as they could give them to me (and morphine sucks! God only knows why they give it, I hate it!!!) and going to the desk the last day and asking for ice cream (throat hurt d/t being intubated twice), I never asked for a darn thing. I KNEW my nurses woud help me as soon as they could and didn't make a pest of myself.

Customer service is what I expect in Penney's or Sears when I am looking for a green size 18 sweater they advertised in the Sunday paper and can't find it. (Oh here it is in lavendar ma'am, or would you like a rain check?)

Patient care is what I give at work and what I expect while I am in the hospital or in the doctor's office. I expect them to get me better, not find bubble gum for my grandchildren or feed my husband.

Hospital customer service has evolved into meeting EVERY NEED OF EVERYONE WHO VOICES ONE NO MATTER HOW MINOR OR HOW MUCH NEED SOMEONE ELSE HAS WHO REALLY TRULY NEEDS IT. Then we are understaffed and berated on a nearly daily basis when we cannot perform the impossible.

Like I said, customer service, my eye.

psycho-social needs are part of patient care as well....

I'm wondering how so many peds areas do it so well, while adult areas struggle.

That's easy, better staffing. I have 2 patients fewer at my peds job than I did at my adult job. (And we're understaffed now.) Not to mention, a lot of the ADLs I had to do for adults, the parents do. So I've got time for "customer service."

Specializes in Med/Surg; Psych; Tele.
True customer service story:

I had six patients on a step down unit.

In room with MD removing staples on post op pt. Pt dehisces in front of shocked family onlooking. Running back and forth, getting saline, dressings, hollering for the UC to order cooling blanket, stat IV ABTs, getting stat pain meds, etc, etc, calming family, doing everything that minute to get this pt stable and keep freaking out family from freaking out further. MD freaking out, cursing, hollering.

Pt in next room, their family member stops me in the hall as I am rushing to the unstable pt's side with meds and bandages, "Grandma needs a coke." Told family member as pleasantly as possible, "I am in the middle of an emergency situation with another patient, I will be a while, can you please go to the desk and ask someone else."

I got called to NM's office next day and yes she understood the situation entirely but I still got written up because the Grandma-needs-a-coke person had complained that I told them I was too busy to get Grandma a coke. That was "poor customer service." Told NM I don't have customers, I have patients, the one with her guts lying all over the bed came before grandma and her coke, and he could jolly well have walked his big butt down the hall and got Grandma the coke himself.

That made me insanely angry to read that! Once again...idiots confusing HOSPITAL with HOSPITALITY SERVICES. Ya'll, we as nurses have got to band together and somehow get the message of our reality out to the mostly ignorant public! We are not handmaidens or waitresses. We are professionals with immense responsibilities trained to promote patient welfare/recovery. Would these idiots ask the MD to fetch a coke for their grandma? Are patients even offered cokes when they go to the doctor's office?

It just blows me away that these people see us rushing around and then have the audacity to even ask for these little comforts. It's not like we are walking at warp speed just to get back to playing our video game! If they wanna get mad, they need to direct their anger appropriately...to administration for lack of proper staffing.

True customer service story:

I had six patients on a step down unit.

In room with MD removing staples on post op pt. Pt dehisces in front of shocked family onlooking. Running back and forth, getting saline, dressings, hollering for the UC to order cooling blanket, stat IV ABTs, getting stat pain meds, etc, etc, calming family, doing everything that minute to get this pt stable and keep freaking out family from freaking out further. MD freaking out, cursing, hollering.

Pt in next room, their family member stops me in the hall as I am rushing to the unstable pt's side with meds and bandages, "Grandma needs a coke." Told family member as pleasantly as possible, "I am in the middle of an emergency situation with another patient, I will be a while, can you please go to the desk and ask someone else."

I got called to NM's office next day and yes she understood the situation entirely but I still got written up because the Grandma-needs-a-coke person had complained that I told them I was too busy to get Grandma a coke. That was "poor customer service." Told NM I don't have customers, I have patients, the one with her guts lying all over the bed came before grandma and her coke, and he could jolly well have walked his big butt down the hall and got Grandma the coke himself.

Customer service, my eye.

Absolutely inappropriate for nurses to be written up for this kind of trivial nonsense. Your NM should have backed you up:

"I don't think you understood the situation Mr. Grandmaneedsacoke. Karo was attempting to stabilize a patient who's condition became critical, and that was her priority at that time. I'm sure if that was your Grandma who's condition took a turn for the worse, you would certainly expect Karo to make your Grandmother her priority. You certainly wouldn't expect her to get another patient a coke."

What is being effectively communicated is that "wants" are just as important as "needs." Our patients need air to breathe, a beating heart and enough blood volume to adequate supply oxygen to vital organs, nourishment to replenish and rebuild their bodies, education to help them help themselves, etc. They may want a coke or warm soup, but they will not perish nor will it compromise their condition if that want is not met in a timely manner.

What's happening is nurses are using Maslow's hierarchy, management is using Press-Gainey. My customer service comes down to this, I ensure repeat business. My "customers" can't come back if they're dead.

Specializes in nursery, L and D.
What's happening is nurses are using Maslow's hierarchy, management is using Press-Gainey. My customer service comes down to this, I ensure repeat business. My "customers" can't come back if they're dead.

:lol2: :lol2: :lol2: :lol2:

I know you were serious........but this is soooo funny. Its also soooooooooo true!

Specializes in nursery, L and D.

So I have read all the post.......we need more ancillary staff!! Saftey of the pts comes FIRST.......the rest is "extras".......we also need more nurse managers and "higher-ups" to back us up in cases of these stupid complaints. I got truly mad reading about some of the c##pola that you guys were written up for!

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