Nurse Interfering with Medical Care, AGAIN!

[JacksonCare]

One my my younger sister's closest friends has a history of heart trouble and had an episode of atrial fib last nite in which the paramedics were called. This morning on her way to work she stopped by her cardiologist's office and was told to come back at 1 pm. When she arrived some nurse told our friend that "she'd looked up her medical records" and that the problem "was not an emergency" and that "she'd put her in for tomorrow". This is just another disgusting, infuriating example of a nurse intruding into a patient's life and blocking access to medical care. My friend never gave permission to the nurse to get into her chart, plus it's not the nurse's right to pass judgment on what qualifies as an emergency. Certainly her young children were traumatized seeing Mom have an episode of atrial fib and an ambulance at their home. Why couldn't that nurse have shown some compassion to our friend and her children and not interfered w her appt? And why did that nurse wait until our friend arrived from work and then spring this news? Why didn't she call immediately so our friend would not have made an unnecessary trip and wasted a vacation day? Us working class folks have a finite number of vacation and sick days, so taking it upon herself to reschedule our friend to tomorrow would have necessitated a second vacation day, scarce for working stiffs like us.

Most of my and my Dad's doctors are in solo or small group practices where secretaries and medical assistants facilitate medical care instead of blocking access. That nurse who read our friend's chart and then took it upon herself to interfere w a sick person seeing the cardiologist is just one of many examples of nurse's lack of respect for patients and their families, especially young children who want Mom to see the doctor ASAP without interference by some nurse.

[Double-Helix, BSN, RN]

You're obviously not a nurse, and don't have knowledge of how things can work behind the scenes at doctor's offices and hospitals. I read through several of your past posts and it seems like you have a vendetta against nurses for some reason.

The nurse in the doctor's office may have looked through the medical records, but she may not have had any knowledge about the ambulance call the night before. She may have just seen that this was a follow up appointment for a known condition and thought it wasn't a priority. It's also possible that the doctor was called away on an emergency and it was up to the nurse to explain to many patients that they have to reschedule. She may not have been able to call everyone in time, or she may not have had your friend's work number. She might have encountered many angry people already that morning and that contributed to her attitude. In most places, nurses don't have the ability to cancel appointments without the doctor's approval.

As offended as you seem to be about this nurse's lack of thought and compassion, you might be well served to take a look at how your own attitude toward her.

Finally, nurses are certainly part of the working class. Our job is not so glamerous that we are removed from that catergory. I'm not sure where your resentment toward nurses comes from, Jackson, and I'm sorry you've had a bad experience, but we are people, just like you.

[sugarmagnoliaRN]

One more thing OP - keep in mind that most nurses have at some point or another, been a patient or have had a loved one with a serious medical issue. Just food for thought...

[ledzepfan]

After seeing some of the posts here, I went back to see how long the OP has been a member to see if this was a "troll" post as some of the posters seemed to be sensing. I looked at the previous posts by the OP and they all seem to be complaints/criticisms of nurses and the healthcare profession in general. In light of this, I would like to amend my previous post and just my:twocents:..... this is a board for nurses, students and allied health professionals(but primarily nurses) to confer, vent and share with each other. Feel free to "lurk" but your condemnation of our profession is not welcome.. at least not by me.

It's not welcome by me either.

Do go away.......for good.

[brandy1017, ASN, RN]

When a family member of mine was struggling with cancer there was an LPN at her doctors office that did the same thing. She thought she was the doctor and would block my attempt to get help for her. Not let us make an appointment, play phone tag and then at the end of the day say try again on Monday. Even flat out refusing to let us speak to the doctor or have him call back, refusing to get a script, telling her to try a home remedy first, then when she was dying, complaining that she didn't have time to get her prescription authorized as they had other patients leaving the family member in tears over her cold-heartedness.

She even went to the same church as my loved one and then had the nerve to come over to her and complain why did she ask for her doctor to help her keep her drivers license as she shouldn't drive. Unbelievable, she was lucky I wasn't there. It was all I could do not to report her to the state board over practicing medicine without a license and a HIPPA violation.

I found the whole thing so unbelievably shocking as I have never had a problem like this before with my doctor. When his nurse also an LPN answers the phone she either has me talk to the doctor or takes a message and he calls back, will get a script for me filled, will let me make an appointment. How can that other LPN get away with making herself the gatekeeper from his patients. It is dangerous, disrespectful and frankly illegal if you ask me.

[DixieRedHead, ASN, RN]

Perhaps the OP should see a gastroenterologist. I think she is suffering from a terminal case of craniorectal inversion that is keeping her from having an insight beyond her nose, which would appear to be located somewhere around the end of her large intestine.

[canesdukegirl, BSN, RN]

Jackson-

I have asked you in a previous thread why you continue to come to this forum. You have stated many times in many different ways how much you abhor nurses.

I also asked if you were a nurse. I received no reply from you. You mentioned in this thread that you were a "working stiff".

Please, I encourage you to think through your posts on this forum. The constant berating of nurses will not garner you any advice, wisdom or empathy.

There are a myriad of policies/procedures that nurses must honor that may seem 'uncaring' to you. The nurse that pulled up your friend's medical record had every right to do so in order to plan your friend's care and inform the cardiologist of her chief complaint. If she deemed your friend's condition non-emergent, then she did what she was supposed to do in re-scheduling your friend's appt for the next day. I am surprised that there was even an opening on such short notice.

Had your friend been in a TRUE emergency, she would never have been able to drive to the doctor's office in the first place, and would have been admitted to the hospital when she was brought in by EMS.

This forum welcomes debate and furthermore welcomes opinions of those not in the medical field. However, your scathing remarks regarding nurses immediately pits you against most of the members here. Have you nothing positive to contribute?

If nurses irritate you to the degree that you have written, kindly post your nurse bashing elsewhere. It serves no purpose here.

[AgentBeast, BSN, RN]

Atrial fibrillation in and of itself is not a life threatening emergency.

[FlyingScot, RN]

Might I make a suggestion to everyone. Go to your "my account". Select "user control panel". Scroll down to "settings" and click on "edit ignore list". Insert name of offensive poster and click OK. It's way better than getting in trouble with the mods for responding angrily to hateful, rude posts from people who don't really have a clue. Also, liberal use of the "report" button on the first post may be in order.

[sirI, MSN, APRN, NP]

Closed for review.