to the nurses: did I do something wrong as a NA??

[chariot]

Today was my 4th day of training as a NA. I'm in the float pool, but they train you at a specific floor for 2 weeks. Today was day 4. Today during training, my manager from the float pool calls me at the floor where I'm training at and told me that she got so many compliments about me, how I was doing a great job and even from the floor manager. Then about 30 minutes later something happened. A patient called her call bell. I went in right away. She said she was in pain so I let her nurse know right away. The nurse says okay and I tell the patient I let the nurse know. The patient rings her call bell about 15 minutes later. The nursing assistant that was training me went into the room because I was putting in information into the computer. The patient tells the NA that she was in pain. When the NA came out, I told the NA that I let the nurse know already. The patient gets really mad because she thought I was telling HER that I already told that patient the nurse knew already. She then complains to the floor manager saying how I said it was rude. I told the manager what happened.

I got very upset. I never heard that I was rude. I'm always polite, quiet, reserved. The nursing assistant said the patient had depression because someone in her family died yesterday, She was asking for clonopine(?) and she was having pain. The NA said I shouldn't take things personally because I will face these often. I am sensitive and sometimes I wonder if nursing is really for me....Did I do something wrong here??

[uRNmyway, ASN, RN]

Not really. I think the patient just took it personally because of her issues. However, it is best to have any kind of communication between professionals away from the patient in my opinion, unless you actually want to involve the patient. They can misunderstand the medical jargon pretty quickly and get upset/offended/hurt, wtv.

Did your nurse manager think you did something wrong after explaining the situation? Did you explain yourself to the patient? Sometimes it is best to let some time pass before you approach the person. It gives them time to calm down and gain some perspective. For all you know, she realized on her own that she misunderstood and over-reacted!

Lastly, I will agree with your colleague. If you burst into tears every time a patient yells at you, tells you they hate you, ask for another nurse because you are terrible, etc, then you will not last. I dont mean for this to be harsh, but it is the truth. You are on the forefront of the healthcare field. You see people on a daily basis when they are at their most vulnerable. Sometimes, they are upset and confused, and you are just the first person they see. Sometimes, they want to control you to get what they want. And sometimes, they are just plain old mean people. Toughen up, and stop taking it seriously! :heartbeat

[PunkBenRN]

You mean Klonopin? Not for pain, but for anxiety. Anyway, nothing wrong. You can't make everyone happy all the time, best you can do is your best. Don't take it personally, you acted appropriately, and your NM will likely take the situation with a grain of salt.

Walk away with this lesson; careful what you say in earshot of a patient, they tend to pick up just about everything

[agrayRN, MSN, APRN, NP]

You didn't do anything wrong. Sometimes when people are depressed and anxious about something, they act a little bit irrational. They tend to lash out at those around them. I do agree that you will face these situations in nursing, but a lot of times, the anger they are demonstrating isn't really directed toward you at all. The anxiety the patient was feeling caused her to act according to her emotions instead of rational thought. I know I am definitely guilty of this sometimes, too (my poor husband). But you will learn how to identify these situations. It all comes with time. :) I think that if you truly care about people, nursing is still for you. I am also a highly sensitive person (polite, quiet, and reserved like you), and when patients act angrily toward me, I have learned not to take it personally most of the time. You will still have that occasional time where you feel offended, but it gets better and better as you go along. :) Hope this helps!