Nurses providing good "service"?

oramar · Jul 14, 2009

Our manager now routinely posts emails in which she reiterates what the "customers" (meaning the patients) are saying about the "service" we provide, and how we can improve it.
Funny, I thought what I was supposed to provide was HEALTHCARE/nursing care to the patient!
If I wanted to provide service, I could go be a waitress in a restaurant somewhere, or perhaps go be a bank teller, or a retail provider.
I'm not even sure that this "service" requires a nursing degree anymore. If I am only judged by how quickly I can answer a call bell, or how great I can "get along" with a patient/client -- then what did I get this BSN for??
It just gets more ridiculous every day.

Your point is well taken. The change from calling patient to customer happened during the last few years. It is not for the best. Interestingly, the former patients, now customers have never been so unhappy.

LPN_2005/RN_10 · Jul 14, 2009

At my facility, the nursing staff gets emails regarding how the pt likes the food, how clean are the bathroom and rooms, how long they had to wait for their medications, no pajamas, ect. Now the nurses are not responsible for the quality of the food-that's dietary problem; the bathroom and rooms are housekeeper's problem, unless it's something that can be tidied up, but mopping and cleaning the toilets should not be included in our list of everyday duties. Pharmacy is responsible for getting the pt's meds to us, if they're late, then we're late. Linen department "runs out" of pajamas and washcloths, ect, so what do nurses supposed to do? So some of the complaints that pt's have regarding our "service" shouldn't be directed only towards the nurses.

KaroSnowQueen, RN · Jul 14, 2009

That is why I got out of bedside nursing. I hope never to return to it. As the OP said, if I wanted to hear about customer service, I'd work at Walmart or Macy's or McDonald's. And you never heard from the happy customers, always the mad, unhappy ones.

RheatherN, ASN, RN, EMT-P · Jul 14, 2009

i understand where 'they' are coming from. but it also doesnt mean that i agree. but i tell ya what, when i got my review and under one part it stated "*role model for exceptional customer satisfaction." that was the best part of my day to read that. i understand how she has to put it, but what it means behind it, is that i am doing my job, and doing it to the best of my ability as a professional registered nurse. i hate that the above poster is getting emails that they are getting comments about pj's; food and all that jazz, that has nothing to do with my part of the job for the most part, i do as much as i can all the time, but i can only do what i can. and you know what, we are not a hotel. and a hotel doesnt provide that mostly!! lol

-frustrations taken!!

-h-rn

PICNICRN, BSN, RN · Jul 14, 2009

Our manager now routinely posts emails in which she reiterates what the "customers" (meaning the patients) are saying about the "service" we provide, and how we can improve it.
Funny, I thought what I was supposed to provide was HEALTHCARE/nursing care to the patient!
If I wanted to provide service, I could go be a waitress in a restaurant somewhere, or perhaps go be a bank teller, or a retail provider.
I'm not even sure that this "service" requires a nursing degree anymore. If I am only judged by how quickly I can answer a call bell, or how great I can "get along" with a patient/client -- then what did I get this BSN for??
It just gets more ridiculous every day.

If only we received tips for our excellent customer service! 10% of a total hospital bill would be pretty sweet- even if we had to split it up with the techs, and unit secs!

mykidzmom · Jul 14, 2009

this subject is such a thorn in my side, i can barely talk about it. it is one thing that sometimes makes me think about leaving nursing. i have spent more time making patients happy than giving them excellent care. oh the stories i could tell. altho i was an RN, i worked with an aide who refused to give a perfectly capable man a complete bed bath when he wanted her to. she was written up and told "the days of encouraging patient independence are over. if he wants a bath--you give him a bath." fortunately for her, but not us, because he was excellent, she had the good sense to quit. at one hospital i worked in, the patients would actually put their meal trays on the floor outside the door for staff to come pick them up. that's safe.

now look what you did--you got me started. i'd love to hear other doozies. yeah--it's a big can o worms you opened.

PICNICRN, BSN, RN · Jul 14, 2009

Yep! I feel more and more like a McDonald's employee every day... we even have to fill out the stupid "hourly rounding" sheet(much like the bathroom cleaning schedule at McDonalds) and our "customers" get a nice little comment card on their pillows. UUUgggg!

RNperdiem, RN · Jul 14, 2009

Corporate jargon is has been infecting the world of medicine for a while now. Epidemics of buzzwords and faddish concepts sweep through our workplaces. I wish we could put our profession in contact isolation from such nonsense, but I fear it is too late.

flightnurse2b, LPN · Jul 14, 2009

i am so sick of hearing about pt satisfaction and to treat patients as the customers and blah blah blah.

since when did nurse equate to maid and waitress. i am not working at the holiday inn. my patients are very sick and i am not there to provide them with "customer service", i am there to provide them with nursing care.

most recently, our dietary staff has now had to change uniforms into black and white tuxedos and they have upgraded the trays to fancy schmancy ones and also new plates and cups. how many extra nurses could that pay for???

i fully well understand that patients are the reason why i have a roof over my head, but i became a nurse to care for the sick and encourage them to return to their level of previous wellbeing.... not to have to cater to rediculous requests....

neatnurse30 · Jul 14, 2009

I think most of the hospitals now are so psyched on the "custmer service", it really is crazy. I'm really thinking to get out of bedside nursing because this will only get worse. People are so rude nowadays it blows my mind sometimes, that they exist, and we have to cater to them like servants. Nursing really doesn't pay much to put up with such conditions.I'm doing nursing part time only, and am thinking about changing careers or getting a "non bedside " nursing position. Enough is enough.

WalkieTalkie, RN · Jul 14, 2009

Sometimes it seems like it doesn't matter if you give good patient care or not. If the patient/family/administration's butts are kissed, and the correct forms and boxes are checked, who cares if someone dies? Yes, seriously, this is how it is at times.

For example, the other night we worked our butts off trying to save a 48-year-old who kept coding. Someone who was restocking the code cart took note that we accidentally left a spiked (but unused) amp of epi in the cart when we closed it up. Keep in mind there is no needle on this syringe. They took their precious time to take a picture of said syringe and sent it to our manager. Instead of a gentle reminder which could have been prefaced with "I know you had a rough night working to save so and so, but could you please remember to take open items off the code cart?"... nope we got a nastygram because apparently it's more important to please someone else in another department than save the patient. *sigh*