I'm sorry, but I didn't realize I signed up to please the customer. While the nurses go around reminding the patients this is a hospital, not a hotel, we get notices that we SHOULD make these people feel like they're in a hotel. Or "even if you know they're wrong, you should apologize and let them know that they're right" THIS IS AN ACTUAL MEMO THAT APPEARED IN MY MAILBOX.
... oh but it gets worse.
I got tapped on the shoulder by the "hospital customer service rep" telling me this patient (customer) really really wants a milkshake and would really make her day if she could have a milkshake. And I tell this rep this patient just had a bowel resection yesterday and not only can she NOT have a milkshake, but she probably can't even have water, even ice, for the next couple days. I spend all day listening to this patient whine and complain, and now the hospital has provided her a rep to follow me out in the hallway to whine and complain. And neither of them can admit that although a milkshake would make the patient really happy for about 15 mins, going back to surgery and prolonging the recovery would not. I know there's a lot of things in the medical field that seem downright cruel. But if we go by "the customer is always right" keep the patient/customer happy, there will be consequences.
Should customer service be #1 priority? Or am I just being delusional believing that patient safety is more important than patient satisfaction?
I find that to be the case with acute cardiac patients and the little old folks with CHF as well. It's the medical overflow patients and the Med/Surge patients with post surgical A Fib who are probably among the most demanding, ungrateful, and seriously whacko. I've been noticing this pattern, and I'm not sure I understand the roots of it.
My theory is that the majority of acute MI patients are middle aged men, so there is little drama in their lives, and the elderly folks with chronic heart disease have been in and out of the hospital so much, they've learned to roll with the punches in the hospital environment.
Sorry, i work with a few nurses who just blast in to the patient's room, flip on the lights and do what they need to do. I realize that not everybody does this. It's not something i learned in nursing school, but it does make a world of difference.
Sorry, i work with a few nurses who just blast in to the patient's room, flip on the lights and do what they need to do. I realize that not everybody does this. It's not something i learned in nursing school, but it does make a world of difference.
(((((Thank you for your gracious response, Lisa.))))) I had no idea that nursing students were not taught the basics any more. Such a shame that nursing has come to this.
Sure wish we could find a middle ground between backrubs and blasting the lights on and getting the heck out of Dodge. And really, 75% of the time, that middle ground is where my day happens. I just find it SO hard to constantly bend over backwards to please people that are just downright mean, rude and nasty and act that way because they know they will get away with it.
(((((Thank you for your gracious response, Lisa.))))) I had no idea that nursing students were not taught the basics any more. Such a shame that nursing has come to this.
Yikes, I just reread my post, and I have to say it was meant in a far more lighthearted way than it appears! That's one of the problems when we don't have body language, which composes the majority of interpersonal communication.
Anyway, I agree it's a shame if this isn't taught in NS. I have to say, I had excellent instructors that promoted the holistic approach, and while I don't remember this specific topic being addressed, they would have definitely given birth to kittens on the spot had they witnessed such a thing (including my male instructors).
for anyone who cares to read it there is a very timely article in the current issue of ajn on this very topic. i would encourage anyone who has strong feelings to read it.
i would also refer all nurses to the standards and scope of practice for nurses and the code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. these two documents, which were originally begun many years ago and have been revised and honed many times, are the basis by which we all should practice. upon those, i rest my case.
for anyone who cares to read it there is a very timely article in the current issue of ajn on this very topic. i would encourage anyone who has strong feelings to read it.
i would also refer all nurses to the standards and scope of practice for nurses and the code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. these two documents, which were originally begun many years ago and have been revised and honed many times, are the basis by which we all should practice. upon those, i rest my case.
i stopped my subscription to ajn years ago, found it wasnt worth the powder to blow it to hades, for a bedside nurse.
I have not been on this site in several months, but saw a headline in my e-mail that caught my attention and after reading all the posts on this topic, felt compelled to comment. I have been in nursing for over 20 years, so I'm not new to the field. I recall the days of restricted visiting hours, and have worked in almost every area of the hospital. I can honestly say that I am simply appalled by some of the comments I'm reading on here, the sarcasm, the general "meanness" that's coming through from some of the posters. I have to believe that people go into nursing because they actually CARE for people.....what has happened to get your focus away from CARING for your patient, rather than performing TASKS? What I'm reading are statements from several nurses who seem to think that the patient and his/her family members are a hindrance to them being able to perform their tasks....when in reality, the patient AND the family members are the only reason you have a job. And the harsh reality is, they DO have a choice (in most cases) of where to go for their healthcare needs.
Put yourself in their shoes.....would you want to be treated the way it appears that you treat your patients and their loved ones? How would you feel if your family member was in the hospital and you were treated like a visitor at a prison rather than a hospital? Imagine that you're not a nurse and don't have any knowledge of medicine.....perhaps then, those requests wouldn't seem so unreasonable...they simply don't know better, and it's your job as the CAREGIVER to educate them.
It has been proven that patients recover faster when they have a strong support system (a.k.a., family members). A smart nurse would utilize that resource to help in the patient's recovery. Many hospitals have recognized this and even included the family in the healthcare team. For the person who stated "What if the patient codes in the middle of the night and the family is in the way".......look at the other side of that....what if the patient codes, and you just finished your rounds and won't be back in that room for an hour....the family member is the one who will notice something isn't right and alert you. What a shame to not respect this valuable part of the healthcare team.
Bottom line...if you're so miserable being a nurse and dealing with patient and their families, get out of the profession. You're making all the other caring nurses look bad, and hurting your hospital's reputation. When the hospital loses business, cutbacks have to be made....this means layoffs, payroll freezes, and other "drastic" measures. Your bad attitude is costing everyone.
Dawn 470, just wondering if you are a bedside nurse. I have received numerous thanks from family members and patients for my care. However there are many families that do interfere with the care that is given. I feel people should visit when they would like but I have also seen exhausted patients that tell me how tired they are and would like to rest and just as they close their eyse the family member arrives. It does not matter that I tell them their loved one is exhausted, please sit quietly by their side, do they? NO. Next thing I see is that the patient is awake trying to "entertain." Is this every visitor? No, but some people put their needs before the patient. To these type of people the nurse is then just a bad "customer service rep" because she/he is trying to meet the needs of the patient. I love families that will come in and feed or offer mouth care to their loved one when needed but the majority will stand there and watch you feed them or call you to the room every 10 minutes to do it. In this current nursing environment you simply cannot be constantly at the bedside.
Hospital administration also pushes the customer service bit a little too far. We had a very busy ICU last night. When the charge nurse called our administrator on call she was told she was not providing good customer service to that administrator because she was venting her frustrations. What I resist is being told exactly what to say when I answer a call light for example, we are told to say and I quote, "Hello, I just saw your call light on, how may I assist you" "I am pulling this curtain for your privacy." When I take the patient off the bedpan or do some other bodily function task I am supposed to say "My pleasure" each time the patient says thank you. Things can go way to far!
I love the way that (the more difficult) patients and families are all about their "rights" but never seem to follow their "responsibilities". We actually used to have a placard in every patient's room with said "Patient's Rights and Responsibilities". When we remodeled the unit they disappeared. I have a copy from when I took our son to the ED at a hospital in the same system as I work in...
"Patients have the responsibility to...
Accept consequences for the outcomes if they do not follow the care, treatment, and service plan.
Follow the hospital's rules and regulations.
Respect the property, privacy, dignity, and confidentiality of other patients and others in the hospital.
Respect hospital staff and property and help control noise."
Some people, I really wish I could say "I will respect your rights if you will respect your responsibilities."
I just had a shift from Hades and part of it was b/c I had a patient I had to give Fortaz to who had a PCN allergy. The family could not understand, despite my many attempts at education, that prior to giving a medication that could cause a severe allergic reaction, I needed to be sure that the rest of the patients were squared away so that I could have an alloted period of time to dedicate to being at her bedside 1:1 without the likelihood of being pulled away. They called me in there every fifteen minutes to find out when it was going to be hung, even though I had given them an estimated time already. I felt like pulling my hair out and telling them that the less time they wasted by calling me in there over and over again, the sooner I'd be able to get to it. And then they threatened to report me for the delay...so there was more time wasted charting to cover my behind in case the chart got pulled for review.
And then I had the patient who just got diagnosed with metastatic ca and her family who were "please" and "thank you" and "if you don't mind, when you get a chance, there's no hurry". It made me want to cry. Here's this patient and family who by rights should be getting more of my attention, and I can't give it to them b/c I have five crazy family members up my butt for the other patient. You just can't win.
And we have our day charge nurses rounding now to ask the patients if they are getting 5 out of 5 care. And writing on the board in the patient's room what needs to be done to get that 5 out of 5. I can understand the rationale behind this, but when I go into a room and see that a patient has rated us at a 3 b/c their breakfast tray met their diet restrictions or b/c they are on a fluid restriction, it makes me want to bang my head against the nearest wall.
I love the way that (the more difficult) patients and families are all about their "rights" but never seem to follow their "responsibilities". We actually used to have a placard in every patient's room with said "Patient's Rights and Responsibilities". When we remodeled the unit they disappeared. I have a copy from when I took our son to the ED at a hospital in the same system as I work in...
"Patients have the responsibility to...
Accept consequences for the outcomes if they do not follow the care, treatment, and service plan.
Follow the hospital's rules and regulations.
Respect the property, privacy, dignity, and confidentiality of other patients and others in the hospital.
Respect hospital staff and property and help control noise."
Some people, I really wish I could say "I will respect your rights if you will respect your responsibilities."
I just had a shift from Hades and part of it was b/c I had a patient I had to give Fortaz to who had a PCN allergy. The family could not understand, despite my many attempts at education, that prior to giving a medication that could cause a severe allergic reaction, I needed to be sure that the rest of the patients were squared away so that I could have an alloted period of time to dedicate to being at her bedside 1:1 without the likelihood of being pulled away. They called me in there every fifteen minutes to find out when it was going to be hung, even though I had given them an estimated time already. I felt like pulling my hair out and telling them that the less time they wasted by calling me in there over and over again, the sooner I'd be able to get to it. And then they threatened to report me for the delay...so there was more time wasted charting to cover my behind in case the chart got pulled for review.
And then I had the patient who just got diagnosed with metastatic ca and her family who were "please" and "thank you" and "if you don't mind, when you get a chance, there's no hurry". It made me want to cry. Here's this patient and family who by rights should be getting more of my attention, and I can't give it to them b/c I have five crazy family members up my butt for the other patient. You just can't win.
And we have our day charge nurses rounding now to ask the patients if they are getting 5 out of 5 care. And writing on the board in the patient's room what needs to be done to get that 5 out of 5. I can understand the rationale behind this, but when I go into a room and see that a patient has rated us at a 3 b/c their breakfast tray met their diet restrictions or b/c they are on a fluid restriction, it makes me want to bang my head against the nearest wall.
And this is why 90% of people hate nursing, want out of nursing and why in the next generation our entire healthcare system is going to fall like ancient ruins.
i stopped my subscription to ajn years ago, found it wasnt worth the powder to blow it to hades, for a bedside nurse.
it makes me very afraid when a bedside nurse is not interested in finding out about research based nursing care. this is evidence based practice in action. if you don't think it is pertinent, you should contribute something that is.
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Virgo_RN, BSN, RN
3,543 Posts
kilgorern,
I find that to be the case with acute cardiac patients and the little old folks with CHF as well. It's the medical overflow patients and the Med/Surge patients with post surgical A Fib who are probably among the most demanding, ungrateful, and seriously whacko. I've been noticing this pattern, and I'm not sure I understand the roots of it.
My theory is that the majority of acute MI patients are middle aged men, so there is little drama in their lives, and the elderly folks with chronic heart disease have been in and out of the hospital so much, they've learned to roll with the punches in the hospital environment.