So, my colleague and I :), have a patient tonight who has literally, literally I tell you, hit her call light at least every 5-10 minutes. You go in, she wants a drink. She wants her gown straightened up. She can't reach her TV remote.
She wants a light turned on. She wants a light turned off. She wants her blinds closed.
No, she doesn't have anything to help her sleep, but I think my friend is getting ready to call and get her something. ?
Tell me your strategy for dealing with folks like this. (It can be funny or serious)
Someone needs to program one like a PCA pump... it "times out" for a specific period of time and doesn't work again until your allotted time is up no matter how many times you press it!!!
OH YES. Or I've had a few similar ideas: 1) You only get 3 wishes per day, a la Aladdiin's Lamp. Or, 2) It's like Baskin-Robbins used to be - you pick a number, and you have to wait 'til your number is up on the little display overhead until you get served. I used to joke w/my CNA's re: this last idea, with his incessant needs, imagining him holding a little ticket with a number. "Sorry _____, but see? Your number says 37, and we're only on number 16 right now".
We had a FF that would time us and keep notes about how long it took us to respond to her entirely non-critical "need". The majority of the time, she didn't want anything other than to see how long it took. We had the supervisor explain to her that the call light was for issues that require assistance, not to see who could respond the fastest. She was...something...
We had a FF that would time us and keep notes about how long it took us to respond to her entirely non-critical "need". The majority of the time, she didn't want anything other than to see how long it took. We had the supervisor explain to her that the call light was for issues that require assistance, not to see who could respond the fastest. She was...something...
"Something", to put it politely, eh? Reminds me of a resident or two who said something like "I've been waiting an HOUR!" - when I knew it was more like 10 minutes (and we were swamped).
"Something", to put it politely, eh? Reminds me of a resident or two who said something like "I've been waiting an HOUR!" - when I knew it was more like 10 minutes (and we were swamped).
That's one of those times I am thankful for those trackers that we have. At least it shows I was in the room 5000 times, or how long the light actually took to be answered.
I hand them an index card and ask them to write everything they need for the night down and that I'll be back to work on the list in 20 minutes.
Also, if that's an issue, I'll ask if there's anything in particular they're concerned about or if they usually take something at home to help them sleep (because, that sometimes gets missed and it's really important!). I'm told that sometimes people are just anxious and that's why they ride the call light for asinine things. But, some people just think they're in the hospital to be pampered and that's where the list comes in handy.
Anything that is on the IV pump I am constantly keeping my eye out for so I can catch it before the infusion complete alarm starts beeping and wakes them up. No beep beep on night shift!
We had a patient that we had to set clear boundaries for. We said something close to the message above about other patients having needs and did hourly rounding to help minimize the call light. A pain in the ass yes but when they know you will be ther in an hour I think they feel better.
Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
For most hourly rounding helps. I had one individual who was a paraplegic with limited use of the arms. This patient was literally, not even exaggerating, ringing the bell as the door started to close from having been in the room. Requests were things like helping to apply wrinkle cream. Wanting hair done. I talked to her and talked to her about it and she would nod and nod and nod....and then hit the bell on my way out the door. Finally figured out she had SEVERE anxiety about being left alone. Her kids were calling because if we didn't respond immediately she would call them to state she could never get anyone to come help her. My attempts to "get it all done at once" so I could see some other patients resulted in my being in there for 1.5 hours and the bell ringing on my way out the door again because I had to cut her off.....there was literally no end to her needs.
Not unsympathetic but exasperated, I called a family meeting and held it in front of the patient. Explained what she was wanting/needing was a personal care assistant, something we were not staffed to provide. I gave them a list of agencies they could hire one from and suggested if that was not financially possible someone from the family would have to stay, that we would not be able to go in or stay in as long as she would prefer and that we would be sticking to the hourly rounding schedule from there forward. The kids had no idea she was being so demanding. It was a very therapeutic meeting for us and a sobering one for the patient. Had to explain there were people actively dying on this floor and that the kind of time being demanded simply could not and would not be met. She wasn't happy, but she got more time with her kids, which is what she really wanted.
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djh123
1,101 Posts
OH YES. Or I've had a few similar ideas: 1) You only get 3 wishes per day, a la Aladdiin's Lamp. Or, 2) It's like Baskin-Robbins used to be - you pick a number, and you have to wait 'til your number is up on the little display overhead until you get served. I used to joke w/my CNA's re: this last idea, with his incessant needs, imagining him holding a little ticket with a number. "Sorry _____, but see? Your number says 37, and we're only on number 16 right now".