patient satisfaction

Mr. Grumpy · Oct 10, 2006

I work at one of the wealthier ED's in the nation a.k.a. (spa). I really can't stand all of the pt. satisfaction B.S. that occurs. I tend to treat people as I want to be treated until.... they start acting, become dramatic, or whine for things like pillow fluffing,etc. Then, I throw the crap they dish out right back at them. Usually, they stop very quickly. I really love it when they threaten me with harm or give verbal assaults. I just become one big walking smile. This really enrages people. Then, they do something stupid and can't retract. A good example is when a pt. complained about taking 30 seconds longer to get a CT. When I went to assist him out of the tube and back to the stretcher, he swung a fist at me witnessed by about three others. Preventing a fall, I grabbed him by the neck and gently placed him on the stretcher. I smiled and reminded him that I was only trying to help him and that he needed to try to help himself to prevent worsening of his problems. Upon return to the trauma bay, he snapped and took another swing. This time he was intubated in about 2 minutes, preventing yet another fall and aspiration (BAC was 387). He spent the next eight hours sobering up in the ICU. Never got a complaint, actually got a thank you letter from his spouse.

However, my curiosity is: Would admin care about satisfaction if the ED was full of non-paying, freq. flyers, or homeless folks? I would have to say that it would be weighted as much as nurse satisfaction at my ED. :madface:

erdaynurse · Oct 10, 2006

Patient Satisfaction? In the ER? Are they for real??!! In our ER, we house psych patients for 3-4 DAYS before they are accepted/transported to psych facilities! In our ER, the majority of our patients are F.F.s looking for the blessed release from narcs that our docs CONTINUALLY give. In our ER, we have a large percentage of non-English speaking clientele and a primarily English-as-the-only-language staff (myself included). We are also in the midst of construction on a new ER, which is limiting our patient parking area and our bed space. I have learned that the really sick patients (the ones who really need the ER) do not complain, fuss, fight, argue, call names, spit, kick, or otherwise abuse you - the ones that cause all the problems are the minor complaints or frequent complainers who are the ones that cause the wait times to increase! We have patient reps, warm blankets, TVs in most rooms (God forbid you put a patient into a room WITHOUT the TV!!), and our goal is to check on/re-vital patients every hour (either nurse, tech, or patient rep.). We have a galley and provide food and drink to family and friends. We order breakfast, lunch, and dinner trays from our hospital's "room service" (not kidding here!!) for patients. We clean vomit, feces, dirt, and questionable material from patients. We start IVs (which, from the patients' point of view, apparently any Tom, Dick, or Harry can start an IV) and provide access to life-saving medications and fluids. Yet we are continually physically and verbally abused. I do love being an ER nurse (seriously) but I think patient satisfaction in the ER is an unrealistic goal. If anyone has any other ideas, please let me know!!

ShelleyERgirl, LPN · Oct 10, 2006

The new thing at our ER is "CIA"
Call the patient by name.
Introduce yourself.
Ask if there is anything else you can do before you leave the room.
Actually, the hospital I work at now is not as bad as my previous employer. They were so "customer service" crazy that I was expecting them to require us to all gather around and clap and sing like TGIFridays.
~Happy Laceration...we're sure glad you've come.....
sorry about that skinned up knee and
your busted bum~

OMG, you actually made me laugh so hard I had root beer just come out of my nose! Not a pleasant sensation! :lol2:

Jennifer, RN · Oct 11, 2006

Patient Satisfaction? In the ER? Are they for real??!! In our ER, we house psych patients for 3-4 DAYS before they are accepted/transported to psych facilities! In our ER, the majority of our patients are F.F.s looking for the blessed release from narcs that our docs CONTINUALLY give. In our ER, we have a large percentage of non-English speaking clientele and a primarily English-as-the-only-language staff (myself included). We are also in the midst of construction on a new ER, which is limiting our patient parking area and our bed space. I have learned that the really sick patients (the ones who really need the ER) do not complain, fuss, fight, argue, call names, spit, kick, or otherwise abuse you - the ones that cause all the problems are the minor complaints or frequent complainers who are the ones that cause the wait times to increase! We have patient reps, warm blankets, TVs in most rooms (God forbid you put a patient into a room WITHOUT the TV!!), and our goal is to check on/re-vital patients every hour (either nurse, tech, or patient rep.). We have a galley and provide food and drink to family and friends. We order breakfast, lunch, and dinner trays from our hospital's "room service" (not kidding here!!) for patients. We clean vomit, feces, dirt, and questionable material from patients. We start IVs (which, from the patients' point of view, apparently any Tom, Dick, or Harry can start an IV) and provide access to life-saving medications and fluids. Yet we are continually physically and verbally abused. I do love being an ER nurse (seriously) but I think patient satisfaction in the ER is an unrealistic goal. If anyone has any other ideas, please let me know!!

Completely agree!!! When I first started in the ER, my preceptor saw my "ambassador pins", which stands for pt recogniton, and she told me to never expect to get another one in the ER. Totally understand after being there a year.

teeituptom, BSN, RN · Oct 13, 2006

Key components to pt satisfaction

give everyone Dilaudid

Give everyone excuses for work and scholl they love that

give them all sandwiches and stickis

have a TV and Telephone available for all of them

let their 20 to 30 visitors all back at the same time

give them more dilaudid

give them more coffee and sandwiches

allow them to go outside for smoking even after they have gotten 4 mgs of Dilaudid IV,

give them more blankets

smile smile smile smile

give them more dilaudid

erdaynurse · Oct 16, 2006

Key components to pt satisfaction
give everyone Dilaudid
Give everyone excuses for work and scholl they love that
give them all sandwiches and stickis
have a TV and Telephone available for all of them
let their 20 to 30 visitors all back at the same time
give them more dilaudid
give them more coffee and sandwiches
allow them to go outside for smoking even after they have gotten 4 mgs of Dilaudid IV,
give them more blankets
smile smile smile smile
give them more dilaudid

OMG!! I had to stop and giggle a little bit! This is too true!!!

Jennifer, RN · Oct 16, 2006

Don't forget to give more dilaudid!!!

BSNtobe2009 · Oct 16, 2006

OMG...there is an Urgent care center that I specifically go to constantly b/c they have TV in all of the rooms. This is especially helpful with a cranky kid. They also have a couple of cartoon DVD's in case you can't find it on TV for the kiddies.

I tell them every time I go, that is the BEST idea that anyone has come up with.

I wouldn't mind the ER waits so much if the chairs were not so incredibly uncomfortable and there were ways for people to lay down that are nauseated or darkened areas for migraines.

DMFAUST · Oct 16, 2006

We Have A Pt Liason That Sits In The Er Waiting Room And Keeps Everyone Happy -it Works Great

hogan4736, BSN, RN · Oct 16, 2006

This is so funny that you ask. Just today, had a 20ish woman come in with a new "pain". Recognized her, so pulled up some of her last charts to put in with today's chart for the doctor. On each of the last 3 visits, the final dx by the doctor included a concern about drug seeking ... 2 of the 3 she left AMA as soon as getting her drugs. Well, the doc gave me the order to give her a generous dose of dilaudid ... asked if he had read the old records ... "Yup...but I don't want to screw up my patient satisfaction scores, so narcs it is!" (And yes, she slipped out of the room and left as soon as she got dosed up!):angryfire

I actually worked w/ a doc that called himself a "customer service agent"

all who wanted got narcs

if you had a virus but wanted ABX, you got them

Altra, BSN, RN · Oct 16, 2006

OMG...there is an Urgent care center that I specifically go to constantly b/c they have TV in all of the rooms. This is especially helpful with a cranky kid. They also have a couple of cartoon DVD's in case you can't find it on TV for the kiddies.
I tell them every time I go, that is the BEST idea that anyone has come up with.
I wouldn't mind the ER waits so much if the chairs were not so incredibly uncomfortable and there were ways for people to lay down that are nauseated or darkened areas for migraines.

I have to ask ... what is it that necessitates "constant" visits to Urgent Care? Do you not have a pediatrician?

The comfort measures ... ... not gonna go there.

erdaynurse · Oct 16, 2006

I actually worked w/ a doc that called himself a "customer service agent"
all who wanted got narcs
if you had a virus but wanted ABX, you got them

This just goes to show how far off track the healthcare profession has gotten from actually treating sick and injured patients with appropriate treatments and how the so-called patients of today call all the shots...literally. It's sad when patient satisfaction is more important than patient treatment. Of course, it all comes down to the $$$. But, ever notice how those who complain the loudest when they don't get what they want still keep coming back???