Patients Rights vs. overly demanding patients

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Where do you draw the line? I had a very demanding patient who would sit at the nurse's station and holler out that he wanted his BP taken while I was scrambling to get all the fingersticks done. This patient wanted constant attention. The Social Worker told me- "Residents Rights- if he wants his BP taken every hour you must do it". You can imagine how upset I became. Where do you draw the line?

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Angela Mac said:
Where do you draw the line? I had a very demanding patient who would sit at the nurse's station and holler out that he wanted his BP taken while I was scrambling to get all the fingersticks done. This patient wanted constant attention. The Social Worker told me- "Residents Rights- if he wants his BP taken every hour you must do it". You can imagine how upset I became. Where do you draw the line?

Good grief. That social worker is way off base and I would tell her that. Patient wants are not the same as patient needs. Who tells these people that its our job to give people everything they want???

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Specializes in Hemodialysis, Home Health.
mattsmom81 said:
Good grief. That social worker is way off base and I would tell her that. Patient wants are not the same as patient needs. Who tells these people that its our job to give people everything they want???

Isn't that a song? Good ol' Stones song? :D

I used to sing that to my kids, anytime they started whining with the "I wants"... :chuckle

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The social worker is stupid. If the resident said he wanted you to have sex with him would you have to? No. You have to provide basic nursing care consistent with the guidelines of your facility. PERIOD. Plus, you can't compromise the care you give to other residents just to satisfy one demanding person, that would be negligent.

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that's alot of bunk what the social worker told you. plus the pts bill of rights should be hanging up where it can be prominently displayed. you should read it so you have a frame of reference on what a pt. does have a right to. having their butt kissed isn't one of them.

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Thank you all so very much. I knew it was ridiculous, but, unfortuneatly, I quit my job because of that social worker. There was a "to do list" for all the private pay patients, while the others were cared for as needed. I hated leaving the staff & patients that I really loved, but I could no longer perform like a circus clown. I felt underappreciated and used. Something good did come out of this- I was inspired to write a novel about working in a nursing home.......bless your hearts.......

I don't want to sound like I am whining, but I do regret resigning, I loved the patients. I live in a rural small town, everyone here went to school together & stick together like glue. So you can imagine what goes on in a facility when the administrative staff is a goup of "girlfriends".

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Having worked both sides of the fence I understand both points of view. But fergus 51 is right. You have priorities as a nurse and a major part of your job is knowing what they are and acting on them. I didn't understand that until becoming a nurse. I am always butting heads with social services, but I tell them I am in charge of my unit, thus I am responsible for those residents and my license.

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Angela Mac said:
There was a "to do list" for all the private pay patients, while the others were cared for as needed.

Now this is a patients rights issue. There are federal laws that state specifically that the care received should be the same for all regardless of method of payment.

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, educator.

Should have handed the SW the BP cuff and told her go to town sister. ? You have to get your regular work done before you do any extras, that is the bottom line.

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Specializes in ICU, PICC Nurse, Nursing Supervisor.

Tell that social worker to mind her own buisness. You the nurse are responsible for care and in charge of the unit. If there is no crisis going on with that patient there is no way I would take his BP every hour. You have plenty other things to be doing . This patient probley has alzheimers and cant remember that indeed you have taken it. Good luck

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Angela Mac said:
There was a "to do list" for all the private pay patients, while the others were cared for as needed.

Now this is a patients rights issue. There are federal laws that state specifically that the care received should be the same for all regardless of method of payment.

I know and it disgusted me. I moved to this area 5 years ago & never have seen such favoritism and dirty politics, so much so, that I got out of nursing for 2 years. I know in my heart leaving was right, but I got attached to so many...

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For a while they used a fruitcake social worker like you described at one facility where I worked as the CASE MANAGER. When she left they did the right thing and used an RN and the new social worker they hired was relgated to partime social work period.

The fruit cake thought it was her duty to "advocate" for every patient. Not a bad thing but she saw nursing as the enemy so to speak. What ever rediciouls thing a patient said or wanted was gold to her and we were all monsters. It was even like she went out of her way to find some "henious crime" we were committing.

Social worker have NO CLUE about nursing or health care and should not pretend they do.

Fortunately for the most part they are great but then there are others....

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