Pet Peeves

Nurses General Nursing

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What is your pet peeve? With everything a nurse has to deal with in a day, the one thing that gets on my nerves is someone who takes the garbage bag out of the can but doesn't replace the liner. It makes me psycho. How bizarre is that?

I hate orders on the MAR that are faded and barely legible. PLEASE print in bold letters if you cannot type. Also I don't like trying to guess if it's 8 p or 8 a. Preventing med errors is everybody's responsibility. :)

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So did you allow him to keep his urinal on his side table? What do you do in that case. Do you just take it away and say it's not proper and sanitary?

I'm with you on that one!!! Last time I worked my alert and oriented patient insisted his urinal stay on his side table. Yikes when I first walked into his room I saw his breakfast next to it was his urinal. I explained why I wanted to move his urinal but he insisted the urinal stay on the table.

The man was one of the nicest patients I've ever had but every time I entered the room....I'd see that urinal and cringe!!!!

I have pet peeves but too many to list!!!!

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Changing the time on the MAR. The last time I administered the med was..for example 0600. Someone writes a new time in and it looks like it's been given at that time for the whole time. Should have been rewritten.

I have always been accustomed to Yellow highlighter as the "DC" med on the MAR. This new place I work at uses all different colors for all different things. It doesn't help me cut to the chase when I am in a rush.

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A nurse that gives a rectal suppository to a patient who was to be checked for an impaction and tells you in report "I could feel the stool right there" and did not try to remove the impaction. BTW this same patient had gastrografin study that same day and was left for night shift with liquid stool running off the bed onto the floor. Day nurse was aware, because a lab tech came to the desk and told us, while we were in report with this same nurse....

:angryfire :angryfire :angryfire :angryfire :angryfire :angryfire :angryfire

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Specializes in floor to ICU.
When you hear your IV pump ringing just as you come on shift, and you go into the room, only to find it sucking air. When you go to put a new bag up, it still thought there was at least 200+cc left in the old bag.

Why do they do it? It doesnt take a rocket scientist to hang a new bag and punch in 1000 volume to be delivered!!!!!!!! :devil:

oh yea- hate that. I punch "900ml" in after a new bag is hung, gives you a little warning that your bag is getting low

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Specializes in floor to ICU.

How about this, in report I was told that my patient probably needs a social services consult because his fingernails are full of feces. Hello? Did the nurse clean or attempt to clean the fingernails- NO! I got a newborn kit from pedi- you know the little bowls with the baby wash and head scrubbers and I scrubbed away.

Also a pet peeve of mine is nurse managers who think they are "helping" by taking report for you from the ER/PACU/ICU nurses. Hmmm, let's see, thanks but it wasn't the actual 2 minutes of WRITING down the report that I don't have time for. You see, now, they will bring the patient up and at this time I don't have time to CARE for them.

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I hate orders on the MAR that are faded and barely legible. PLEASE print in bold letters if you cannot type. Also I don't like trying to guess if it's 8 p or 8 a. Preventing med errors is everybody's responsibility. :)

We use military time :)

So, 8:00 vs 2000.

steph

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It really bothers me when staff wear their name badges on the swivel lanyards - and it's always flipped around backwards, so I have NO idea who they are. Also patients/visitors are in the same boat of wondering just who these people are.

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A nurse that gives a rectal suppository to a patient who was to be checked for an impaction and tells you in report "I could feel the stool right there" and did not try to remove the impaction. BTW this same patient had gastrografin study that same day and was left for night shift with liquid stool running off the bed onto the floor. Day nurse was aware, because a lab tech came to the desk and told us, while we were in report with this same nurse....

:angryfire :angryfire :angryfire :angryfire :angryfire :angryfire :angryfire

This has happened to me more than once. Like I'm the one obligated to be on $h*t patrol.

Another thing, when nurses before you want to save time on the continuos feeding PEG tube pt's so they crush the meds and pour them in the bag getting the tubing nice and clogged and you get to change the whole thing out.

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Specializes in Med-Surg.
I work for doctor ..... example: pt is waiting to be called into a exam room...let's say pt has been waiting awhile.....I call pt...walk him/her to exam room...and THEN THEY ASK TO GO TO THE BATHROOM!!!

That really irks me!!!

UGH!

Annor(QUOTE)

I know what you mean, but....

I had a long wait in the waiting room recently, used the rest room there while I waited. The wait went on and on. I found out they called for me while I was in the restroom and decided I wasn't in the office anymore and went on tho the next patients. Hello??? I signed in and filled out all the papers.

From now on I'm "holding" until I'm called for.!

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Orientation on days or evenings when you are hired for straight nights. I recently started a new position within the organization. I have been straight nights for many years and continuing on the same in my new position. Problem : I kept documenting my military time as if I were on nocs. 1300=0100. I had to redo lots of charts when I realized it.

We use military time :)

So, 8:00 vs 2000.

steph

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Specializes in ACNP-BC.

How about when you have had a crazy busy evening & it is nearly 30 min past the end of your shift but you stayed a bit longer anyhow to help tie up loose ends & you tell this to the nurse coming on, but she STILL says to you at 30 min past the end of your shift "Oh, so the doctor never called you back when you paged her? Well, can you stay here & follow up with that because I don't know the patient who asked you to call her doctor about her bladder fullness." ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Sure, I'll just stay all night long at the hospital even though I keep paging the one doctor who is covering all these surgical patients at this late hour. All the incoming nurse had to do was relay the message from my patient who wanted to have the doc come check her out! Geez! It turns out (I'm new, so I found out about this later) the nurses I work with think this doc is nasty, so no one is really eager to talk to her. Well, too bad! Nursing is a 24 hour job & I already stayed waaaaaaaaaaay past my shift helping out-so deal with it! Sorry I went off... :) It just ticks me off cuz it is not my fault my pt. is fine the whole shift & then at 10:55 PM she complains her bladder is full & can the doc check her out (she had nephrostomy tubes out in & they were draining fine-but she said she started to feel her bladder was still full or she had pain-she wasn;'t sure which, so could the doc please come see her) anyhow-at the VERY end of my shift my pt. complained of this, so I paged the doc twice while still finishing up other stuff & by the time I gave report it was so late & the incoming nurse is all *itchy! I just hate how another nurse knows how rough your night was & how hard you worked non-stop trying to get everything done & yet she (or he) still has this attitude with you like, well why wasn't THIS done? Augh!!!!

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