goober

I know I've already made a post on this topic, but have had a strange experience since that I feel like sharing. I currently work in a private rest home for the elderly while I am training to be an RN. For the last 7 months I have been the HCA for my best friends grandmother (Friends is a plural as they are identical twins... the three of us have been very good friends for over 10 years). I had not met my friends grandmother before she became a patient, but we spent alot of time talking about her grand children.. my friends. I formed quite a close relationship with this lady, and she was a wonderful woman. Last Friday night I dreamt in which a young man came to me and said that my friends grandmother would be joining him soon, and thanked me for looking after her. The dream was an incredibly realistic and vivid dream, and I was actually unable to sleep for the rest of the night, thinking about it. I rang work first thing in the morning, and checked to see that this lady was okay. She was apparently fine, and I dismissed my dream as a just that, a dream. I had a second dream on Saturday night, in which the young man told me that I should warn my friends so they could say their good-byes. Again I rang first thing in the morning, and she was fine. At work on Sunday night, I noticed that this lady was not in a good way. She was not active at all ( and had previously required minimal help with her cares) and was lying in bed, breathing in short shallow, very wet breaths. I took her hand and looked into her face. At that moment, I knew that the dreams should not have been dismissed. Before I finished my shift at 9pm, I made a last trip into her room. I felt very strongly that this would be the last time that I saw her, even though I have seen many patients bounce back from being unwell. I again took her hand, and told said my goodbyes. I told her that I was very grateful that she was a part of giving me two of the best friends I am ever likely to have, and that she had made a special impact on me. My friends grandmother passed away at 9.30 that night. I had another dream that night in which the young man and a young woman approached me holding hands. The young man laughed at me and told me I should have listened when he warned me about the ladies passing. The young woman told me that I shouldnt listen to him, and that she was grateful for the company that I gave her in the time in the home, and that she was also grateful that I had helped her grandchildren through difficult periods. She then winked, and said ' your welcome'. I received the phone call to say that she had died the next day, and while going through some old photos with my friends, I discovered a photo of the young couple in my dream... happy and holding hands.

The fact that the woman keeps doing this even though its obvious that it is hurting her child is disturbing. I would have called her bluff, taken her phone and had social services there in a heartbeat.

One of the weirdest things that has happened in my nursing so far ( im still a student) happened on my very first night as an HCA on a med/surg ward, and an elderly gentleman was one of my patients. This man was actually what is called in my country a Kau Matua.. which is like the elder/ head of the family of the indegenous race of people here. A Kau Matua has significant importance to the family and so there were about 20 family members on the ward to see him at any one time. This ward was actually very good for this situation as it had a whanau (family) room for when such events occured. The family was a very loud bunch and after several hours of asking them to keep the noise down I was surprised and a little glad that they went quiet. I checked the Whanau room and noone was there so I went into the room where this client was. The family were all huddled around the bed.. most were silent and one or two were exchanging whispers. I asked if there was a problem... one of the family members asked ' can you see that?' I couldnt see a thing... a few minutes later the elderly gentleman passed away due to a complication that had arisen post surgery. I overhead the family in the whanau room talking about seeing the ancestors of this man coming to collect him.... I thought it was very strange that a whole family of people could recount seeing the same thing... bizarre, but true

Hi guys, My Dad has been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I've done a little bit of net research about it... but what Ive been able to find has been vague and im becoming frustrated by not knowing exactly what the deal is! I'd love any information with regards to exactly what it is, what causes it, prognosis, and not just conventional treatments, but complimentary therapies as well (my Dad is into complementary therapy). Anything would be great goober

Its interesting that you put yourself in the pt's position. in the place of the pt I would agree with you that I wouldnt want my nurse to refuse me anything based on what HE or SHE beleives in

Thank- you!! I was beginning to think I was the only person who thought this!!

I have recently been reading some research on this phenomena. It is actually classed as a type of bullying and apparently is rampant amoung nurses. The research I was reading stated that this is the result of competition within nursing, or if you find you are being hassled or having your work 'nit picked' by supervisors that it is a vertical chain in which the pressure placed from the upper levels of the establishment sifts down and rests on the worker bees! Not fair but does happen... ALOT. Perhaps some way to decrease the competitive nature of the workplace might help... although I would not have any idea on how u would go about this! Good luck...

I agree that our rights are important, but how can you make the call to let your beleifs over ride that of your patients?? If there came a time when u had to choose between your beleifs and that of your clients, what would u do?? Such as the example about the surgeon refusing the blood transfusion?? If in a position like this where your beleifs need to be compromised for the best interests of the client... which would you choose??

Hi guys, I had a very interesting discussion with a work colleague today based on a topic he saw on another forum. It turned into a very heated argument amoungst staff members and so I would be interested to see what anyone else thinks. The question posed was: 'Could a health professional refuse to treat a patient?' The answer to this was of course: yes a health professional does have that right.. especially in cases where treatment options can be unsafe for the nurse or the client. However.... could a health professional refuse to treat on the basis of religious or cultural beleifs?? For example.. lets say a catholic pharmacist refuses to fill a prescription for an oral contraceptive based on the fact that this is against the pharmacist's beleifs?? The pharmacist has the right to refuse.. but by doing so is he infringing on the cultural beleifs of the client?? Or should he deny his own beleifs between the hours of nine to five to appease others?? Or another example: a surgeon in an emergency department refusing to give a patient a blood transfusion due to the surgeons religious beleifs?? My workplace was split in two by this argument. On one hand some people think that the right to refuse should be irrespective of the type of reason, or simply you should not enter a job in which you have obvious personal dilemmas. On the other hand, some believe that letting your own personal beleifs affect the health of your clients is unprofessional, and that refusal of treatment should not be for personal cultural or religious beleifs but instead should be for safety or precautionary reasons. There is alot of talk about cultural safety when a nurse is dealing with a client.. but how about the respect of our own cultures in our nursing practice? It poses some interesting questions.. Id be glad to know what you all think

Thanks for your input. Your advice is good, although I will definately be taking the fight rather than making myself appear older!! I prefer that people take me as I am. I understand that there are a few nursing students who appear to be a little lost, and I only hope that I do not come across this way!! i am very serious about my studies, and like to beleive that this is reflected in my practice. I too look to some of the older students in my classes as they are generally more stable friends than some of the others my age ( although I am very good friends with many others my age!!), adn they also give very wise advice. Hopefully your right in that people begin to take me seriously the more they get to know me. Thanks

Hi, I had a similar problem with my Dad not wanting me to become a nurse. My Dad said that if I was going to do anything in health care that I should be a doctor. I decided in my last year of highschool that this was definately what I wanted to do... just like yourself. I decided that that the only way to convince my Dad that this was the right path for me was to be prepared to discuss it with him. I figured if he wanted to know my reasons for choosing nursing I had better be clear and realistic about why I chose this profession. I did alot of research about what nursing is really like, the jobs, the training, the people, the challenges, the advantages.... I spoke to experienced nurses and students about their experiences, both good and bad. When I sat down with my Dad to discuss the fact that I was definately going to be a nurse i presented him with the facts... the good and the bad ( although there was definately more emphasis on the good!) and asked him exactly why he didn't want me to be a nurse. it seems my research paid off, as I was able to convince my Dad that I had thought through my decision fully and that I was also old enough to make the decision wisely. He is now supportive of my efforts and is continually encouraging me to do my best at the career that I have chosen

Hi, I'm a student nurse, and hold 2 jobs: 1 in a health care assisting role and 1 in a pharmacy. i have discovered through clinical placements and associated experiences that age appears to be basis for patients and clients to discriminate against nurses. I am only 19 years old, and have several examples of patients either outright refusing to be treated or nursed by myself due to my age, or refusing to take advice from myself, but responding well to the exact same advice being given in exactly the same way from a person who is older than myself. One example of this is when in the pharmacy environment a customer asked me for a product for a rash that they had developed. After looking at the rash I sugested a cream and an anti-histamine. This person looked very skeptical and told me that they wanted to see someone else. I referred this person to another staff member who is no more qualified or experienced than I, but who was older. The other staff member suggested the same course of treatment and this customer gladly accepted the advice. The customer stated she was sorry that she hadnt listened to me but she thought that I was too young to know what I was talking about. If this was an isolated incident I may not be concerned, however I find that this is an issue that comes up alot in my practice. My age is often commented on by peers, supervisors and mentors... and although the comments are not always negative, I still do not understand why this is such an issue. In my place of work I am even referred to as 'little one'. I would appreciate anyones ideas or thoughts on the age of nurses and if age affects the way that you veiw other nurses. I would also appreciate any advice on how to approach this issue!! If you think I'm being overly sensitive feel free to say so! Cheers, 'little one'