prostituting our nurses

[Agnus]

I was just reading "I'm a florest now" thread. It reminded me of something. One hospital put on a "retreat" that was designed to foster better communications between physicians and nurses.

Guess who the nurese were that were invited to attend. You guessed it! It was not the beside nurse. Yes I said invited because you did not attend without an invite.

From this evolved a list of what nurses should do before and during a call to a physician. All common sense. However, take this handy tip for example. Have the chart when you call. That is fine except you get the answering service and you have to waite until the doc calls you. In the mean time you could be doing any of a number of things that take you away from the chart.

Not to mention that you often have to call some docs multiple times before they even return a call.

The problem I have with all this is simply. The responsibility for good communications is all put on the nurse. The nurse not the high and mighty phyusician is held responsible to communicate clearly with the doctor. The list is designed so that doctors are not called unessairly. For example one of the things was to discuss it with another nurse and if that didn't solve it discuss it with your charge nurse before calling the doctor.

I can appreciate not putting in frivilious calls but there was no guide line to doctors for them not to inconvience nurses. There were no guide lines for physicians to give clear orders, to waite for the nurse to read back what she wrote, or even to give her a chance to find the chart.

Speaking of finding charts, don't you just love it when a doc takes a chart for hours on end and having written a now or stat order which he did not communicate to you and then has a hissy fit that it was not done state. Note order written at 1310 and it is now 1500 when he finally gives up the chart. Or when he takes a chart and just leaves it anyplace.

When he writes orders and never consults with you, never lets you know he is there and never flags in anyway that orders have been written.

All the communications responsibility is put on the nurse.

Some hospitals will defend rude and othewise horrible behavior from docs because they bring in $$$ by bringing in patients. The staff has to take it. The staff is blamed if things are not going smoothly.

Some will accept it from patients and visitors because they are Customers ($$)

It reminds me of the words to an old country western song where a mother turns her daughter, Fancy, out to prostitution because they are poor. "Be nice to the gentlemen, Fancy."