I seem to be hearing more and more comments from patients and families that just leave me speechless. I can think of no good response except helpless laughter, which I can't indulge in, so I bite my tongue and say nothing at all.
Here's two from last night:
Family observing nurse use barcoder to give insulin (or rather, struggle valiantly to use the barcoder, since it malfunctions about every three minutes): "Aren't you glad that you won't have to worry about making so many medicine errors anymore now that you have a great machine to do your thinking for you?"
And from a patient who wanted the max in IVP pain meds and slept very soundly through one of the prn time windows: " You should have woke me up or at least have it all drawn up and been standing by my bed waiting for me to wake up." What in the world can you say to comments like those? :smackingf
I had a patient that kept referring to her PRN pain/nausea medication as "scheduled" and after repeatedly explaining what the term PRN meant, stated....."I have not been getting my scheduled meds...I am now 1 1/2 hours past due!" After telling her that she needs to request them...they are not scheduled, stated "If I am telling you I am always in pain then you need to just bring them when they are due!" I told her I would not wake her up to ask her if she was in pain and she demanded that I do...stating, "Just because I am sleeping doesn't mean I'm not in pain!".....all you can do is laugh or you will go CRAZY!!!
When I was a new nurse several years ago, we had this patient in ICU who'd coded in dialysis. She circled the drain for several days. One night it was obvious that she was going to die in spite of our best efforts. I called her sons and her "boyfriend" and they rushed to the hospital. She had already passed (we'd coded this poor lady for about half an hour). One of the sons asked me, "Can't you keep her going a few more days? We get her check on the 3rd."
When I was a new nurse several years ago, we had this patient in ICU who'd coded in dialysis. She circled the drain for several days. One night it was obvious that she was going to die in spite of our best efforts. I called her sons and her "boyfriend" and they rushed to the hospital. She had already passed (we'd coded this poor lady for about half an hour). One of the sons asked me, "Can't you keep her going a few more days? We get her check on the 3rd."
I really was speechless.
Thats really sad...Glad she meant something to her family...
I had a pt that had a son that was MR/DD. The wife and a daughter were not nice people. They actually called this adult son "Baby Retard" - to other people, in front of him, and called *him* that when addressing him. Very sad.
These people also "fired" one of the best nurses on our floor - because while she asked the wife if she needed anything, the nurse did not *know* that the wife was thirsty/hungry/whatever and take care of the wife's needs in addition to the pt. It wasn't enough for the nurse to ask, she was supposed to know, telepathically I guess. Too bad this nurse missed the psychic-training portion of the nursing course.
The wife also fired me for asking the pt if he wanted his daughter and some other woman to step out while exposed him for assessment purposes. *shrug* Actually, I was kind of relieved not to have to deal with her.
That weird family dynamic reminded me about an elderly man I once looked after following a stroke. His wife was demanding to the point of ridiculousness, from wanting us to order meals for her (not standard practice at all) and eating his to marching in on nurses caring for other patients with the door shut if she thought he needed something.
She was in our NUM's office several times a day because the nursing staff had been doing something less important (admissions, hand over, codes) instead of tending to her husband immediately.
We weren't good enough to perform his hygeine, so she would shower him. Naked. That would be her nbaked, as well as the patient.
Imagine our shock when we discovered she wasn't his wife, she was his sister!:eek:
That weird family dynamic reminded me about an elderly man I once looked after following a stroke. His wife was demanding to the point of ridiculousness, from wanting us to order meals for her (not standard practice at all) and eating his to marching in on nurses caring for other patients with the door shut if she thought he needed something.
She was in our NUM's office several times a day because the nursing staff had been doing something less important (admissions, hand over, codes) instead of tending to her husband immediately.
We weren't good enough to perform his hygeine, so she would shower him. Naked. That would be her nbaked, as well as the patient.
Imagine our shock when we discovered she wasn't his wife, she was his sister!:eek:
EWWWWWWWWWWWW
I had a patient that kept referring to her PRN pain/nausea medication as "scheduled" and after repeatedly explaining what the term PRN meant, stated....."I have not been getting my scheduled meds...I am now 1 1/2 hours past due!" After telling her that she needs to request them...they are not scheduled, stated "If I am telling you I am always in pain then you need to just bring them when they are due!" I told her I would not wake her up to ask her if she was in pain and she demanded that I do...stating, "Just because I am sleeping doesn't mean I'm not in pain!".....all you can do is laugh or you will go CRAZY!!!
I have to say I agree with the patient on this one. When I was in labor with my son, I slept. Can't tell me that I wasn't in pain, because when I did wake up, it hurt like heck. I think what happens is when I hurt, my whole body just shuts down. So, if you were to look at me you may think I am not in pain. Had my baby 18 minutes after I got to the hospital, almost slept through the whole darn thing, lol. I am a firm believer in around the clock pain medication dosing.
Okay, I finally remembered my "latest and greatest" from a "frequent flier" - she says she has "bone spurts" (not "bone spurs, mind you). Supposedly her body produces little pieces of bone that shoot off and land on her nerves, causing excruciating pain. She tells me she called Clevelan Clinic and was able to talk to the lead researcher MD personally about this. Imagine! If I call Cleve Clinic, I can MAYBE get to talk to another NP nurse practitioner to nurse practitioner, but SHE can talk to a "lead researcher!" Got to love them....
Next time someone asks about a brain transplant, remind them that their family member would then have the memories of the person whose brain they received - if their father got a femals brain, he would believe he was a woman and vice versa - Imagine the fun that could cause!!! LOL!!! Would they like their father/ mother preferring the same gender? (a possibility if brain transplants were possible). I would love to watch the reaction of some people......
Some people.....i have heard alot that i cant remember right now, but two stand out...
1. During my preceptor we had a young woman (my age) brought in after a ruptured AVM..unresponsive, pupils 9mm and non reactive, CT showed massive hemmorhage, failed every neuro exam thrown at her, full vent support, 5 pressor, etc...family brought their pastor in, and he told them to remain positive, because God was using her, and, like Lazarus in the Bible, she would awaken and walk out unharmed in three days. (sister was even a nurse) So, family refused to consider code status at all until after three days. Well, you guessed it...she coded on the morning of day 3, so yes, we had to fully code, and shock her. She did not live..It was sad, and i know that religion is a large part of daily life for some, but i still say that at some point medical knowledge and reality have to trump religion (and i know that may make someone mad..jut my opinion). Side note, my bestfreinds 4 year old granddaughter was recently in a car wreck. Pronounced brain dead after internal decapitation. It was hard being on the other side,but difficult as it was, the tests and reality doesnt lie. She was removed from life support.
2. Patient the other day came in with low sodium..getting 3% saline via central line. Family questioned me about my histor on the unit (i am a new grad and in my tenth week). I was honest with them, and they came unglued...fine..you can handle the patient on the vent next door, and CRRT/3 pressor drips down the hall, but you cant handle momma...it takes someone with much more experience to deal with a saline infusion (i just walked out and rolled my eyes)..the next day they were very upset that i wasnt the nurse..make your mind up people!!
Sometimes it makes me envy dogs/cats/family pets that don't have to suffer through pain when they get put down by the family vet. Not trying to compare the two.. but we would never let our family dog suffer through something like this, would we?
OHBOY.... not just ding bat families.... how 'bout ding bat RN? At 0600 on a nightshift (new for me) and an unfamiliar hospital with unfamiliar equipment.... remember I was tired. I was taking VS on my little old lady pt when I noticed her O2 sats were in the low 80's. So the Doc just happened to come in and I do all the neccassary things for a low sat. It's apparently working 'cuz her sats go up. all the way to 100, then 101, 102, back to 100, etc. So me and the doc look at each other like HUH???? Yup. It was her pulse.
I had this one lady that insisted that she had to be turned or tolieted every hour. She had to use a sit-to-stand lift to get out of bed and PT refused a request to use a bedpan. She would litterally hang on the lift never stood up and could not understand why her shoulders hurt now when they never hurt before. I just wanted to tell her that is your fault b/c you are lazy. Mind you that it just took 30 minutes to take to and from the bathroom that does not include the time on the toliet. Please. Every hour!! with a house full of q2hr turns.
:eek:
jeni9274
4 Posts
I had a patient that kept referring to her PRN pain/nausea medication as "scheduled" and after repeatedly explaining what the term PRN meant, stated....."I have not been getting my scheduled meds...I am now 1 1/2 hours past due!" After telling her that she needs to request them...they are not scheduled, stated "If I am telling you I am always in pain then you need to just bring them when they are due!" I told her I would not wake her up to ask her if she was in pain and she demanded that I do...stating, "Just because I am sleeping doesn't mean I'm not in pain!".....all you can do is laugh or you will go CRAZY!!!