"What Do You Want Me To Do About It?"

[welnet66]

I have been a nurse for 20 years and have been on the receiving end of many sarcastic remarks when I've called an MD about a patient's worsening condition. Responding to the lowest form of wit is an art I have developed over the years but this one takes the cake: "and what do you want me to do about it?" There is no doubt all of you have heard this little ditty before..how did you respond to it???

[pitprincess]

That makes one upset...

I am always stunned to hear that happen. It happens to much.

[deanzgurll]

I tell them, IN DETAIL!!!

[pickledpepperRN]

I'm not witty at all. I just say, "I called you because your patient needs a doctor."

Sometimes if I think I know it may be, "To start how about some O2, ABGs, a chest X ray, and you come save your patient."

We get along fine now. It's the new ones who ask silly questions.

[TazziRN, RN]

Our docs try that with the floor nurses sometimes, but they don't dare try it with ER or ICU, because we will tell them in detail what we want them to do.

[grentea]

I get mad when I hear someone say that. I haven't been a nurse that long but I've heard it two times. The first time I heard it, I didn't really know how to respond. I just said something to the effect of, "Come see your patient because these things that I told you about are wrong." The second time (different MD) I told them what I thought they should do and they repeated that back to me as orders plus a few more things to do.

[prmenrs, RN]

"Well, I don't know, cuz I didn't go to medical school, but I WILL record in the chart that you were notified about these changes in the patient's condition."

And, if appropriate, "what time you were paged and what time you answered the page".

I know, evil. If I know the doc well, I might say something like, I don't know, just get yourself up here NOW!!! or tell them that I've already ordered the cbc, bld cult, cxr, etc, do they want an IV, fluids, abx, bili light, etc. And please come in to sign the orders.

[fergus51]

I want you to do your job. Or at the very least I want to be able to chart "Dr K called and informed of patient status, no new order received".

He gave me the order I wanted after that.

[Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN]

"That is for you to decide. My job is to notify you of the problem. I have done that."

[RN and Mommy]

"That is for you to decide. My job is to notify you of the problem. I have done that."

As a new grad, I am terrified of calling MD's. I can't start any orientation until I pass boards so I have never had to do this yet. I like this response though. It seems to be a good way of responding that puts the focus back on the MD!

[johnwaynehair, BSN, RN]

One of the older nurses (Nurse Betty--I swear!) got that response as a patient was going into respiratory failure (doc was the admitting MD, a nephrologist--no other docs on case); her response was "Not a G__D___ thing!", with which she promptly hung up the phone. 5 minutes later, he called back, and Nurse Betty had orders and a referal request for a pulmonologist.

[buildingmyfaith57]

ok. what if the doctor has a patient that he or she is seeing in their office? i mean you don't expect the doctor to stop what he or she is doing while they have a client in their office do you? the reason im asking just picture yourself being that patient or client thats in the office being seen by that doctor would you want him or her to stop on drop whatever their doing and come take care the one who is worsen? this to me is where they do need a stand by when something like that happens.