Ridiculous "House Rules"

sharpeimom · Sep 8, 2011

yikes!! :eek:

paddler · Sep 9, 2011

Oh, good grief.

Not_A_Hat_Person, RN · Sep 11, 2011

I worked a similar case last winter. No shoes in the house, don't drive more than 10 mph down the long dirt driveway, don't use our cutlery or dishes, don't park on the lawn (which was buried under a foot of snow).

caliotter3 · Sep 11, 2011

Surprisingly enough, two of the cases I started that were anal like this turned out to be the better cases I have worked in terms of me being able to survive there. Often, it is no more than give the devil his due and you will be ok. In contrast, you think a case is just fine and everyone is happy. Then you get a call from the agency to tell you that you can't go back. When you ask why, you are told something off the wall that is not true and definitely was never discussed with you. This, from the family, who seemed so nice and trustworthy in the beginning.

caliotter3 · Sep 11, 2011

I would have to refuse this case. I don't deal with video recording, whether on the sly or out in the open. Along with the three pages of control issues, no fly zone for me. Just have to be unemployed a little longer.

ventmommy · Sep 13, 2011

I am NOT defending this family because some of that just seems crazy but I will say that over the years, the list of rules has grown as we have had nurses do stupid things. I had to tell one nurse repeatedly to stop parking her passenger side wheels on my neighbor's lawn; two nurses got tickets because they were facing the wrong way on the street; one nurse got a ticket because she parked behind my car in the driveway but didn't pull up enough and blocked the sidewalk.

We now have a "no beverages but water in my son's room" because at least two of the nurses had soda explosion accidents and didn't clean up the mess and the rug is trashed.

It sucks when a couple of nurses ruin things for future nurses.

I definitely would not put up with video recording. We have a baby monitor that is always on and all our nurses know it. I love catching a tender moment between my son and his nurse.

NurseLoveJoy88, ASN, RN · Sep 13, 2011

I am NOT defending this family because some of that just seems crazy but I will say that over the years, the list of rules has grown as we have had nurses do stupid things. I had to tell one nurse repeatedly to stop parking her passenger side wheels on my neighbor's lawn; two nurses got tickets because they were facing the wrong way on the street; one nurse got a ticket because she parked behind my car in the driveway but didn't pull up enough and blocked the sidewalk.
We now have a "no beverages but water in my son's room" because at least two of the nurses had soda explosion accidents and didn't clean up the mess and the rug is trashed.
It sucks when a couple of nurses ruin things for future nurses.
I definitely would not put up with video recording. We have a baby monitor that is always on and all our nurses know it. I love catching a tender moment between my son and his nurse.

I totally agree. My assumption is that there have been alot of nurses that have done "stupid things" You are so correct. Thanks for the insight.

allnurses Guide · Sep 13, 2011

I worked a similar case last winter. No shoes in the house, don't drive more than 10 mph down the long dirt driveway, don't use our cutlery or dishes, don't park on the lawn (which was buried under a foot of snow).

Who parks their car on somebody's lawn??? :lol2: Although ventmommy is correct. Most of them arise out of someone being just that stupid. I would not consent to being videotaped. I would not consent to having my family call their house in the case of an emergency . . sadly too many nurses spend their time loudly yacking away to whoever and make us all look bad.

Just for fun .. a list of real things home health nurses have done --

►arrive for work in gold pumps and an evening gown for night shift

►arrive for work in ratty flip-flops and cut-off shorts - then go in the bathroom, change into scrubs that were wadded into balls in a gigantic plastic bag, not seeming to notice your scrubs still look like they were wadded in a bag

►begin to set dry food out on the apartment deck for all the stray cats in the neighborhood (who always bring a few friends when they come back) then

►get p**** when the parents don't want 30 stray cats oiutside - start to hide cat food and leave it in other people's yards.

►hop in the client's bed for a quick nap while they are in the wheelchair

►get into argument with client and moon them before stomping out

►arrive for work, grab the remote and change the channel while the client is watching something else on TV already.

but wait there's more! :lol2: . . . and I find the quirkiness of people pretty entertaining. Not to be confused with safety risks, though. Apparently you can be as batty as your old aunt Clara and still do a great job as a nurse!! :up:

rn/writer, RN · Sep 13, 2011

Just got home from an orientation with a new client and in the chart was 3 pages of house rules. Some of them were really ridiculous but needless to say its' their house so us nurses have to abide by their rules.
Here are a few that stood out the most
- Don't slam the microwave door
- Don't accept phone calls on your cell have who ever needs to reach you call our home
-Don't go pass the neighbor hood speeding limit
- If you need to cut something, use a cutting board
-Answer all phone calls from house phone just in case its us calling to see how things going
and the list goes on.... There are several memos, there is a video recorder in the room... I hope I can list. :eek:

Actually, these don't seem that horrible to me.

Slamming a microwave door can damage the door. And it's loud.

The request to stay within the neighborhood speed limit may be the result of complaints from neighbors after other nurses didn't. I have seen drivers endanger kids and pets by going 50 in a 25 zone. If the family got flak from neighbors, I would make a rule just like this.

I hate seeing someone cut something on my countertop without a cutting board. That's how you get little nicks and slice marks that ruin the surface. Good places for germs to hide and ugly to boot.

The phone thing and the videotaping I'd have to decline. I don't want my callers' information showing up on the client's caller ID. And I don't want to be concerned about someone picking up an extension and listening in.

A baby monitor? I could live with that. But you either trust your nurse enough to take care of the patient or you don't.

If they insisted on the videotaping, I don't know. That just seems invasive of both their staff and the patient.

-Answer all phone calls from house phone just in case its us calling to see how things going

Not sure what this means. Are they asking you to take all calls from them when you're off the job? Or?

ArwenEvenstar · Sep 13, 2011

The video monitoring is out of hand, but I agree with ventmommy. Some of the rules are no doubt due to nurses who did stupid or inconsiderate things. Personally, I have had many people live with me over the years - foreign exchange students, rented to US college students, friends, family, etc. Probably 75% of the house guests were great, the other 25% not so great. Some of the inconsiderate things the 25% would do never ceased to surprise me. We have a list of basic house rules that got longer over the years accordingly.

Recently we had 2 US college students living with us who closed all doors so loudly it was unbelievable. I mean their regular shutting of a door sounded like they were slamming it with all their might! We feared they were going to cause damage and they were also waking us up from sleep frequently by it! New rule: close doors quietly! :cool:

caliotter3 · Sep 13, 2011

I moved into an apartment one time where using a cutting board in the kitchen was an issue that was addressed in the lease and a brand new cutting board was provided to the tenant for their use. I thought that was a good idea at the time.