Well, I was shift #7 into my orientation as a new grad RN yesterday and I decided to take my turn to vent.
Now this certainly was not the first time I had my butt ripped off and handed back to me by a doctor, but if I could have crawled in a hole and died...that would have been okay too. :uhoh21:
I feel like I really blew the moment, and I know better. I was confronted (loudly) in the middle of the hall in front of staff, visitors, God and worst of all, my coach.
Said doctor was upset that "why didn't I notify anyone how sick the patient was???!!!!" Um...I did, and that person was the pt's surgeon at 6:30am sharp when I am not on the floor technically till 6:45.
I stood there frozen when all I wanted to say was "Do I get a turn to say something here...then I would have said that someone was notified and yes I do realize how sick this patient is. My coach chimed in and set things straight...and said doctor calmed down.
My gosh! I have even in my career had a doctor tell me that I was a piece of crap LPN that didn't deserve to breathe air let alone care for his patients...his way of saying that he didn't care for LPNs...nice huh? But yesterday, I feel as if I failed. I would have rather started peeing my pants or have broken wind in front of my coach than to have what happened yesterday happen.
So here I spend today thinking about what I am gonna say next time
and believe me, it will come up again with same doctor about some other patient some other time. :trout:
I am rambling...but I had to get it out. Thanks for listening!
A huge thank you to all who have replied! I am seeing more and more that this is not something to be tolerated and once again that documentation is key. I feel better about things than I did yesterday and certainly since Friday. I don't think it will do any good to live in fear everytime that doc is around. I had facts I could have reported to him and should have, but being literally backed against a wall in a hallway, it just wouldn't come out. This is violence as mentioned above and abuse, I agree.
You were literally backed up against the wall? That sounds even more serious than I gathered from your OP.
Oh, yeah .... that is definitely worth some written documentation.
You were literally backed up against the wall? That sounds even more serious than I gathered from your OP.
Oh, yeah .... that is definitely worth some written documentation.
I am thinking so too. I keep reviewing the situation over and over in my head...doc saying "You" are taking care of so and so? Do you realize how sick this lady is!?! Why haven't you reported this to anyone?! What was her pulse again?!? Why didn't you say something to someone!??? Question after question looking me up and down.
My coach was standing there looking at me like "Come-on Beary...say something here." When I didn't respond, he did, the doc calmed down. We both followed him to the station and he rattled off a couple orders and then I took off about my business, choked up with tears forming in my eyes. My coach came after me and looked at me and he could see I was teetering on losing it. He said, don't worry about it, he is okay with things. It will be okay.
I am crying as I write this because I vowed to myself that as a RN I was not gonna let this happen to me. I had reheorificed over and over again in my head what I was going to say and do if ever confronted in such a manner, and I felt like I blew it.
This is something I obviously have to work on, this being put on the spot and you have all given me some communication tactics and shared your stories of similar situations. I am so appreciative, more than words can express.
Yep Leslie...go rough him up a bit. My, my and it's Sunday too..shame on me.
It ticks me off too that I was reduced to tears. You would think after previously being married to a man who was physically and verbally abusive for 7 years of which now I have NO problem putting him in his place especially where our daughter is concerned, that I would have any problem dealing with such a nimrod doc. I was more embarassed than anything, it was sickening. Well, lesson learned. I had some pretty high expectations I guess and felt like "I" was the failure when I didn't meet those expectations. But this was one incident, and I need to grow from it and move on.
I hope that others who may come along and read this thread learn something from my situation and from the other situations posted. I am worth my salt...so are you. Press on.
I hope that others who may come along and read this thread learn something from my situation and from the other situations posted. I am worth my salt...so are you. Press on.
I was thinking about something else between surfing through threads and that is the fact that I can put ex in his place because I expect him to be a jerk nothing has changed. This doc, I expected to be a professional like myself (even though history has proven that he can be a jerk). When professional is wasn't as professional does, I was buffaloed. I think you can see what I am thinking here.
:yeah:
llg, PhD, RN
13,469 Posts
You were literally backed up against the wall? That sounds even more serious than I gathered from your OP.
Oh, yeah .... that is definitely worth some written documentation.