I'm a patient attendant and I'm only five days in but yesterday I sat with a Suicidal patient I wasn't ready for this as I'm pretty new to the job. I'm pretty upset since I didn't know he was suicidal I thought he was general precautions, that's what they told me anyways.
So usually they inform me about the status of the patient so I'm better prepared when watching them. Usually with general precautions I'd do my homework or read magazines. I thought the same was for this case, the nurses even told me to just watch him outside his room and can even ignore him, that's what I did in the beginning because I was honestly scared, I wasn't ready to be dealing with someone in his situation. I didn't even realize he was suicidal until the end of he day when I called the company I worked for and they informed me.
I'm annoyed because of how easily things could have gone wrong, and they did. I was outside his door watching him reading a magazine and he managed to rip out his iv...I didn't even know he had one in and the nurse left the lights off on him when they left also they didn't care when kept thrashing around on his bed so I just thought nothing of it but he managed to rip out his IV and blood was everywhere, like there was a pool of blood I didn't notice until the nurse took notice of it when he stopped by. It was than that I decided to sit inside even though the nurses advised me not to and decided to engage with him even though he was so abrasive before and even racist. He was constantly calling the nurses ******* and berating them.
At the end of the day things turned out fine and he got better, he managed to keep conversation going and got better.
But should I report the mix up to the company that contracted me?
(with this company in the first thirty days you only handle general precautions not suicidal patients)
When I called the scheduling team and complained about this they apologized and told me his status randomly changed and they weren't aware When I entered he was in restraints so I'm surprised he was ever general precautions.
The whole situation left me with a bad taste in my month :/
I just wasn't prepared to deal with a patient this distraught and I'm annoyed how his safety was compromised
In my experience sitting for suicide attempt patients is usually considered the easiest patient to sit for, so I'm not sure why anybody should get written up for having you sit for this type of patient.
Whether you get report or not, if you're sitting outside of the patient's room and the lights are off, you can expect the next IV to be pulled out, Foleys to be pulled out, restraints to be wiggled out of, and patients to be found on the floor. I understand line-of-sight; but with the lights off, you're not going to be able to see a patient pulling at IVs or anything else. As soon as you were instructed to sit outside while the lights were off in the patients room is where this impending incident began to unfold (not your fault).
But I'm still trying to figure out which part of this scenario has left you "traumatized". You yourself said the patient got better, he held good conversation as the shift progressed, and you were able to finish the shift with the same patient...and you had no idea that this was a suicidal patient until your agency informed you at or near the end of your shift. I think there may be some major overreaction here.
Personally, I think your agency is at fault for sending in an employee who hasn't a clue as to what goes on in a hospital. You don't have to be a nurse; but you should know something about why people are lying in beds that are not their own. Saying that you didn't know that a person's condition could change is saying that you nor anyone that you know has ever gotten sick enough to warrant a visit to the doctor or hospital. Surely you cannot be that oblivious to the facts of life. Do you actually believe that people are paying you to come sit in a hospital to do your homework and read magazines?
Specializes in Psychiatry, Community, Nurse Manager, hospice.
Ok, honestly just find it all really unprofessional tbh. Is this normal at hospitals? like do status of patients randomly change within seconds? You have to understand I'm not that familiar with healthcare, I don't know if I should even report this.
I mainly thought about reporting it because I thought the mix up was pretty severe.
I think what you are not understanding, is that a patient's status can change from general precautions to suicide precautions in an instant. This is not the staff's fault and I can't see any reason to call anyone's behavior unprofessional. I can think of many situations where this could/would happen, and I would not say that it is rare.
Now, there may be a need for protocol change. It is very likely that the nurses 1. didn't know you were new and 2. didn't know that a new person is not allowed to watch a suicidal patient. Those things should be addressed by your manager if they are an issue.
In my hospital, all sitters are trained in psych, and can watch anyone. They are also employees of the hospital.
Also, as a former sitter and a new nurse, please understand that your nurse is responsible for your patient (more so than you are), wants him to be safe, and is counting on you to give her information she can't get herself, because she has other patients. If you think you should stay in the room, tell her that and tell her why, then respect her decision.
And know that you are watching patients because their behavior is unpredictable. If their behavior was predictable, you wouldn't be watching them!
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
Whether you get report or not, if you're sitting outside of the patient's room and the lights are off, you can expect the next IV to be pulled out, Foleys to be pulled out, restraints to be wiggled out of, and patients to be found on the floor. I understand line-of-sight; but with the lights off, you're not going to be able to see a patient pulling at IVs or anything else. As soon as you were instructed to sit outside while the lights were off in the patients room is where this impending incident began to unfold (not your fault).
But I'm still trying to figure out which part of this scenario has left you "traumatized". You yourself said the patient got better, he held good conversation as the shift progressed, and you were able to finish the shift with the same patient...and you had no idea that this was a suicidal patient until your agency informed you at or near the end of your shift. I think there may be some major overreaction here.
Personally, I think your agency is at fault for sending in an employee who hasn't a clue as to what goes on in a hospital. You don't have to be a nurse; but you should know something about why people are lying in beds that are not their own. Saying that you didn't know that a person's condition could change is saying that you nor anyone that you know has ever gotten sick enough to warrant a visit to the doctor or hospital. Surely you cannot be that oblivious to the facts of life. Do you actually believe that people are paying you to come sit in a hospital to do your homework and read magazines?
I keep reading this thinking should I add another comment or not. Most patients you will sit for are going to need constant supervision . You may have a suicide or anorexic patient. If you are lucky enough to get one that sleeps then that is great. However, most of them pull out IV's or constantly try to climb out of bed. I'm sorry you were traumatized but I'm not sure why you feel you should not have been with this patient? I would go back to your agency and get a full description of what your job entails before someone gets hurt on your watch.
In my experience sitting for suicide attempt patients is usually considered the easiest patient to sit for, so I'm not sure why anybody should get written up for having you sit for this type of patient.
Agreed. 9/10x for me a 1:1 Suicide is easier to watch than a Safety Watch with a crazy 90 yr old lady w/ a UTI, who is climbing out of bed, punching, spitting, pulling her foley, and lines, etc. Add in hurling the tele box at me, and forget it, absolute madness.
If the 1:1 Suicide is restrained? BONUS. Easy night for me.
Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
I think if all you are is "traumatized" and not leaving the situation better-educated and aware of what is required of you, then you are in the wrong field.
But what do I know? I am only a nurse, not a paid sitter.
And really think if you want to even be a nurse, because "trauma" of all sorts, physical, and emotional, comes with the job, day in and out. You have no idea how much. I don't think this is for you unless you toughen up and take responsibility for your own actions, behaviors and thoughts.
PS: Forget about writing anyone up; point your finger at others, and many fingers may be pointed back at you.
Any patient who requires a "sitter" by definition will not be uncomplicated or "general precautions". What did you believe your responsibilities as a sitter were, if not to keep the patient safe (prevent falls, keep them from pulling out lines and tubes, etc.)?
After reading your other post it strikes me that you appear to view yourself as always a victim, either of your institution, co-workers, or patients. To be constantly looking for conflict comes across as very entitled and immature, and probably not a good fit for a healthcare career.
Instead of approaching every situation with the thought "am I being mistreated here?" try to approach each situation with the attitude "what can I do to be helpful here?" You will get along much better.
Well, mistakes happen. I wasn't suppose to be dealing with a suicidal patient I thought he was general precautions. I did my homework within the same room with the previous patients I sat and nothing happened.
Ugh, I'm so traumatized and feel terrible.....
Why would a "general precautions" patient have a sitter? Think!
Your post kind of odd. Are you being paid to sit or paid to do your private homework. You are on employers clock not on free time. You clearly are not doing the job of a sitter. When a sitter is requested for a patient it is usually inferred that the patient is at some risk of hurting themselves or others and needs to be closely watched. Why would a sitter be needed for a patient who is ok? Sometimes the pt reacted poorly to meds and will be pulling at lines etc. They dont have to be called "suicidal" to do that. Be the person suicidal or not you should not be doing homework and reading magazines and you should not be outside the room. If you report this be prepared for repecussions cause you were not doing you job. If i was your employer I would let you go.
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MunoRN, RN
8,058 Posts
In my experience sitting for suicide attempt patients is usually considered the easiest patient to sit for, so I'm not sure why anybody should get written up for having you sit for this type of patient.