Sometimes its the little things that make me wanna lose it!!

NurseLoveJoy88, ASN, RN · Jan 10, 2009

I work at an elementary school as a health assistant. I have my CNA. Since I'm the only health person in the building everyone calls me the " SCHOOL NURSE" No matter how many times I tell them I'm not the school nurse, I'm the health assistant, they still call me that. It does irritate the heck out of me, because I don't want to be called anything I'm not. I don't want to give any false reputations. I know you nurses work hard for that license, and non-license people calling themselves nurses is just terrible. I can see any nurse getting irritated from pts. calling them a tech or transport. When I did work in the hospital, I made it crystal clear that I'm just a tech, and I'll get the nurse.

I even refused to work on the nursing ministry at church because of this. They have nurses, and CNA's sit in the front of the church, the uniform is the nurses cap and all white. Every one assumes they are all nurses, especially wearing the cap.... that is why I didn't join. I didn't want anyone to assume I was a nurse.

swirlygirl · Jan 10, 2009

I just had a patient a few weeks ago ask me if my current pregnancy was unplanned. We were talking about our families and our plans for Christmas and she knew I was married with a 2 year old son, but I guess she felt the need to inquire about this pregnancy. She wasn't confused or anything either, she was a 60 year old patient that had a lap chole (as well as a removal of her brain-to-mouth filter.)

RN1982 · Jan 10, 2009

This is my "little thing that sets me off"

My frustration last night came from my co-workers. I received report on a patient who was intubated and had an upper GI bleed. Patient had an NGT. The nurse tells me "Oh, he only put out less than 50cc from the NGT." Then while she is giving me report, the patient who is on the ICU sedation protocol with sedation infusing is writhing around the bed and very agitated. The nurse giving me report says "Oh, he's been doing that all day. He's ok if you leave him alone". Ok, fine.

So anyhow, I'm doing my assessment, checking placement for the NGT, its in place. I decide to flush it with 30cc of sterile water and low/behold I get 300cc of blood out. Made me wonder if she even flushed the tube at any point during her shift. Then I give the patient more sedation per our ICU protocol after which is calm, not tugging on his restraints, vent isn't alarming. I go into our charting system to document and the nurse documented his MAAS at a level 1 which is unresponsive. This patient certainly wasn't unresponsive and from her report he wasn't unresponsive during her shift. It makes me wonder. And this nurse is on orientation. It makes me wonder about the type of orientation she is getting.

Virgo_RN, BSN, RN · Jan 10, 2009

That reminds me of the time not too long ago when, at shift change, I could hear my new patient calling out from her bed. The offgoing nurse told me that "she does that, but I just checked on her and she's okay". Well, she was not okay. She was calling out because she was painful, she was all the way at the bottom of the bed (immobile stroke patient, had to have been that way for a while), her linens were all crumpled up underneath her, and the first thing I had to do, before I could check on my other patients, look at my labs and meds, you name it, was go and medicate this lady for pain and find someone to help me position her. This was not a new nurse, either. She's got fifteen years' experience on this floor.

Vital sign flow sheets that haven't been filled out tick me off, too. Just the other day, I took report on a patient with a sheath in, who had been back to the floor for an hour prior to shift change. By the time I got in there, that's four sets of vitals that the previous nurse had been responsible for that had not been logged on the flow sheet. Granted, she wasn't bleeding and the sheath site was fine, her VS were stable and she wasn't uncomfortable, but still....if you don't fill it out, then you weren't in the room.

flightnurse2b, LPN · Jan 10, 2009

Vital sign flow sheets that haven't been filled out tick me off, too. Just the other day, I took report on a patient with a sheath in, who had been back to the floor for an hour prior to shift change. By the time I got in there, that's four sets of vitals that the previous nurse had been responsible for that had not been logged on the flow sheet. Granted, she wasn't bleeding and the sheath site was fine, her VS were stable and she wasn't uncomfortable, but still....if you don't fill it out, then you weren't in the room.

do you know what really makes me annoyed... when i get in report that "oh such and such needs an IV but i know you're good at them so i left it for you". if it was once, fine. but the nurse i always get report from has been a nurse since before i was born... and she started my IV when i had my last CT scan done... so i know she's good at them. you were here for 12 hours... you couldn't try just once? or when i get a pt who has a bad IV. that drives me crazy too... it makes me wonder if they flushed it all day.

southernbeegirl, BSN, RN · Jan 10, 2009

don't feel bad, ladies.
one time i had a pt who asked me if i had ever been a psych pt at XXX hospital.
leslie

well???

were you?

Virgo_RN, BSN, RN · Jan 10, 2009

Yes, peripheral access is one of my peeves as well. Like the guy with a recent history of V Fib arrest who is Full Code, and the previous nurse hasn't flushed the IV all day. Nice.

Not_A_Hat_Person, RN · Jan 10, 2009

I did my Pedi rotation at an LTC facility where all of the nuses were White (except 1 RN), and all of the aides were African or Cape Verdean. I'm Black, and one of my classmates was Haitian. Families assumed we were Aides, despite our different uniforms and nametags.

strugglingnurse · Jan 11, 2009

What annoys me most is when night shift, who is responsible for routine IV changes on our floor, simply does not even attempt to start a new PIV. Last week, ALL of my patients had expired IV's, and all were really easy sticks. The reason I got for one unchanged IV was "his hand is very hairy".

olli975 · Jan 11, 2009

When I started my orientation pts asked me if I was an RN or "still in school", maybe because I look young or maybe because my preceptor was with me too... One time I had an older a bit confused patient who asked if my preceptor was my mom (although I am Caucasian and my preceptor is Filipino :-)) but that was funny. I always make sure they know I am their RN. Make sure your ID is visible, you might put some other sign on that indicates you are an RN... I also like my uniform to look professional, no flowers or animals... Since I completed my orientation and started on my own, I was never confused with some other medical professional

Regarding IVs: I also do not like to come in and find out first thing in the morning that IV is infiltrated and I need to put a new one... On the other hand, I had pts who refused to be stuck again after I removed the old IV during my shift so I called MDs: if it was ok for a pt not to have an IV access (NO IV meds, no fluid/electrolyte concerns), I did not reinsert it and just let the next shift RN know...

pink85 · Jan 11, 2009

Some nurses don't like this but a few years ago we went to color coded scrubs. Nurses wear blue and/or white, techs wear teal and/or beige, etc... Personally, I love it. Before we did this I could not even tell who was who. I couldn't tell a doctor from a housekeeper and neither could the patients! Since we have implemented this I have not really heard of anyone being confused as to who we are!

I also work at an elementary school and it is so funny b/c the real young ones, like kindergarten, always say "Hi doctor!" when they see me in the hall! They are just so darn cute! Cracks me up!

Love that job!

Virgo_RN, BSN, RN · Jan 11, 2009

They tried to do something similar at my workplace, but the nurses shot it down. I personally like the idea, but everyone would have to be on board with it, otherwise it wouldn't work.