Nurses Announcements Archive
Published May 19, 1999
Eileen Rafferty
1 Post
Nursing has long been described as an oppressed group. One way out of oppression is to educate the oppressor (in this case physicians. I work with Family Practice residents who in general, are wonderful and caring physicians. As the third year group gets ready to graduate, I thought it would be a good idea to "educate" them on what nurses do and how nursing is different from medicine. I am curious on what other nurses think - what would you tell a physician about nursing.
Thanks in advance. Eileen R
BRITISH R.N.
8 Posts
I would remind doctors that nurses communicate with patients on an entirely different level to them and can act as both an intermediary, and as an advocate for the patient. This is beneficial for both physician and patient. Sometimes I feel as if I'm actually an interpreter.
Doctors need to be taught the level of education that nurses have and that when we are carrying out what may appear to them to be mundane tasks, eg bed baths, we are using that time to make physical,psychological and social assessments which benefit patient, nurses and doctors alike.
The other thing I'd try to get across is that nurses have always treated their patients holistically not just as the breast cancer case or the asthmatic etc. This is an area where so many clever doctors fail their patients, they forget to treat them as people as well as disease processes
[This message has been edited by BRITISH R.N. (edited May 19, 1999).]
LAS
19 Posts
I think that if doctors had a good understanding of exactly what nurses do they would have more respect for what we contribute to our patient's care. If they spent a day with us I think they would be more tolerant if they could see the challenges we face in providing quality patient care. To give the doctors the benefit of a doubt, I think that nurse probably do not understand completely the challenges that they face. I think all of us in the healthcare industry need to learn to be more tolerant.
PamRNC
133 Posts
I know of the absolutely best story to read or post for MD or anyone else who doesn't know what RNs do. The book is 25 Stupid Things Nurses Do To Self Destruct - Chapter 4 "We Minimize The Intangible Gift Of Nursing (And So Does The System)" The nurse explains to the MD's wife, Hannah over a dinner all that she must know (medicine, complications of diseases, pharmacology, dietary, respiratory therapies and of course psychology) Excerpt: "And so, Hannah, aren't you glad nurses know what they know? Because nurses keep patients alive and living patients pay Harvey's bills. Besides, Hannah, sooner or later we're all going to be patients, and don't you feel better just knowing how much nurses know?"
Era
62 Posts
I would remind doctors that nurses communicate with patients on an entirely different level to them and can act as both an intermediary, and as an advocate for the patient. This is beneficial for both physician and patient. Sometimes I feel as if I'm actually an interpreter.Doctors need to be taught the level of education that nurses have and that when we are carrying out what may appear to them to be mundane tasks, eg bed baths, we are using that time to make physical,psychological and social assessments which benefit patient, nurses and doctors alike. The other thing I'd try to get across is that nurses have always treated their patients holistically not just as the breast cancer case or the asthmatic etc. This is an area where so many clever doctors fail their patients, they forget to treat them as people as well as disease processes[This message has been edited by BRITISH R.N. (edited May 19, 1999).][This message has been edited by BRITISH R.N. (edited May 19, 1999).]
Teach them kindly that patient's have NAMES and we as nurses therefore know them by names, not by hospital numbers or by their illness. I just had to remind an RSO on a night shift that when she came up to me asking for a patient by his hospital number!:smackingf
UM Review RN, ASN, RN
1 Article; 5,163 Posts
Wow! What a positively ancient thread! I didn't know they go as far back as 1999!
Nevertheless, I usually have to educate docs as to what I cannot do, rather than what I can. Many will simply assume that I can do whatever they tell me to do. In their minds, that equals direct authorization, therefore, it's OK.
Wrong.