In the hospital where I used to work, family members would come up to the desk all the time to say "dad needs a _______ (blanket, cup, straw) and I developed a nasty habit of saying (in a perfectly innocent tone) "Does he know how to use the call light?" Gradually my tone started getting more and more sarcastic. Had to stop that one after a few nasty looks. oops.
Or "that's not real high on my priority list"
I know there's been plenty more....
At least I knew I had to leave the hospital setting for a bit before my mouth could get me in too much trouble. Feeling much better suited to home health, where you can throw whatever you like at me! I'll be out of your house in less than an hour!
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
when i was a student, i helped look after a lady who had unexplained per lady partsl bleeding. and it wasn't just big clots either. you know how you see big slices of liver in the butcher's - well, that is what was coming out of her. and did she ever bleed. it was like she was giving birth to these huge slices of 'meat'! me & an en were changing her pads/bed constantly, & she was diaphoretic ++. in the shower she was sitting in a pool of blood on a chair, just balling her eyes out. her poor hubby at the bedside was totally lost, didn't know what to do. i felt so sorry for both of them. anyway we were giving her vit k injections but i left after that. i asked one of the nurses what she might have & all she could think of was cancer. i often wonder if this lady survived, poor thing.
i think you must have accidentally posted this in the wrong thread -- this one is about things you've said to patients' family members that you ought not to have.
by the way -- it's "bawling", not "balling". the latter would mean she was having sexual intercourse, and i shudder to think of the vigorous sex that would result in her eyes popping out!
i think you must have accidentally posted this in the wrong thread -- this one is about things you've said to patients' family members that you ought not to have.
by the way -- it's "bawling", not "balling". the latter would mean she was having sexual intercourse, and i shudder to think of the vigorous sex that would result in her eyes popping out!
by the way -- it's "bawling", not "balling". the latter would mean she was having sexual intercourse, and i shudder to think of the vigorous sex that would result in her eyes popping out!
you are killing me! i nearly fell off my chair.
i don't know about eyes popping but mine are watering. best laugh i have had in days.
by the way -- it's "bawling", not "balling". the latter would mean she was having sexual intercourse, and i shudder to think of the vigorous sex that would result in her eyes popping out!
and bless her heart, if her eyes are popping out, no wonder she's got lady partsl bleeding!!
We're on the generator, there is no power coming into the building, I have 43 other residents on this unit, your O2 is on an emergency outlet, and I am not going to run around getting you on a tank so I can plug your nebulizer into that outlet so you can have your neb tx in the middle of this.
Specializes in Cardiac, Utilization Review, Geriatrics,.
Years ago I had a patient had some bad complications after CABG surgery- ended up with a sternal osteo and eventually underwent and exicison with a flap- on the unit a long time- he would expectorate and spit his sputum into a tissue-- i put multiple little bags around to dispose of the soiled kleenex- old school, they had tape tabs, that you could attach to bedside rails, tables etc,--he preferred to throw his tissues on the floor, after picking up umpteen of them, i reminded him of the garbage bags and recommended he try using them-- of course he complained about me , and I heard about it at my evaulation that year--nice...
My pet peeve is when the families come out to the desk to ask for stuff. I also tell them to put on the call light. I know it is not what I "should say", but it is always at the change of shift when it is super crazy.
Ok, so I have a question, though I'm sure I will figure this one out over time. I start school in a week, so I have no experience. My question is why does this annoy you? I mean, other than that it is at shift change? My mother was frequently in the hospital, and we always thought it was easier for YOU, (the nurse) if we came to the desk to ask for or get a cup or blanket or whatever, because them you didn't have to come all the way to the room to find out what was wanted, go get said item and return, all the while trying to attend to other nursing duties. Am I wrong in this? My family's intention was never to annoy the nursing staff, but to assist them by not making them have to do extra stuff. For whatever reason, my mothers room was typically at the end of the hall / ward and we figured it would result in less walking or work for the nurses.
ok, so i have a question, though i'm sure i will figure this one out over time. i start school in a week, so i have no experience. my question is why does this annoy you? i mean, other than that it is at shift change? my mother was frequently in the hospital, and we always thought it was easier for you, (the nurse) if we came to the desk to ask for or get a cup or blanket or whatever, because them you didn't have to come all the way to the room to find out what was wanted, go get said item and return, all the while trying to attend to other nursing duties. am i wrong in this? my family's intention was never to annoy the nursing staff, but to assist them by not making them have to do extra stuff. for whatever reason, my mothers room was typically at the end of the hall / ward and we figured it would result in less walking or work for the nurses.
if i'm in the middle of something (generally charting if i'm at the desk), if you call for something (and actually say what you want instead of just "i need the nurse."), then i can finish my thought, then go get it and bring it to you. if you come to the desk, you're going to stare at me like i'm not doing anything except playing on facebook, and i have to immediately stop what i'm doing to go fetch something for someone that more than likely isn't my patient. then i come back and try to find where i was in my charting, try to get back to what i was thinking about, and about that time, someone else comes up wanting something.
and generally, people that come to the desk can't be helped by one person, they stand there waiting for whatever it is to be fetched, and feel the need to converse with whomever is at the desk still. so two people are interrupted.
with shift change it's just the worst time, because for privacy reasons, nobody can give report with random people standing right there. so that request for ice, that could have come over the call light system, has now shut the floor down.
and what makes it worse is that we know that you think you're making it easier on us. we know that you're trying to be nice and helpful. so we know that it's not fair that we want to strangle the people that do this. so on top of being annoyed, we feel guilty for being annoyed!
if i'm in the middle of something (generally charting if i'm at the desk), if you call for something (and actually say what you want instead of just "i need the nurse."), then i can finish my thought, then go get it and bring it to you. if you come to the desk, you're going to stare at me like i'm not doing anything except playing on facebook, and i have to immediately stop what i'm doing to go fetch something for someone that more than likely isn't my patient. then i come back and try to find where i was in my charting, try to get back to what i was thinking about, and about that time, someone else comes up wanting something.
and generally, people that come to the desk can't be helped by one person, they stand there waiting for whatever it is to be fetched, and feel the need to converse with whomever is at the desk still. so two people are interrupted.
with shift change it's just the worst time, because for privacy reasons, nobody can give report with random people standing right there. so that request for ice, that could have come over the call light system, has now shut the floor down.
and what makes it worse is that we know that you think you're making it easier on us. we know that you're trying to be nice and helpful. so we know that it's not fair that we want to strangle the people that do this. so on top of being annoyed, we feel guilty for being annoyed!
ok, so maybe i'll come to understand this when i'm a nurse, but wouldn't it be real easy when the person walks up to say, "give me a second to finish this real quick" or "i'll be with you in just a moment" or "what room is your mother in? i'll have someone bring that in just a moment". there are polite ways to tell someone you cannot help them right away, and at the same time, you could say "if your mother needs anything else, just have her press the call button and we'll be happy to help". i would have understood perfectly if any of the nurses ever said that it would make things easier on them if we pushed the button, or explained that it makes things more difficult on them when someone comes to the desk. but, i never had a single one do that. they were always pleasant, and i waited when i needed to, it was no big deal. as someone else said, we just want to help, and you could let us know how else we could help.
like it or not, a hospital is a business as well. your patients and their visitors are still customers, and a little customer service goes a long way. i have worked in customer service for 15 years, so maybe this is why i feel this way, but it's true. sure the hospitals want to help people get well, but in the long run they are in it for the money just like everyone else.
Ok, so maybe I'll come to understand this when I'm a nurse, but wouldn't it be real easy when the person walks up to say, "Give me a second to finish this real quick" or "I'll be with you in just a moment" or "what room is your mother in? I'll have someone bring that in just a moment". There are polite ways to tell someone you cannot help them right away, and at the same time, you could say "if your mother needs anything else, just have her press the call button and we'll be happy to help". I would have understood PERFECTLY if any of the nurses ever said that it would make things easier on them if we pushed the button, or explained that it makes things more difficult on them when someone comes to the desk. But, I never had a single one do that. They were always pleasant, and I waited when I needed to, it was no big deal. As someone else said, we just want to help, and you could let us know how else we could help.
Like it or not, a hospital is a business as well. Your patients and their visitors are still CUSTOMERS, and a little customer service goes a LONG way. I have worked in customer service for 15 years, so maybe this is why I feel this way, but it's true. Sure the hospitals want to help people get well, but in the long run they are in it for the money just like everyone else.
Everyone is different. Perhaps it didn't bother those particular nurses at all. If it didn't seem to bother them, I wouldn't worry about it. Have a great day!
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For whatever reason, my mothers room was typically at the end of the hall / ward and we figured it would result in less walking or work for the nurses.
Ruby Vee, BSN
17 Articles; 14,051 Posts
i think you must have accidentally posted this in the wrong thread -- this one is about things you've said to patients' family members that you ought not to have.
by the way -- it's "bawling", not "balling". the latter would mean she was having sexual intercourse, and i shudder to think of the vigorous sex that would result in her eyes popping out!