Tips for Being a Good Patient

Nurses Relations

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I am not a healthcare professional although I am a professional in another field.

I am scheduled to have surgery next month and will be in the hospital for at least two nights following the procedure.

Would any of you be willing to provide some tips for being a "good" patient, promoting good rapport with my nurses, and hopefully receiving quality care?

One specific concern I have is that I suffer from enuresis at night. How will this be dealt with in the hospital? I don't want to make myself and this issue into a huge inconvenience for the staff. It's embarrassing but it's also the reality. Should I tell them about this problem or just let it happen if it happens? Should I bring my night time incontinence supplies with me?

thank you for any advice you can offer.

Bring a friend! I recently had two helpers post surgery and one spent the night, helping me, with the nurse, up to the bathroom as needed. It does keep the staff on their best behavior.

Specializes in Pediatrics, Mother-Baby and SCN.

As someone else stated, just by asking it shows you're probably a good patient :) I wouldn't worry much about it! Treat your nurses and all your health care workers with respect (not like slaves ;) ) and you should get along great! :)

Some general tips-

-Yes you should definitely tell about your enuresis, it's nothing to be ashamed of, it's not something you can control and we are here to help you :) The hospital will probably have some supplies but I would recommend probably bringing your own as it's what you're used to and probably more comfortable that way. I would inform them that this occurs sometimes/most of the time (whichever is accurate) and that you have brought supplies or that you need supplies. Since you're aware of it, it would be silly to just hope it doesn't happen, and more embarrassing if it did happen without being prepared. Preparation is definitely the way to go and will minimize the embarrassment factor for sure :)

- Make sure you provide an accurate list of meds and their doses. Bring the bottles along with you all in a bag so they can ensure it's accurate for your medication reconciliation (if you are on any medication)

- Try to be patient, sometimes it takes a little longer to get something than anticipated as the nurse may be pulled in many directions (ie. Doctor may grab you on the way to the med room asking questions about a patient, someone else may vomit in front of you and you need to help clean them up and give anti-nausea meds, etc!) No one is being "slow" on purpose :)

- Do the best you can to follow all your post op instructions. They are given for a reason, and will help you have the best recovery possible. These will vary depending on surgery performed. Some examples are using an incentive spirometer (blue breathing exercise device) at given intervals to keep your lungs well inflated to prevent pneumonia, walking certain amounts to prevent blood clots and promote healing, etc. Some of these things may be uncomfortable but will surely help you in the long run. Don't be afraid to use pain meds but also don't expect absolutely no discomfort. You shouldn't be in agony, but some discomfort will still be expected. I find some people aren't aware of this and have unrealistic expectations.

Good luck, I think you will do just fine!! Let us know how you got along :cat:

Specializes in Med/surg, Onc.
I get what you mean but what about modesty,especially for showering?? I know you're used to and everything but it doesn't make it any less strange or even incomfortable for the patient. I'd have a big problem with it.

Safety is my priority. I will do my best to keep you modest but if I think you need someone to help you shower or aren't safe in the bathroom by yourself someone will be with you. Very rarely are patients allowed completely alone by me for showering.

I get what you mean but what about modesty,especially for showering?? I know you're used to and everything but it doesn't make it any less strange or even incomfortable for the patient. I'd have a big problem with it.

I mean, cool, I get that, but falling and whacking your head on the floor would be even more uncomfortable than being eyeballed every few seconds by a nurse who, quite honestly, probably won't even remember you after you're discharged.

Specializes in Cardiology, Cardiothoracic Surgical.

1) Communicate with me. If you notice something is off or feels weird, don't hesitate to let me know. Many crappy situations have received prompt attention when the patient lets their nurse know what's going on, even if it's just a "feeling".

2) Bring activities to entertain yourself. Card games, electronic devices, books are all ways I see my folks keeping themselves occupied.

3) Don't hesitate to ask the doctor to further explain things to you. I will "break it down" for you as well.

Specializes in ER, Med-surg.

Definitely bring some of your own incontinence supplies; while hospitals stock them, they are rarely as nice or comfortable for patients as the ones they use at home (most hospitals don't stock the stretchy "pullup" kind but very large "one size fits none" briefs with tapes). And let your nurse know about it (both that you have your own supplies and that you may require assistance changing them as needed). It's really not a big deal at all, many if not most of my patients as a floor nurse had issues with incontinence, but if incontinence is a pre-existing issue and not a part of your admitting complaint, they won't know about it unless you tell them.

Hope you have a quick recovery!

Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.

If it were me, I'd bring my own incontinence supplies; if you don't, and you ask for a detailed bill, you will see how much more it will cost you to use hospital supplies. Any supply that has had a sticker on it, to place on a supplies record with your name on it, will be part of your charges; things that you would think would/should/or/used-to-be supplied to you gratis now costs, and at quite a mark-up!

Specializes in Infusion Nursing, Home Health Infusion.

No one can ever promise you will be completely pain free.We do however, do our best and can and will call the provider if the current pain medication order is not effective enough for you.Keep in mind though that we must keep you safe and respiratory depression is a real concern with IV narcotics.I just read about a patient death from the use of a PCA with morphine sulfate.The nurses failed to assess properly.So we are not being mean if we cannot give you more and we must follow the order exacetly as written!

Specializes in Cath/EP lab, CCU, Cardiac stepdown.

My biggest request is for the patients to call me when they need something. If it is my assessment that you should have help when getting up then please call me. It bothers me tremendously and will nearly give me a heart attack if you get up by yourself.

Safety is an issue and I do not want you to get hurt, not to mention all the headache that comes from having to file a safety/fall report. I don't tell you to press the call light because I have nothing better to do, I tell you to do it because I seriously think it's a safety issue. Don't worry about inconveniencing me because a fall will inconvenience me more. And also unless you want me to put a bed alarm that will ring like hell all the time, then it's best to call me when you need help. If you get better and follow pt instructions then I can consider switching you to getting up independently as long as you're steady. But for the love of God, let me determine it.

And in terms of privacy I do try to provide it. As long as you're alert and oriented, I have no issues with helping you to the bathroom and then standing outside the door. We have bars for you to hold onto and a string to pull that lights up the call light when you need help. But if you betray that trust, then I will assess you as impulsive and then that's when I'm always with you and I will put a bed alarm on.

Leave anything valuable and non-essential at home. Accidents do happen, stuff gets misplaced, thefts have happened, and it breaks our hearts but the hospital can't be responsible for lost/stolen items.

I especially second everything that has been said about preventing falls. I would rather help someone to the bathroom 20 times during my shift than have to pick them up off the floor once.

Just the fact that you're self-aware and conscientious about mentally prepping for your hospital stay makes me believe that you're going to be a fantastic patient. Please come have surgery at my hospital.

As a nurse, we are there to help you heal. But, as stated before, we are also human. A please and a thank you go such a long way. Let us know what we can do to make you more comfortable. We often have several patients that need our attention, so please remember if we don't get to you as soon as you call, it isn't because we don't want to, it is because we are trying to help someone else get comfortable too. I can honestly say that most of my patients are great patients. They treat us with respect. We take the best care of them that we can and most appreciate what we do. Please don't ever fear anyone from the nursing staff. Even if the worst patient were to walk through the doors, they would be treated with compassion and caring too.

As far as supplies, use whatever you are most comfortable with. The staff are use to this situation. You are not alone here. The hospitals have supplies and can certainly give them to you, but if you are more comfortable with your own supplies, bring them.

I appreciate you educating yourself in advance. I think that says a lot about you. Not many do this at this level.

Good luck with your surgery. It seems any nurse would be lucky to have you as a patient.

I was recently admitted to the hospital with acute GI bleeding - the nasty kind everyone hates to see walking thru the ED door.

I told them up front, that I had been a Critical Care nurse for 30+ years and how embarrassing and humiliated I was because I was in this situation. That it was Karma catching up with me dreading caring for patients in the same situation. Thankfully I found them to be very compassionate and understanding to my situation and genuinely respectful.

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