VIP rooms

[CountrifiedRN]

I have been to a few hospitals for clinical rotations and each of them has what are called VIP rooms. In one hosp it was basically a private room, all the other rooms had 2 beds. In the other two, there was a noticable difference in the decor of the VIP room from the other rooms. The VIP room had carpet and oak cabinets and a nicer bed, the regular rooms had standard hosp floor and white cabinets.

Anyone else have these? How do you feel about them?

IMO, every pt should be treated the same, regardless of economical status. And I think it is in poor taste to have an implied higher standard of treatment for what the hosp considers "VIP'S" (usually people who have donated lots of money, doctors family, or administrators) These rooms are in the same unit next to other "lower standard" rooms and pts/families walking by can see the difference in the rooms if the door is left open. What do you tell the pt when they ask why their room doesn't look as nice as that room?

[K O'Malley]

As far as I'm concerned, all rooms should be private. Every pt has a right to privacy. All the hoopla over the new HIPAA regs is moot when a pt's roomate and visitors can hear everything said about his condition and knows every treatment he is receiving.

[SmilingBluEyes]

Originally posted by K O'Malley

As far as I'm concerned, all rooms should be private. Every pt has a right to privacy. All the hoopla over the new HIPAA regs is moot when a pt's roomate and visitors can hear everything said about his condition and knows every treatment he is receiving.

I agree w/you!

[kaycee]

Originally posted by K O'Malley

As far as I'm concerned, all rooms should be private. Every pt has a right to privacy. All the hoopla over the new HIPAA regs is moot when a pt's roomate and visitors can hear everything said about his condition and knows every treatment he is receiving.

Absolutely I agree. Not only because of HIPAA but if you've ever been a pt, your roommate more often then not can be more of a pain then why you're in the hospital in the first place.

We also have a couple private rooms where I work that are a little fancier then the others with carpeting and such. You can certainly pay extra for a fancier room if you want but the nursing care will be the same as it is for everyone else. Almost non existent because there isn't enough staff!

[Dplear]

You want VIP rooms? Try Mehtodist Hospital here in Houston. They have what is called the Gold Coast rooms. These are suites that have sitting rooms and the main bedroom. They are carpeted with EXPENSIVE carpeting and they have original art work hanging on walls. One room used to haev a picasso hanging in it. They send up a chef to the rooms to make the diets for the patients/guests in those rooms. They have a basically 1:1 ratio for care and many of the people bring in their own help. They have house keeping just for these rooms and they are well kept up. These rooms start at about 20 thousand a day. They go to multi millionaires that are willing to pay for the care and for heads of states that are there for care. I have done a private duty job up there for a Saudi prince one time many years ago. Talk about luxury......

Dave

p.s. nothing wrong with having these types of rooms. If they will pay for it let them get it

[Buddha]

I cannot offer anything based on hospital VIP rooms but in LTC our private rooms have a long waiting list. We save one private room for an isolation room on the Sub-Acute unit. When we have a tour these room are "played up" making seem the norm for the facility. I have heard the Admissions Cordinator promise to move someone out if these room if they bring thier loved one in. Several admission we have had actually said. "She promised us the private room why isn't she/he there." They expected us to move someone out of a room to move their loved one in. We have had several MRSA or infectious patients moved to semi-private rooms just to bring a new pt in. (Remember Census!!! We were told). I never treat these patients better than anyone else but these patients usually expect it, the extra charge for a private room is just $10.00 a day. Not to mention the money we spend treating the new cases for staph or c-diff that just got spread to the new roomate.

[jemb]

I previously worked in a hospital that had VIP rooms. They were intended for use for celebrities, donors, board members -- which , incidently, never hired their own private duty nurses. If anything, a CNA would be pulled from the floor to "sit", leaving the rest of the patients with less staff. They had sitting areas, a small refigerator, and room for a cot. Most of the occupants in these rooms didn't make many extra demands (I say, MOST!).

Any extra cost for the room above the insurance payment was the responsibility of the patient or his employer. (lots of work related stuff.)

Employees of the hospital were also given these rooms at no extra charge , and when the hospital was full, they were just another bed for the next admit.

[BadBird, BSN, RN]

If someone is willing to spend extra money for a private room I see nothing wrong with that. In a perfect hospital all rooms would be private. VIP's donate a lot of money to hospitals and in turn will benefit a lot of poor and indigent people, I don't begrude them a nice room. It is like booking a hotel room, some stay at the Days Inn others at the Hilton it is just what you are willing to pay for. The care we provide is the same regardless of the room.

[RNonsense]

No VIP rooms here...we do have lots of private rooms that any person may have if they wish to private pay...

[LilgirlRN, ADN, RN]

There is a suite in each floor of the hospital where I work. Each suite has a sitting room that has a pull out couch. They have hardwood floors and nice beds with real comforters instead of the regular cotton spreads teh rest of the rooms have. Other than the room the pt. gets no preferential treatment.

[Flynurse]

They only "private" rooms we have are strict isolation. Oh! And they are in the process of making mother/baby rooms private as well! Which suits me just fine.

[fab4fan]

I agree that every pt room should be private.

A few years ago, I was admitted to the hospital, and there were no private rooms, so I was stuck with a nosy old-bat of a roommate. I was so sick, puking my head off. I heard her on the phone to one of her nosy old-bat friends saying, "Yes, I have a roommate...well, she's throwing up...I don't know why she's here, but I expect I'll get the whole story..." I kept pulling the curtain closed for privacy, and she kept pulling it back so she could pester me.

And I have had the misfortune of being in the hosp. and having a roommate find out that I was a nurse...good grief! You get bugged for everything when that happens.

No thanks; to me it's worth it to pay the extra for some peace and quiet.

And as far as VIP rooms...I worked for a hospital-based home hospice; the hospital set aside three rooms that they renovated beautifully for hospice pts that needed respite care. The catch? The rooms were also for "VIP's", because they were so lovely (hardwood floors, artwork, comforters, etc). I asked what would happen if a VIP was in the room and we needed it for a hospice pt; the answer was the hospice pt would have to go to a regular room (even though when the hospital advertised about these rooms they said the rooms were specifically for hospice pts only).

[P_RN, ADN, RN]

We had at least one "suite" on each floor, the had the same beds as all others. A pull out sofa that blocked the doorway was in there. A small refrigerator was in each one.

They were all the way down the hall, near the clock in station, public elevators, and visitors lobby and the head of the bed backed up to the soft drink machine in the lobby. They cost $40 more a day.....nursing care same as all others. I'd much prefer just your plain old private room that's quiet.

I do agree that semiprivate 2 or more beds is barbaric, archaic and yukky!