Welcome To The Hospital - From Your Nurse

Nurses General Nursing

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Welcome to the hospital. From your nurse.

This is not your home. It is the place where your doctors, nurses, and therapists will get you better to return home.

Hi new patient's family. Can you please refrain from speaking so I can ask your family member some pertinent questions?

Since this is not your home, do not expects the comforts of home, such as a luxury bed.

Those hospital beds are not the greatest. However, they are designed to help prevent your skin from breaking. You're welcome.

When was the last time someone cooked a whole meal for you? If you don't like it, bring something from home, but don't complain.

Missing your personal slave? Didn't think so. Hi! I'm your nurse and I have 4 other people to take care of in addition to you.

RN. Refreshments and Narcotics. Huh?

Your pain is at a 10/10? Really? So as somebody is cutting your leg off with a saw you make personal phone calls and laugh at a Facebook post?

Actually you do need an IV. And I don't just put them in people because I'm a sicko who likes sticking sharp objects into people. (I do like getting them in though).

If you think you can dictate which order I give your medications (which tend to include Benadryl, Dilaudid, and Zofran), you don't belong in this hospital.

I feed my patients. Not their visitors. Unless I feel bad for them.

You will be woken up. Multiple times. While you're sleeping.

Don't think you can threaten me by refusing to take your medications. Less work for me!

I asked a simple question. When did you last move your bowels? I don't need the extended edition.

Keep your arm straight if you don't want that machine to beep.

Those bubbles in the IV tubing won't kill you.

Wouldn't a family reunion be so much more peaceful in your own home, at a park, or somewhere spacious.

If you don't want to deal with me and my expectations, there's a hotel down the street.

See you next month!

Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.
No, I wouldn't be miffed Jensmom7. I don't attack people. I don't believe in being negative. I joined this forum for HELP with my father since it was recommended to me by a nurse as a place to get honest answers. I may not know nurses but I know people. Here, like in the hospital, the negative people ruin it for the rest.

And here's where the nurse who directed you to this place is wrong. This place doesn't exist for patients or lay persons to gain answers to their questions about the hospital. We get enough of that when we're in the hospital, or our respective areas, caring for people. This is our space on our off time to connect with those who can identify with the idiosyncrasies of our profession.

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Specializes in Hospice.
No, I wouldn't be miffed Jensmom7. I don't attack people. I don't believe in being negative. I joined this forum for HELP with my father since it was recommended to me by a nurse as a place to get honest answers. I may not know nurses but I know people. Here, like in the hospital, the negative people ruin it for the rest.

I'm sorry, but as a responsible nurse, I would never direct a non-nurse to this site for answers to questions.

First of all, it is against the TOS of this site for any of us to provide medical or legal advice.

Second, this is not an educational site for the average person. It's for nurses, and largely for nurses to discuss "nursey" things amongst themselves.

Third, we spend a large portion of our day explaining things to people, sometimes over and over and over. To expect it from us when we are off duty, and you aren't even our patient or related to one of our patients, is pretty presumptuous on your part.

This is one reason I wish TPTB hadn't decided to make this site available on FaceBook. It's for nurses (in all their stages of development, once they actually get into a nursing program. "Pre-nursing" doesn't count. That's just gen ed, to weed out those who won't make it into a program) not the general public.

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No, I wouldn't be miffed Jensmom7. I don't attack people. I don't believe in being negative. I joined this forum for HELP with my father since it was recommended to me by a nurse as a place to get honest answers. I may not know nurses but I know people. Here, like in the hospital, the negative people ruin it for the rest.

no we are ruining it for you because you do not belong here, please take the "hint" and stop posting. We have to explain things over and over again to you so please take yourself out of the conversations. As already addressed, this site is for medical professionals not for us to educate the public on our role. We also shouldn't have to censor ourselves because you can't comprehend the reasoning or humor behind our posting.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.
I'm sorry, but as a responsible nurse, I would never direct a non-nurse to this site for answers to questions.

First of all, it is against the TOS of this site for any of us to provide medical or legal advice.

Second, this is not an educational site for the average person. It's for nurses, and largely for nurses to discuss "nursey" things amongst themselves.

Third, we spend a large portion of our day explaining things to people, sometimes over and over and over. To expect it from us when we are off duty, and you aren't even our patient or related to one of our patients, is pretty presumptuous on your part.

This is one reason I wish TPTB hadn't decided to make this site available on FaceBook. It's for nurses (in all their stages of development, once they actually get into a nursing program. "Pre-nursing" doesn't count. That's just gen ed, to weed out those who won't make it into a program) not the general public.

I agree. Sometimes I wish credentials were required to join this site, such as your license number, or your RN/BSN program name.

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I understand your daughter's second cousin twice removed wants to speak to the doctor in person. I'd love to be able to speak to him in person too! Guess what. Neither of us will get our wish. Doctors are like cats - they don't come when you call and I can't herd them.

I'm terribly sorry you can't eat for 7 hours because you have sedation coming up. I can't imagine what that's like AT ALL. Still doesn't mean you can scream, throw things, threaten the staff, or call your mommy and tell her we're starving you.

I know it's hard to see grammy/grampy screaming, swearing, hitting/biting/pinching, and calling you by the neighbor's name. It isn't helping when you keep telling grammy/grampy how wrong they are and arguing with them about it really being 2015 in Kansas, not 1943 in Germany. Just leave. Please. They won't remember you left, and you won't piss them off to the point of needing sedation.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.
I understand your daughter's second cousin twice removed wants to speak to the doctor in person. I'd love to be able to speak to him in person too! Guess what. Neither of us will get our wish. Doctors are like cats - they don't come when you call and I can't herd them.

I'm terribly sorry you can't eat for 7 hours because you have sedation coming up. I can't imagine what that's like AT ALL. Still doesn't mean you can scream, throw things, threaten the staff, or call your mommy and tell her we're starving you.

I know it's hard to see grammy/grampy screaming, swearing, hitting/biting/pinching, and calling you by the neighbor's name. It isn't helping when you keep telling grammy/grampy how wrong they are and arguing with them about it really being 2015 in Kansas, not 1943 in Germany. Just leave. Please. They won't remember you left, and you won't piss them off to the point of needing sedation.

I had a patient read me the riot act recently because she was ordered q4hr CK draws to monitor rhabdomyolosis. Not only did she refer to me as a "vampire" (even though I wasn't the one drawing her blood), she also felt the need to call her mother and kvetch to her about her "mistreatment" and discuss how the staff was "performing medical experiments" on her. She not only requested to speak to a PR representative, but also requested the number of a patient advocacy lawyer. All for an expected, reasonable, and evidence-based practice in monitoring her condition. Sheesh!

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Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
I joined this forum for HELP with my father since it was recommended to me by a nurse as a place to get honest answers. .

And there's the rub; you got your honest answers and because you don't like them, WE are the ones at fault, being "negative".

Sorry, that's not how public forums work (any of them)----you don't get to post judgmental words against the group for whom the forum is designed and not get called on it.

You got your honest answers, and still, you complain. Your friend was very mistaken sending you here for your "honest answers". The place to get satisfaction is not this forum, but the patient advocates at the hospital with which you need to lodge these complaints. Not here.

Seriously, I am sorry your had trouble with staff/care at the hospital. No one here would advocate lousy care or rudeness on the parts of staff at any hospital.

But you are not going to get what you want here, which is absolute validation/appreciation and answers that sound good to your ears. Besides, no advice here would likely be useful because the information is indeed very much one-sided (yours) and we were not there.

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Specializes in SNF, Home Health & Hospice, L&D, Peds.
I just have to say this...."please don't let the door slap you in the butt on your way out". OP to me has a sense of humor and that humor has nothing to do with the quality of the care they deliver or the depth with which they care about their patients. I agree with OP that if that kind of humor is not your cup of tea hit the back button and go to another thread. No one twisted your arm to make you read it. Disagree and go on.

This is a public forum and as such (and myself being a nurse with 26 years experience) I have the right (because apparently if you're not a nurse, you are not allowed to have an opinion) to post my thoughts. Same can be said to you... No one twisted your arm to read my comment, so pass on by, but I am not going to hold my thoughts for you, with all due respect.

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Specializes in SNF, Home Health & Hospice, L&D, Peds.
Some of these responses illustrate why I really wish AN would not post threads on their Facebook page. It's like a beacon for non-nurses when, although public, this site us primarily for nurses and nursing students. Please, AN, stop sharing our vents on Facebook!

Until I read this post I had No idea that these threads were posted on Facebook, that is NOT okay!

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Specializes in critical care.
I'm sure you don't like hearing it and with what you and Lev

IV starts are invasive and pose a risk of infection. No, we don't generally start a new IV only because the location of the initial one isn't ideal. Trust me - AC space IVs are annoying to those of us working inpatient, too.

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Specializes in critical care.
So,the patient's comfort just doesn't matter?

If you had to choose between discomfort and sepsis, which would you prefer? I'm sorry if this is shocking, but yes, there are times when comfort has to be secondary to medical treatment plans. This doesn't just apply to IVs, either. It applies to absolutely every aspect of care in the hospital. Do you want us to get you better? Or you want us to get you sicker?

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Welcome to the hospital. From your nurse.

Your pain is at a 10/10? Really? So as somebody is cutting your leg off with a saw you make personal phone calls and laugh at a Facebook post?

I feed my patients. Not their visitors. Unless I feel bad for them.

You will be woken up. Multiple times. While you're sleeping.

Keep your arm straight if you don't want that machine to beep.

See you next month!

As a recent patient, here's my replies:

Yes! That damned doctor gave me a nitro which was a life changing experience for me. I came in with a headache that was a strong 7/10 (and trust me, I have a strong tolerance for pain). That nitro shot it straight up to a 10. Thankfully, it was a short lasting 10.

My hospital was awesome about feeding my husband and mom. For the record, they never asked for it, nor expected it. Dietary would just show up with three trays. My mom offered multiple times to pay them, they refused stating it was part of the service there.

I totally understand the waking up thing. I don't understand the need to come in like a thundercloud. Some nurses would come in quietly, do their vitals, check my IV, talk softly, and were very, very pleasant. Some came in like a storm cloud, flipping on every light in the room (and leaving it on when they left!), banging around, making as much noise as humanly possibly. (What did I learn here? Shhhhhh if possible.)

No matter how hard I tried that damned machine would beep. Trust me, it drove me as crazy as it did you. I know the mechanics of it and I still couldn't keep it from beeping. The nurse told me it was "sensitive." I about cried.

God willing, you won't see me again!

Now...all of that said, I completely understand where you are coming from. I've seen a hospital stay from both sides of the bed and I get where you're coming from. I had mostly great nurses and a few that I thought should have chosen another specialty. Perhaps professional wrestling.

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