What is with this angry nurse?

[itsybitsy]

***Some things are specific to the speciality but I want a general nurse reply as it can happened anywhere! Thanks.***

Please tell me I'm not the crazy one!

I work have worked in the NICU for about 3 years. Over the years, I have noticed some nurses on the opposing shift are a bit feisty but I have gotten over it for the most part. BUT, this small stupid thing has put me in a tizzy (sp?), and I more so need to vent than anything, but all are welcome to input your little "over-the-edge" incidences and what you do in response/to get over it.

So to the point. I was having a really fantastic day; all my babies were cooperative, all quietly snuggled back in, parents all had a good (as good as it can get) day. It was not crazy admit day or let's make a bunch of changes day - IT WAS A GOOD DAY! It was nearing the end of my shift and as I almost always do unless we are slammed, I made the haul to restock all of my patients' supplies, any and everything they would need for the next 2 shifts.

Shift change happens and I give report on my first two babies and I come to my third who is a different nurse taking them. I start my report as always, name, parents, etc. After the whole introduction, I casually skipped to the respiratory support. In the middle of saying, "I have only titrated my Os between 24% an--" the nurse butts in, holds up her hand and says, "Please,... (*hand to a fist now*) what's the patient's history?" Me: Uhhhh, PTL.

THAT WAS IT... PTL. You know, I thought about it, and yea, maybe I should have said PTL before jumping right into the whole gaggle. Maybe I should have also added the 3 weeks old apgar scores and the whole resuscitation efforts. Maybe I should have gone through the whole pregnancy timeline.

I know, I'm going too far but it kinda irked me. Yes, if there is a significant amount of history, I will start with that. But seeing as it was such a short and kinda insignificant history, it slipped my mind this time. (Serious on the apgar scores, I'm not telling you 3 week old apgar scores unless it's like 0,0,2,4,5,7)

And to be honest, I would not even mind to have stopped right there to say the history had it not been asked of me in a completely ******* rude way and tone. Honestly, I would have even given an, "Opps, sorry."

I just don't get it. What makes people behave like this after not even being somewhere for 5 minutes. I get you have a life, but don't treat people like scum of the earth just because your mind cannot get over having respiratory before history. Like, MY GOD, sorry I ruined your day...

Sorry, I know I took a mole hill and turned it into a mountain. I get that. What I don't get is how people lack a decent sense of manners.

Thanks for reading. But please do leave your experiences NICU and non-NICU. These situations happen everywhere, so even if you have them, say your non-nursing related stories too. I like to read on your guys experiences which far outweigh mine!

[sop832]

I also think she means preterm labor. I googled it, and got:

Praise The Lord

Pedro the Lion (band)

Pass The Loo

Part Time Lover

Pay the Lady (National Thoroughbred Racing Association)

Pushing the Limits (gaming team)

Post Tenebras Lux (Latin: Light After Darkness)

Push-The-Limit

Passion Tea Lemonade (beverage)

... You did say that you wanted general nurses to chime in, but it's hard when I can't decipher your meaning ...

Pick of the litter

[Mhsrnbsn]

There Will always be nurses that are *hem hem* anal. I have a couple on my day shift that are like that and I HATE doing report with them. There are nurses you can do report within 10 minutes clean your mess and head for home, then there are nurses that take you till 7:30 or more cause they want it all.

I have reminded these nurses on several occasions, "I only report the meat and potatoes, and if I don't relay something important to you, it is because it was not relayed to me. I too have responsibilities I need to tend to over night"

no I probably am not aware of the fact it was bone on bone pre joint replacement and their DJD diagnosis was over 10 years old... But that also doesn't save their lives in an emergency... But the surgery they had, who the surgeon and attending is, last set of vitals, last time medicated with PRNs and what it was as well as dose, their progress with therapy, any specifics (crush meds, aspiration precaution, no BP in L/R arm, due to void). Maybe I should be more descriptive, but I just don't have the time or desire to explore the chart, so long as they are stable and I have the meat and potatoes I'm happy! And sorry but what rehab, ALF, or home

health agency the patient will be discharge with doesn't matter to me! And can easily be found by you when you're ready to discharge or call report over, there are no case managers at night so a patients discharge is far from my mind.

everyone is different, and everyone finds different pieces of info important. The only thing I can really suggest is to just breath through the rudeness, and Spanish Inquisition of a report, tell them what you know. if you don't know it offer to look it up but remind them they can look it up for themselves too. In intensive care especially things can change by the minute! Some hills are just not worth dying on.

If you feel so strongly about this I would ask coworkers how they feel about giving report with this nurse. If you're the only person with a problem maybe it be best to request your charge nurse not assign you to patients she has had. And explain why you would rather not have hand off with her. If it is multiple nurses that get issues from her band together and direct this to your manager, everyone has a right to be respected, and there's ways to ask for the info you seek without being rude. She may need a reminder about this from her boss, she may not even be aware of the fact she comes across as ******!

[marienm, RN, CCRN]

I just got report the other day from a newer nurse on our unit who had taken report from the recovery room. She said to me 'the pt has a hx of ES, so they didn't want to give too much fluid.' I asked 'what's ES?'...she's looked chagrined and said I'm not sure, just that her heart isn't very strong so they didn't want to overload her.' I said, 'sounds like CHF.' She said 'yeah, I guess so, but I'd swear [recovery nurse] said ES!' Pt arrives, and after I get her settled I'm talking to her spouse who says 'she had an echo recently and her Ejection Fraction is 30%.' OH! ES = EF (easy to mis-hear on the phone)! Now I get it!

[BeenThere2012, ASN, RN]

I just got report the other day from a newer nurse on our unit who had taken report from the recovery room. She said to me 'the pt has a hx of ES, so they didn't want to give too much fluid.' I asked 'what's ES?'...she's looked chagrined and said I'm not sure, just that her heart isn't very strong so they didn't want to overload her.' I said, 'sounds like CHF.' She said 'yeah, I guess so, but I'd swear [recovery nurse] said ES!' Pt arrives, and after I get her settled I'm talking to her spouse who says 'she had an echo recently and her Ejection Fraction is 30%.' OH! ES = EF (easy to mis-hear on the phone)! Now I get it!

See now, I would have asked for clarification, because everyone has "...a history of EF", of some percentage, otherwise we wouldn't be alive! LOL!