What is your biggest nursing pet peeve?

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Nurses that are brilliant but do not know the difference between contraindication and contradiction! :rotfl:

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I am a nursing student, and my big pet peeve so far is floor nurses who decide to share valuable information, but they are dead wrong. It's fine to make a mistake, but don't pronounce it with great confidence in front of a student! One of my fellow students was chewed out by a fairly new nurse for not wearing gloves THE ENTIRE TIME she was in the room(there was no contact precautions.) I have been told information about patients that was dead wrong (because I had to scour the chart before coming in) but told with great authority. One nurse corrected my pronunciation of a procedure, and mispronounced it all over the place.

Please, if you are going to teach us, at least have the information correct!

And here is a big thank you to the nurses who take time to help students, who share correct information, who don't roll their eyes when the student comes to you for help, and are great teachers. Thanks! You know who you are!

Oldiebutgoodie

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Full code patients who are terminally ill , have end stage disease or are over the age of 80!
Could you please explain what you mean by full code pt over 80? Not trying to flame, just trying to understand.

My Dad was a full code while in hosptial for cancer treatment. He wanted everything done for him possible, he just felt he wasn't ready yet. Won't get into all the details, but he did code, things turned around and he lived cancer free for almost 10 years, which were really good years. What's wrong with wanting to live longer when your 80? Most of my relatives on both sides live well into their 90's. I'm hoping to be one of them!

Mama

forgot to mention he was 79 at the time of admission

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I think NS_RN meant full code for patients whom have no chance at any quality of life. I too find this infuriating.

Sounds like your dad wouldn't have fit into this category.

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Specializes in Registered Nurse.
oh - one more... i work in ob, and i just love it when a pt asks for pain med, and when i am about to give it they ask "will this hurt the baby?"

???????????????????

yes, it's going to kill your baby, that's why we give it to you!!!

or maybe i should say...

what??!! your're pregnant?? for god's sake why didn't you tell me????? i can't give this to you, it's poison!!!

i know, i know... they are right to worry and they are just being protective, but it still make me laugh (inside of course!)

i know what you mean! :chuckle

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Specializes in Registered Nurse.

Ruby Vee wrote:

4) Families who want to know how "Uncle Jimmy" is doing, become incensed when I quote HIPAA laws to them, and then claim they don't know how to get in touch with the patient's family to as them how he's doing. (Excuse me, but if you don't know how to get in touch with "Uncle Jimmy's" family, perhaps you don't know him well enough to be visiting him in ICU.)

Good one! I also get *internally* crazy with families who have several members who do not speak to each other -OR- they want to make sure you aren't talking out of two sides of your mouth, so you have to rehash the answers to questions with each family member that comes in (Of course, this is when the patient okays it...HIPPA, HIPPA, HIPPA!) When I can and it is appropriate, I refer them to the doc...which is a lot!

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Specializes in Registered Nurse.

LPN2B2004 wrote:

The customer service crapola. We're not Kmart, although some people seem to think that the ER is the Returns Desk. And that their room is Layaway. LOL

Cute! LOL

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Another one....those patients who insist they are nauseated (even induce vomiting so we can 'see' how nauseated they are), also refuse antiemetics, so they can refuse the po analgesics, demand an IV and 'the good stuff that will knock them out'.

These patient 'experts' who know more than we do about how to take care of them or their loved ones...they saw it on TV or read it in Readers' Digest. Cut us a little slack please. We've been doing this awhile...

And...I'm having a bad week can ya tell ...those families who camp out in ICU 24-7 and keep a notebook...writing down everything, and if they leave for a smoke break, want us to write down what we did EXACTLY while they are gone. When I politely say that is not something I have time to do, they report me, and I get reprimanded for being rude to family...our 'customer'. :(

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Specializes in Registered Nurse.
another one....those patients who insist they are nauseated (even induce vomiting so we can 'see' how nauseated they are), also refuse antiemetics, so they can refuse the po analgesics, demand an iv and 'the good stuff that will knock them out'.

these patient 'experts' who know more than we do about how to take care of them or their loved ones...they saw it on tv or read it in readers' digest. cut us a little slack please. we've been doing this awhile...

and...i'm having a bad week can ya tell ...those families who camp out in icu 24-7 and keep a notebook...writing down everything, and if they leave for a smoke break, want us to write down what we did exactly while they are gone. when i politely say that is not something i have time to do, they report me, and i get reprimanded for being rude to family...our 'customer'. :(

omg. that notebook thing is really annoying. especially that they even wanted you to put it in your own handwriting and words. why not write notes for all the patients families! (argh) :angryfire

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Not having a different lunch room from pts. family. During my lunch I don't want to talk about a pts. family member usually I don't want to talk about medicine. separate

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If anybody is going to take on a teaching role, they should know their stuff. It's hard enough being a student without getting false information.

Dinith, I hope you have a good day.

Oldiebutgoodie

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Specializes in ER/PDN.

My biggest pet peeve is when someone (a nurse or nurse aide) hears a pump beeping and shuts it off, still connected to my pt , don't tell me and then, when I go in a little while later, my IV is clotted off and no one owns up to who did it. I love and respect the nurse aides I work with and help all I can. I also know who will tell me and who won't so I usually have a pretty good Idea who to go to. Just my $0.02. ;)

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.
My point is that if anybody is going to take on a teaching role, they should know their stuff. It's hard enough being a student without getting false information.

Exactly...

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