What is your least favorite kind of med-surg patient?

PHTLS · Mar 5, 2005

I hate the phony patient that's constantly complaining of pain and is asking for MS Contin, Roxanol, Dilaudid, Vicodin, Tyco# 3, Codeine, and Percocet every freaking 3.8 hours (some of these clowns don't even wait the full 4 hours on some of these PRN pain meds).Drug addicts! I'm glad I left that hospital.

meownsmile, BSN, RN · Mar 9, 2005

You know we had a patient one time who was in and out repeatedly with abdominal pain following a gallbladder. She had gone to a neighboring town and had a procedure first in attempts of getting the gallstone stuck in her duct without having to cut it out.

We finally, after consulting with the other doctor found she had a dilated common duct sphincter and her pain was going to be there off and on the rest of her life. So she was actually having pain,, it was just a matter of trying to help her manage it with diet and medication. She hasnt been back since.

But outwardly and i did hear many say,, she was a drug seeker,, mental problems, imaginary pain,, etc. Quite a few hated to take care of her. But she really was in pain and there was nothing we could do to prevent it but teach her to adjust her diet and how to use her pain medication wisely.

But personally,, i hate the involved patient with central lines,, big dressings and in MRSA isolation. I HATE the garb. I come out feeling like i just walked out of a shower from the sweating.

Nurseboy1 · Mar 9, 2005

DRUG SEEKERS

I can deal with anything else, but the drug seekers make me feel like a legal drug dealer.

mommatrauma, RN · Mar 13, 2005

The discharged kind...are my favorite...

abd pain and sickle cellers are my least..

NancyJo · Mar 14, 2005

Frequent flier drug seekers and it seems we have alot here. We have several who are discharged for the weekend and present back in er on Sunday night or Monday morning. It never ceases to amaze me the intractable abdominal pain, n/v pt.'s who the minute they hit the floor are asking for something to eat and then get upset with me because the doc has ordered clear liquids. They are the ones who order out pizza or have someone bring something in and then c/o nausea. Go figure.

I also had a pt. with exacerbation of asthma the other day who was to be a direct admit from the doctors office. She showed up 4 hours after she left the office which is across the street. States she had things to do. Reeked of cigarettes and was in obvious resp distress, and then complained when I told that hospital policy prohibits pt.'s from leaving the floor to smoke.

live4today, RN · Mar 14, 2005

It's not so much the diagnosis of the patient that gets to me, but the attitude and disposition of the patients who are in their right mind but act as if the world should sit at their feet and be blessed. THAT kind of attitude gets to me. They don't care that you have ten other patients...just bring them what they want when they want it and smile nicely each time. :uhoh3:

VanillaPalamino · Mar 25, 2005

It's not so much the diagnosis of the patient that gets to me, but the attitude and disposition of the patients who are in their right mind but act as if the world should sit at their feet and be blessed. THAT kind of attitude gets to me. They don't care that you have ten other patients...just bring them what they want when they want it and smile nicely each time.

Right......and it's usually not even the PATIENT, it's their families! :rolleyes:

I swear, we just had one that boggled all our minds.

Not going into specifics, but I began to wonder if Munchausen's by proxy might have been involved......grrrr......

....also cannot stand the families who think that having their "loved one" in the hospital means FREE MAID SERVICE! :angryfire

LPN01112005 · Apr 4, 2005

Mine definately would be the patient with pancreatitis. Although they have elevated levels of Amylase and Lipase and do belong in the hospital they always seem to be the most difficult patient for me to deal with.

I'm a nurse and I've also been one of those difficult pancreatitis patients. Even with the morphine PCA, IV demerol and phenergan, the pain and nausea were unbearable. I KNOW I was a terrible patient, but honestly, I couldn't help it. For 17 days (that is how sick I was) I was hospitalized with acute pancreatitis and for 15 of those days, I wished for death.

I think for me, I find it most difficult to care for the oncology patients, because too often, they've lost all hope and it's just a sad place to be in. I work LTC and I have a liver ca patient now. He's terminal and his family isn't coping well. I just feel so helpless. He's waiting on a bed at a Hospice, and I feel terrible, but every night before my shift I find myself hoping that he's been d/c'd to hospice. Not because I don't want to care for him, but because I don't feel like I'm able to meet his and his family's emotional needs the way a hospice facility could.

lady_jezebel · Apr 15, 2005

1st: The pts that treat me like a waitress or personal servant.

2nd: The very obese patients that need constant help using the bedside commode. It's hard to move them, and takes a lot of time (which I never have).

happylush · Apr 21, 2005

Chronic alcoholics/druggies

Fiona59 · Apr 22, 2005

The one clutching pharmaceutical books, who research every pill they take before taking it, even though you've explained its exactly the same meds they were on at home. Who then wants to debate their INR levels and maybe the Coumadin should be Increased/decreased....

mattsmom81 · Apr 22, 2005

Those who write down your name, the time and everything you do while you're in the room; or those who want to tape record or film.