Just curious to see what cockamamie things the rest of y'all have to put up with. I used to work in a locked psych facility, and there was a rule in place that stated the number of call ins you could have in a certain time period. After a certain number was reached, you had to be warned verbally.
Well, I was PRN, usually worked full time hours, and was often called in to replace the people who had called in for whatever reason. I began to notice a pattern. The same ones always called in, and most were never talked to about it. It was never mentioned. I had my 3rd call in about this time, and it just so happened that the DON chose to inform me of that fact on the day when I had agreed to work 4 16's in one week. I had the call book open, writing down a call in, when she came up and said, "You know you have 3 call ins, right?" I was incensed, but I looked down at the tally sheet, seeing all these others who were never bothered with such mundane details, then looked back at her and said,"Really? Three? Do I get a prize?"
I posted this a while back. I wasn't necessarily "called on the carpet", and my manager completely took my side, but TPTB insisted she 'counsel' me. I'm sorry, but there needs to come a time when administration just looks these idiots in the eye and tells them to take a hike.
Had a family once bring in grocery bags, and proceed to empty our kitchen of soft drinks, snacks, etc. They even took tube feeding formulas... and got all ticked off when they were told they could not take our patients food.
One of my favorite "I hate people" stories:
I was at the desk, taking off orders and doing some paperwork when the call light went off. A voice on the other end said "sorry, that was a mistake!" Which happens, except that the light was to a room at the end of the hall that was blocked due to a plumbing problem. It was the middle of the night, so I walked down to see what was going on. I opened the door and literally just stood there for a moment totally dumbfounded.
There had to have been at least 8 to 10 people in there; family members from one of our patients. I always check empty rooms, but never went to this one because it was marked as being shut down. These people had dragged in chairs from other rooms and the lounge. Patient recliners, etc. They were stretched out the on the floor on couch cushions, watching TV. All the way across the window sill was a buffet set up for them to graze as they partied the night away.
I regained my voice, and said "you all need to leave this room please". I was nice, probably because I was so stunned. They got in my face, nasty and telling me what did it matter, it was an empty room we weren't using anyway. I again told them that they would have to leave immediately. They hollered at me, got nastier, and said they were staying. I told them I'd would notify the supervisor and security if they refused to leave "...and by the way, the reason the room is not in use is because raw sewage over-flowed from the toilet and has contaminated the entire room."
The look on their faces was priceless. (especially those biting into their food lol)
I was reported to administration for telling them they had to leave that room. Part of me wished I'd let them stay, knowing why the room was closed--- but then I'd probably have ended up with them as patients infected with ecoli :angryfire
Received satisfactory for communication on a performance review and 3 months later I was suspended for "poor communication" with staff. It was a case of bullying and the psycho boss from HE double hockey sticks.
One of the doctors came on our floor one evening and asked me to do rounds with him. A patient of his had a fresh surgical wound and needed a dressing change. He requested a dressing tray, and I obliged. On the way back to my patient's room, the House Supervisor stopped me and asked me what I was doing. When I told her that I was getting a dressing tray for a doctor, she admonished: "That is NOT your job. "Get a tech to do it", she ordered.
I just looked at her and answered calmly and in my best professional tone: "No, I'm sorry, but it IS my job." She looked daggers at me, and I added: "Now if you will excuse me, MY patient and Dr. _____ are waiting on me", and I left her standing in the hallway.
Med surg telemetry unit. Lady patient in semi private room. Two very hovering concerned family members at bedside at the supper hour. Surgeon comes in to removed staples from abdominal surgery on this patient, calls me to the bedside to assist (with what I think, holding the bloody staples?).
With family members, and roomate and THEIR family members in full view - heaven forbid the doctor should pull the curtain. and he told me to leave things just as he had them set up when I tried to pull at least ONE curtain partway shut - doctor proceeds to removed staples. BINGO! Entire abdominal incision dehisces - patient screaming, family crying and screaming, roommate and family with their mouths agape!!! Surgeon hollering out orders left and right.
I am flying to the desk and Pyxises getting saline, gauze, pain meds, calling out to the unit sec to call for this and that.
Amid all the rushing, male visitor of a patient next door grabs me by the arm and asks if his "patient" he was visiting, can I get her a coke right now. I VERY POLITELY say. standing there with my arms full of supplies for the dehiscent patient, "I am in the midst of an emergency with another patient, can you please ask someone at the desk", which the desk was RIGHT OUTSIDE that room!!
Two days later I get called to the office, that man had reported me to the DON in person for being rude to him and NOT helping his loved one!!!!!!:trout:
I refused to sign the write up and told the ADON that as far as I was concerned he could have waddled down to the waiting room and bought a daggoned coke in less time that he took to raise hell over it.:angryfire:madface:
This has been probably five years ago and it still ticks me off to this day. This lack of respect for bedside nurses is why I am not at the bedside today.:balloons:
The charge RN came up to me, in the middle of an exceptionally stressful day, and tells me, "The pt in room XXX had all these complaints during my rounds. This has to be fixed NOW."
The complaints were ridiculous and coming from a woman who was MAD as hell that she was still in the hospital. She had a lap chole, and had expected to be in the hospital only overnight, but ended up having compliacations and staying for nearly a week. She was also one of those pts that would not do what, we were instructing her, would help (ie getting OOB and WALKING or even sitting up in a chair for that matter.)
I was sooo mad I told her, "Do not ever...EVER, come up to me again in the middle of an obviosly horrible day and make it even worse. I already cannot stand this pt and was having a difficult time, as it was, going into that room to kiss her butt when there is NOTHING I or anyone else can do to make her happy except 1) overdose her on dilaudid or 2) discharge her... and perhaps you should take in to consideration, before wasting any RNs time, WHO the pt, spewing out complaints, is and what they are really unhappy about"
I was really surprised she did not go to management about me, but she didn't. She also has never come up to me with anything like this again.
Being "too cheerful". A patient complained to the supervisor that I was too cheerful on the floor. A incident report was done and I had to be "counseled" by the supervisor. Well, it didn't change my personality. The patient got another nurse and the rest of the patients enjoyed my smiling and words of encouragement. I think the supervisor was actually a little embarrassed by the whole thing anyway.
Being "too cheerful". A patient complained to the supervisor that I was too cheerful on the floor. A incident report was done and I had to be "counseled" by the supervisor. Well, it didn't change my personality. The patient got another nurse and the rest of the patients enjoyed my smiling and words of encouragement. I think the supervisor was actually a little embarrassed by the whole thing anyway.
Hi graysonret: Good for you that you treat all with dignity! Just wanted to let you know I too, was "accused" of being to nice in a review. So stupid, and really like you said embarrassess them and continued to be yourself! A nice person.
A family member of a pt. in ICU complained that while I was watching the monitor in the pt's room I had my hands on my hips. Thats it and NM ask me about it. I never said a word to her I just sat there and stared at her. And then I just cracked up and laughed for a good 5 minutes. She told me it wasn't funny but I couldn't stop laughing.
another time I was working in ER during a bonafide disaster It was true pandemoniem (sp) People and pts everywhere covered with blood and mud. I was in the middle of a code doing Cpr when my NM had a wheelchair full of suture packs stopped at the door of the trauma room and told me to come with her to the cafeteria and help sew up the walking wounded. The VP of nursing was right behind her and just staring at her and said "Lets not bother her right now" The next day the NM called me into her office and she had written me up for not following her. And she was going to suspend me for 3 days. I took the write up to the VP and she threw it in the trash and told me to show up to my next shift. I never heard another word about it.
Specializes in FNP, Peds, Epilepsy, Mgt., Occ. Ed.
another time I was working in ER during a bonafide disaster It was true pandemoniem (sp) People and pts everywhere covered with blood and mud. I was in the middle of a code doing Cpr when my NM had a wheelchair full of suture packs stopped at the door of the trauma room and told me to come with her to the cafeteria and help sew up the walking wounded. The VP of nursing was right behind her and just staring at her and said "Lets not bother her right now" The next day the NM called me into her office and she had written me up for not following her. And she was going to suspend me for 3 days. I took the write up to the VP and she threw it in the trash and told me to show up to my next shift. I never heard another word about it.
Well, finally, proof that someone can actually make it in management without their brains falling out first!!
You can kinda understand patients and family members sometimes being unable to grasp what's really important and what constitutes a true emergency, but the stupidity of some administrators and managers still amazes me!
For hanging up the phone on a supervisor twice on one day. However, at that time I was working in psych and we had some very unstable patients, no time to explain or say bye, just hang up and get to the patient. The self-centered supervisor still wanted an apology, and I think she is still waiting to get one. LOL:devil:
I got a call from our "pt care advocate" that I had to apologize to a pt's niece because her Aunt had received gravy on her meatloaf. I thought that it was a practical joke from a co-worker. Nope, it was for real.
I informed the advocate that I was not the cook, the pt had selected her own menu choices and that I had 1000 things to think about that were more important than that loonie family member!
I had given a request to this same niece that she not stand on a rolling stool to decorate the upper walls with stickers. #1 she could fall and break something and #2 we had just had the ward painted!
Dealing with idiots takes up so much of our time!!
EmmaG, RN
2,999 Posts
Strive for 5 !!! But don't be too nice!!! It's a wonder we're not all psycho...