Yes your highness...I mean doctor!! rant!!!

[irish_std/n]

There is this one consultant in the hospital, he has a major reputation around the hospital as not being the most pleasant person to deal with. He treats the nursing staff like dirt and we have to have everything perfect for when he makes his rounds or he completly freaks out.

Yesterday it was my lucky duty to do his round. Anyway I go in and stand next to my patient while he discusses the pt with his team, he then states that he is going to examine the pt, proceeds to walk into me and says "kindly move to the other side of the bed like a good girl, didn;t they teach you in nursing school to always stand on the left hand side of the bed, its very important you know" so I move, and he's says to me ok I'll see the wound now theres a good girl... so I remove the dressing while he stands there tapping his foot. He goes out to wash his hands after the examination, and starts screaming at a random passerby about how there is no paper towel for him to dry his hands and that this is outragous where is the sister in charge etc...

so after his little tantrum he come back in, shouts for a certain referal form and when one of his docs goes to get it he trys to call em back saying oh no the nurse will get that for you, you dont have to get it! anyway doc gets form, consultant shouts more demands, turns to me and says "ok you can dress pt up now like a good girl....well done you did ever so well!!

aaaahhhhhh!!!:angryfire I thought the days of obeying the docs like they were God were well gone yet everyone practically falls to their knees when this guy comes around!! anyone ever experienced this? more importantly was anyone very taught to only stand on the left hand side of the bed when docs make their rounds!!!

[BJLynn]

Standing only to the left of the bed.....Never heard of that one. I'm lucky, the doctor I do clinic and rounds with is a pretty easy going guy. The worst I'll get is him looking over his glasses at me giving a stern look. Kind of the look a father gives his child. You know you have done something rather wrong when he looks over his glasses at you. His associates however, that is another story entirely. I argue with them on a regular basis. And by argue I mean I actually told one doc that his order was inappropriate and would he kindly be quiet while I finish explaining the situation to him. He actually appologized to me when he gave a more appropriate order.

I quit treating docs like gods and I have gotten more done for my patients. On the flip side, I have a reputation as being a bit of a pain to work with by some of the docs around here because I will argue with them. But then again, they still work with me so I can't be all that bad.

[suzy253, RN]

Ugh.

Know of several doc's reputations around the hospital for being like that.

A few weeks ago, the wife of an elderly dear was upset about not being notified about an MRI her doctor had ordered and the procedure was done. She was coming down on all the nursing staff. The doc goes in to see his patient and she's all up and down him too. Then he blames the nursing staff for him getting reamed out by the pt's wife. Oh poor baby. Went on and on about how he shouldn't have to put up with this crap, etc. etc. when finally the charge nurse heard enough and said something to the effect like 'why not, we have to put up with it and it's your patient'.

Arrogance. :angryfire

[doublej]

Long gone are the days when we, as student nurses, were taught and expected to stand when a physician came into our presence. There must have been a higher element of respect back then. One time I had a lady dr. throw a packet of pills across the nurses' station to me (in the middle of the night when she had to go get a medication from her office that they didn't have in the pharmacy). Then she went back into the patient's room with a professional and compassionate voice! Another dr. threw a phone and it hit the face of a nurse. You can believe she made a big deal out of it (don't blame her). Could it be that they don't like the fact that sometimes the nurses know their patients better than they do?

My recommendation of a dr. to someone, although their reputation is a major factor, would be based on their bedside and professional manner.

[emmycRN]

At my hospital there is a difficult surgeon who is very particular about everything, even where the chart is located when she makes rounds. She wants the chart always right outside the pt's room with certain information stuck to the outside with sticky notes. While she is standing there looking through the chart she will fire questions at you about lab values, ect. Like you have the chart memorized!!! On my first day on the unit she yelled at my preceptor because I had to go find the stuff (towels, suture removal kit, ect) to assist her like I was supposed to know she was on her way in and exactly what she was going to want to do when she got there. Also, she only wants certain nurses taking care of her patients and has made that perfectly clear. If she calls and one of her favorites is not there to speak to her she totally loses it and starts screaming. If I ever leave my current job it will be because of this particular doc who is impossible to work with. She definately thinks that all the nurses are there to cater to her every whim. Oh well. Maybe hospital administration will some day realize that the money disruptive surgeons/doctors bring in is offset by nursing turnover.

[rnsrgr8t]

You know you have done something rather wrong when he looks over his glasses at you.

This cracks me up!!! My father is a physician and he does the same thing. I always knew when I was in trouble when he peered at me over his glasses. I used to work in the same hospital he did and the nurses he worked with said he used to do the same thing with them! He never raises his voice or loses his temper but he will look at ya over his glasses! I thought he was the only one who did that.

[irish_std/n]

wow! so im not alone then:) hehe....why do we let fellow professionals treat us like this, we are not their subordinates nor are we their slaves right!!

[Antikigirl, ASN, RN]

I am sorry, but I am a professional nurse not a "little girl" and I would find that as harrassment big time and report him! I don't call my team, my docs, or my patients 'good little girl/boy' or "be a man about this" or "you are such a girly whimp"...my GOD! I would be so ticked I would have left the room directly to my supervisor!!!!!!!!!

I do not take this stuff from nurses or doctors! If so they have no respect for me and what I do, obviously don't need my skills as they stand..and would be out the door! Oh my gosh that just ticks me something livid!

What..does he want a sucker after his assessment like a good little boy? Did you warn him that if he isn't a good little boy he will get a shot? Sheesh!!!!!!!!!!

[Creamsoda, ASN, RN]

This behaviour is not going to change unless we

-Start repoting it the their higherups with each incident.

-Or Confront the physician. I think they continue to act this way because rarely anyone will confront them about it.

I also disagree with what one poster said about it being respectfull to stand when a doctor enters the room. I think that behaviour is rediculous. It continues to put the doctor on a pedestal. We dont live in the 60's and 70's where women were still expected to be stay at home moms. Were proffessionals just like the docs are. Im sure many of these doctors who act this way do it because they beleive we are beneath them. As much as we beleive we should all work in a proffessional environment, these doc's dont because they still think were they're hand maidens. Dont get me wrong, I will assist get stuff ect, but I dont want to be demanded or told like a child. We need to start standing up for ourselves or they will continue to act like children.

Cher

[augigi, CNS]

I would have asked him to step outside and explained that I am a professional colleague and I resent the language being used. What a patronising git.

[XB9S, BSN, MSN, EdD, RN, APN]

I have met consultants like this and have found that by standing up for yourself they tend to back off and show a little respect the next time. From your user name can I assume that you are still a student nurse, this may make it difficult or uncomforatble for you to do but most docs I work with know that if they want things done then the need to be nice to the nurses.

It may be worth having a word with your ward sister and asking her to address his attitude it may be better recieved from a senior nurse.

I had a house officer pat me on the back and tell me to run along once, it took all of my will power not to take the cannula I was about to insert from the patients arm and poke him up the nose with it. I asked for a quite word and informed him that if he wanted my help then he better start treating me with a little more respect.

As for standing on the left, as a nurse practitioner I help to teach the medical students and nurse practitioner students clinical examination skills and I know that in the UK they are taught to always examine from the left side of the bed, so by asking you to stand on the left would have been putting you right in the way of his examination.

There are not many doctors like this most of the docs I work with are great so don't be too disillusioned.

[PamUK]

In the UK (& I would think Ireland are very similar) this type of continued behaviour (stating "good girl" etc) would be classed as bullying. Ever thought of writing an incident form. Just state his behaviour in an objective way. Or talking to the medical director?? At the very least, an incident form would appear on his annual PDR (professional development review) I would get soooooo... much pleasure at that!!