I hate my nurse

Hey, America… at what point did we decide it was acceptable to treat our nurses like shit? When did we, as a society, decide it was a good idea to verbally and physically abuse the people CARING for us?! Get ready, this is gonna be a long one. (Side note, I say nurses, but this genuinely applies to all healthcare providers)

As health care providers, how many times can we say we’ve been treated horribly? Me, personally… I can’t keep track. Hell, I can’t even keep track how many times it happens IN ONE SHIFT. ONE SHIFT… one chunk of 12 hours of my time and I can’t keep track of how many times people treat me like I am the scum of the earth. I am sure that goes for most of us in this profession.

It happens across the board, throughout the different departments. In my experience, I’ve had it happen much more frequently in the ER. We see a vast number of humans in one day, so it makes sense… more patient contact, more abuse. Yes I’m going to use the word abuse. Because, people, that is EXACTLY what it is. How would you feel if every day you went into your job and had people screaming and cussing at you all day… or, God forbid, try to physically harm you? Probably get a new job? Change career paths? Well, guess what, as health care providers we do it every day… and we keep coming back.

As a whole, nurses go into this field because we have a passion for caring for others. We want to help. We want to heal. As your nurse, I am there to do whatever it takes and whatever I can to keep you safe and improve your health. Sometimes the things I need to do are unpleasant… they hurt. I do not perform these tasks with malice. I perform these tasks because a little bit of pain is necessary sometimes in saving your life or “making you better”.

I have had patient berate me because their IV hurt. Well, it’s a needle piercing your skin… it isn’t going to feel like a kitten licking you. But I need that IV so I can draw blood and give you medicine to make you better or decrease your pain. I’ve had patients cuss me out while I am applying a splint because “you’re trying to make it hurt!”. No, your bone is broken. I am applying this splint to keep it from breaking more and therefore, causing you more pain and potentially surgery.

I have had patients and patient’s parents who will demand that “you people need to put me under before you do this, because it’s going to hurt too much”. This is absolutely fucking ridiculous. The act of “putting someone under” is a vast lay-mans term for a multi-level procedure. There are several levels of sedation that span from keeping a patient relaxed, but completely awake to completely unconscious and intubated. In each case, there is a risk of complications. To achieve sedation, the drugs we give compromise the respiratory system, depending on the amount given. This means your breathing is affected. You can literally stop breathing. We only perform sedation, at any level, when it is medically necessary for the patient; meaning the benefit outweighs the risk. So, no, I’m sorry, a mild to moderate amount of pain endured during a simple procedure is NOT a benefit that outweighs the risk of sedation.

Another problem I encounter is patients and patient family members that will compare my 4 YEAR MEDICAL DEGREE with a 30 second Google search. And then get nasty with me when I try to educate them because their bullshit internet knowledge is wrong! I’m sorry, but WHEN did you graduate medical school? Oh, you didn’t? You googled your symptoms and what they could mean? So NOW you’re going to tell me I am doing my job wrong because you GOOGLED IT?! I’m sorry, but fuck you. I went to school for a long time and studied countless hours to obtain the knowledge necessary to care for human beings… and that STILL didn’t completely prepare me for the clinical world until I was immersed in it every day and experienced health problems hands-on day in and day out. My experiences have taught me what to look for and why. My clinical judgment is what stands between my patients and poor outcomes. So DO NOT question me with “knowledge” you obtained on some bullshit website. Instead, ASK ME these questions. ASK ME why we are running certain tests and administering certain medications… or on the flip side, why we are NOT running some test or giving you a certain medication. Because there are reasons… and Google doesn’t know it all.

Patients will become irate and irrational when they do not get what they think they need or deserve. Reasoning with these people is exhausting. I’m not saying you should trust every health care provider without a shadow of a doubt… but instead of being a colossal douche, maybe ASK questions in a calm fashion. If you think the doctor is some quack and doesn’t know what he’s doing… ask the nurse questions. If you question your nurse’s ability, ask another one. But, seriously, people, STOP resorting to violence and verbal abuse just because you “feel” a certain way.

Another problem that is on the rise is the number of psych patients being held in the ER. Psych patients pose a particular problem, because not all of them are violent, but most of them are not in a proper state of mind… and this is why they are seeking help. The psych population is the most dangerous I have come across in the ER, because an ER is not equipped to manage them in the right way. Psych patients require staff that is specially trained to manage them and help get them into a better state of mind. This system of “dumping” psych patients in the ER for days on end is fucking horrible. They need psych specialty docs who can delve into the specific problems they are having and help them. The ER IS NOT equipped for that kind of treatment. So what ends up happening is these people get dumped in the ER to be medically cleared and await placement in a facility that is equipped to get them the proper treatment that they need. But that process can be long and frustrating… and these patients snap. Its a danger to staff, other patients in the department, and the psych patients themselves. More often than not, the highest risk of violence lies in this population of patients. The system needs some serious remodeling.

In summary, I should not have to walk into my job and wonder if I’m going to get assaulted. I shouldn’t have to tolerate patients verbally berating me for simply doing my job. So, for all you entitled pieces of shit who think just because I didn’t give you what you WANTED that it’s ok to fucking HIT me and cuss me, fuck you. I do my job to the best of my ability and will fight tooth and nail to advocate for what my patients NEED… but I will not tolerate being a victim to unnecessary violence. Pull your head out of your ass, America. Be good to your nurses.