Nurses and Doctors and how to get on with them.

 

Nurses and Doctors are just people like me and you. OK, they’re cleverer in the medical sense, but at the end of the day, they have a job to do, and like us, they can find it enjoyable or horrible, depending on the day they’ve had and the people they’ve had to deal with.

I don’t know for a fact what works; but here are a few of the ideas that I have used, which seems to have built up a good relationship almost immediately with them.

 

When calling for a nurse, initially use the little button beside your bed. Do not yell out Nurse, Nurse, as if calling for a lost child.

 

Don’t forget that priorities in a hospital can be critical, and just because a nurse or doctor can’t immediately come to your bedside, doesn’t mean they’ve forgotten about you. They could well be attending to an emergency. If you think about it, the next time you’re the emergency, would you want them to be running off to fill somebody's water jug?

 

Do not dare click your fingers at them for attention.

A waiter in a restaurant would be offended if you attracted their attention like this, and you will need the nurse, it’s not generally optional.

When a nurse or doctor is talking to you, they usually have the advantage of your name being shown above the bed, so they don’t have to remember it, and I think that it lends a nice touch to the conversation, so I always try to find out the first names of everyone I come into contact with, and use it every time I address them, that way it’s more personal.

 

Don’t waste their time asking them to pull your bedclothes up for you, or plumping your pillows, unless you’re at death’s door, or really can’t do it for yourself. They have better things to be doing.

 

Don’t continually ask “when can I go home?” It’s simple and I’ll answer it for you now, without even knowing your medical history. You can go home when the doctor tells you; not before. Nurses don’t make these decisions.

As you probably know, there is usually a shortage of beds, and the doctors are constantly looking for free beds for other patients, but although you might feel well enough to leave, you could well catch an infection once you leave, which would not only mean another stay in hospital, but potentially, a longer stay. Simply because of impatience.

Doctors are the experts and they will discharge you only when you are healthy enough to do so.

 

Treat the staff like you would like to be treated yourself and you can’t go wrong.

 

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