to think SOME nurses are in the wrong profession.

[pink1978]

Prompted by an incident where a relative with a really bad fracture overheard a conversation along the lines of. "If she like that with pain relief" In fact pain relief wasn't working.
There have also been lots of other incidents with other people I know and things I have witnessed on the wards with other patients.

Well OP, a complaint was once made about myself and colleague as a patient said they had overheard us saying more or less what you have quoted in your post. The full conversation was actually about how we were concerned that something more serious was going on with the patient than the doctors had realised, and if she was indeed in agonising pain despite the analgesia, then they had not yet arrived at the correct diagnosis and needed to carry out more tests for her, or it wasn't the right painkiller for her. We then bleeped the doctor and argued our point with him to get him to come and see the patient. So what you overhear isn't always in context! Did you ask them what they meant?

YANBU, there are a small minor who are not great, most are doing the best they can in difficult circumstances and do a good job.

I am a nurse, sometimes it's crap. I try to remain professional at all times, none of us are perfect though.

I have been a patient too and have not been impressed, I have to say. I am a mental health nurse though and much like physical health needs in mental health can fall short of the ideal at times,in general nursing there appears to be a lack of support for peoples mental and emotional needs.

Of course there are 'bad' practitioners in any profession, but when people are ill they are just so more vulnerable to rudeness or inconsiderate behaviour. That's why 'bad' nurses or doctors are so much more noticeable than an incompetent sales assistant or tax accountant.

I have real issues with the NHS (all of which are centred around the chronic underfunding) and my mum used to have an incompetent GP, but whenever I've visited her in hospital (my mum, that is, not the incompetent GP) I've been impressed by the compassion shown by the nurses and auxiliaries. I'm sure the experience would be a lot more awful for patients without their care. In July I watched an auxiliary sitting with an elderly patient in the next bed, a woman who was suffering with her medication, and she was really sweet to this old woman. Being sweet was not part of her job description - she held the woman's hand and comforted her because she was a genuinely nice person.

YANBU and I read an article recently about how modern day nurses need to be taught to care more.

My son was in hospital for an op recently and in the last 10 years I've had 3 5 day stays myself in 3 different hospitals.There were exceptions but by and large the nursing care was dire,sorry. There were the odd lovely exception which to some extent made up for it.

When my son was in I seriously couldn't have left him it was that bad.Nurses constantly standing around chatting on the station,never coming round other than when they had to.Never once did any ask my son how he was feeling.There was a boy with SN in the bed next to us who kept squealing during the night and they hollered at him to keep it down.They never cleared his bed of the accumulated crap you get.

When I was in with a life threatening illness my urine had to be measured every time I passed it. It wasn't.I had to nag and quite often saw it sitting on the side unmeasured for hours.I was in due to a failed IVF round that went horribly wrong.There was a girl with an ectopic in the bed next to me.We were put on a ward with a young teenager having an abortion.We both sobbed ourselves to sleep each night and never once did anybody come. Said nurses celebrated quite loudly with the teenager joking about how great it must feel to not be pg anymore. There is loads more, too much to write.

When I had my twins(c/s) the care was even worse with nurses not even bothering to answer the bell so I could feed my babies. They never brought my food,tutted when I asked for some. I could go on but don't have time.

Sorry I don't get this they're only human. They're paid to care end of.

Like Doyouthinktheysauras,DH is a MH nurse, and he also says,they just can't cope with people with MH problems on a general ward. They aren't trained for it, and he has done bank shifts on general wards for people detained under the MH act. He has been punched, spat at,sworn at, you name it.

Yes there are some crap nurses everywhere. Some excellent ones that try and deliver the best care they can but are overworked and short of time.Blame the govt for cutting back frontline staff. There aren't enough nurses, and yet many newly qualified nurses are sat on the dole queue.

Hmm seemed to be plenty when I was there.It was the general attititude that was the problem.

I agree, yanbu.
Ive been a nurse for 22 years and sometimes i dont know what stops me from saying to some colleagues "why, are you in this profession?"
But Then
there are others, a large majority of my coleagues who are nothing short of wonderful, kind, feeling, supportive, empathetic, sweet, bend over backwards lovely who i would have looking after any of my family.

I feel priviledged to know and work with them.

Don't get me started on the nursing care my grandmother had.I have to say though the odd diamond you come across does stay with you forever.

I'd say about 75% are in the correct proffession

Agreed. I get tired and fed up at work too but it's my job to not be a dick to people or else I'd get fired. Some nurses take advantage of a patient's vulnerability and lord it over them. Speaking from experience, unfortunately.

Im a theatre nurse and we tend to be a grumpy lot anyway (joke :o)
and I am doing a course at the moment with theatre nurses from other hospitals. I was really surprised to hear my department has a really bad reputation for being nasty to other nurses, let alone the patients, It has really made me look at my department in a different light. I think you get used the nasty ones and think 'oh its just sister X, she's a dragon' but when you hear other nurses fearful to do placements where you work its time for a rethink.

There are some terrrible Nurses / doctors / phamacists/ radiographers/ physios/ teachers/ solicitors and there are some great ones.
One out of 30 in my ward is in the wrong profession.

Unfortunately I have encountered some rude, inappropriate and plain mean nurses in my years on and off dermatology wards. I never understood how their colleagues put up with them, especially given that the superior nurses are in the majority.

X-posted with GeraldineAubergine. My point exactly.

I think there is kind of a hierarchical system that stops horrible people at the top from being dealt with. If you notice, horrible nurses club together and are therefore never caught out as they always have each other to back themselves up. If you are a reasonable nurse and raise a complaint about less professional or difficult colleagues you can end up being ostracised in your workplace and so the cycle continues. Obviously if patient care is compromised this doesn't matter and you put up with the inevitable unpleasantness at work.

YANBU there is a the attitude in nursing that you do it for life! and noone should leave! this is not the same in all professions!

If you leave nursing you get scolded for your training being a waste of everyone's time (no matter how many post grad years you put in before a career change)

Its so institutionalised, if someone is really really cr@p at it, a bit of mentoring or at most a department change is the most anyone would dare suggest, once you're "in" noone would dare tell anyone that perhaps it wasn't the best choice of career and there are others..

I guess the difference with other professions like solicitors is that if someone is crap at their job and rude, you don't use them - or certainly not again. I think people complain about crap nurses because people come across them at some of their most vulnerable points in life and you have no real power to do anything about it. Wellcertainly not while you are ill. Also terrible nurses and other medics can literally kill you. Other professionals may have their bad apples, but there are not many other jobs where this can lead to your death.

also in the NHS the most unpleasant colleagues with the least patience and people skills get delt with by management by being promoted away from low grade staff and patients.... you don't get rewarded for being completely wrong for your job like that in many other professions do you?

There are some people in every line of work that perhaps are not suited to it or don't do a brilliant job. Nurses, teachers, customer service advisors, bank managers, secretaries, cleaners, blah blah the list is endless. There will be excellent nurses and less excellent nurses. Same as with any other job really.

its NOT the same as every other job as its virtually impossible to get fired if you're crap at your job in the NHS..

no yanbu,

most one's i have come across in local hospital seem like part of some clique, with hardly a jot of compassion. I was even advised from a mother before I had dd, 'as long as you are nice to them they will be nice to you'

It didn't work anyway. disgraceful, and upsetting.

What does the op mean? "If she like that with pain relief"?

Don;t really understand it but it hardly sounds like a damning inditement. I wouldn't decide she was in the wrong profession based on that measly comment.

There are plenty of crap people in jobs from which they do not get fired, grumpel.

People do not get fired like fairground ducks in other professions, despite what some people often imply.

I've just nominated a nurse for a award at our hospital (it allows staff or patients to give examples of recent good experiences)

I went to an appt planning on finding out about not going thru with operation, I left fully informed, knowledgeable and positive.
I cried and was irrational but she made me feel that it was ok and I left feeling like I had been on a catch up with a friend, with some medical stuff thrown in.

I also encountered a health care assistant on a power trip but that nurse sticks in my head.

Sorry not clear. Relative was explaining that she was was still in a
deal of pain after her pain killing regime was changed. IV to tablets.
This is what prompted it. Certainly nothing to do with whether they strike or not. I think it the total lack of compassion that gets me. When your poorly 80 year old mum noticed how badly a nurse is treating other patients than its bad