User Post: 5 Things You Should NEVER Say to a Nurse

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  Posted by Tiffany Phan Fri Jul 17, 2009 4:36pm PDT

  Well to me there is nothing I mean nothing wrong with number one? Ugh? Whats wrong with that? Hello Nurse? Whats wrong? Dum6 Comments!

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  Posted by Harpreet Fri Jul 17, 2009 4:50pm PDT

  Whoa I don't think #7 puts doctors in a good light! As a female resident physician I often get mistaken for a nurse, for some reason, patients can't seem to believe a female can be a doctor. We do diagnose that's for sure but we work alongside nurses to save the lives of our patients. I did not take a Hippocratic Oath to just diagnose patients then leave them be. The best patient care happens when doctors and nurses work together! I love my nurses, without them, I would have been lost early in my residency!

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  Posted by Anthea Fri Jul 17, 2009 4:57pm PDT

  I prefer going to a nurse practitioner to a doctor. However, having been left in an examining room for over 2 hours, I have been known to ask what's taking so long. When you're taking time off work and your sick leave is being washed down the drain, you like to know why. Oh and the two hour wait turned out to be because the nurse practitioner had gone to lunch.

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  Posted by Fri Jul 17, 2009 7:08pm PDT

  To Samx

  You are incredibly rude! I bet you would rethink that statement if you were lying in an ER somewhere dying.

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  Posted by Phoenix Fri Jul 17, 2009 8:08pm PDT

  For the people posting about the "Hellooo Nurse!" The phrase in this example is being used as a disrespectful come-on. Not a simple, "hello, person-who-just-stepped-into-the-room." The meaning comes in when it's interpreted: "Hello, piece of meat for me to ogle. Could you turn around please?" It's about the disrespect, not the words used. I'm actually pretty glad this one isn't well known.

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  Posted by Clarissa Fri Jul 17, 2009 8:13pm PDT

  true blue

  Samx is very rude. Nurses are used to that unfortunately. But because most are caring and professionals they will still give the care to patients who need it, even @ssholes like Samx.

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  Posted by Phoenix Fri Jul 17, 2009 8:15pm PDT

  I have never said any of this to any nurse. But I've had plenty of bad experiences coming from the other side of the table:

  Top 3 things nurses should NEVER say to patients:

  3. "I'm on lunch, you'll have to wait". In this case, I think actions will speak louder than words. The practitioner doesn't actually have to say this for the message to come across loud and clear. You want lunch today? Arrange for a fill-in or don't schedule appointments at that time. It's rude, and it's bad business.

  2. "How are WE feeling today?" (Spoken as if to a puppy.) Pick any form of pandering or tone of speech, it's still undignified.

  1. "I'm not going to listen to what you think is going on with your body. Instead, I'm going to tell you you're wrong and do it my way." I cite the post by desiree. I'm sure there are plenty more examples of this self-superior attitude out there. To be fair, I see it in doctors just as often but it does seem to be mysteriously prevalent among the medical community. How can we get them to understand textbooks and facts are great, and we need them to answer our questions, but when it comes to the body I live in I think I know a thing or two?

  If you want respect, you must also give it. I have met plenty of wonderful doctors and nurses who do none of this and earn the respect I give them. Unfortunately it seems I've had just as many whose actions lost them my respect and my business. Two-way street.

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  Posted by Clarissa Fri Jul 17, 2009 10:26pm PDT

  Posted by Phoenix 2 hours 4 minutes ago

  3. "I'm on lunch, you'll have to wait". In this case, I think actions will speak louder than words. The practitioner doesn't actually have to say this for the message to come across loud and clear. You want lunch today? Arrange for a fill-in or don't schedule appointments at that time. It's rude, and it's bad business.

  Phoenix

  I guess you're talking about a doctor's office here. Nurses do not schedule appointments, that would be done by administrative staff. While there should be ample staff to cover for lunches, if not that is not the nurse's fault. Your statement "You want lunch today". Well yes, most people working an 8 hour or longer day do want to take a lunch break. I understand the frustration of long waits to see a doctor, we've all been there. Maybe you should try not to schedule your visits around lunchtime if this is an ongoing problem at your doc's office.

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  Posted by Clubhousedoc Fri Jul 17, 2009 10:53pm PDT

  I'm a medical student, and I when I recently went into the hospital as a patient, I really enjoyed the company and presence of the nurses more so than the doctors. They were friendly, warm and genuinely caring. I couldn't even get the doctor's attention for more than 30 seconds during an entire day. When I start my residency, I hope to learn more from the nurses than my attendings.

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  Posted by SherE143 Fri Jul 17, 2009 11:58pm PDT

  This post is so true. I became an RN at 19 and I have an Asian baby face so I can't even BEGIN to enumerate the rude and degrading things that have been said to me. My utmost "favorite" moment however (keep in mind that I'm Asian-American, I was born in Texas, and speak ONLY English) came from a patient. I walked into his room with a smile and said, "Hello, my name is Sherry and I'll be your nurse today." His response? A curt, "I can't understand your accent." "Excuse me, sir?" "I said, I can't understand your accent." I smiled and said, "Oh. I'm sorry, sir. Am...I...talking...too...fast...for...you?" Seriously.

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