call to doctor's office

[mstovall]

We caught a run for a transport from a doctor's office to the hospital for a direct admit. We were sent priority 4 which means no L&S. Upon arrival we called into dispatch to let them know we were on scene. When we get upstairs to the office, the waiting room is empty except for one excited nurse (Jane Doe RN) calling us to come on back. At the door to the room, we see another nurse (Jill Doe BSN) saying the patient is in here. As I guide the cot down the hallway, I look in the room for a general impression and see a guy slumped over, very cyanotic. I stop helping with the stretcher and lift the guys head to open the airway and he takes a deep breath and starts breathing again. The nurse (Jill Doe BSN) says, "He is just a dope head that was coming in to get off meth and start a methadone scheldule. He didn't want off that bad as he came back high as a kite." I am shocked at this point and don't really know what to say (except a few profanities which I try not to yell out).

Then she gets the nerve to ask us if we are going to take that long, that the doctor had a few more patients coming in shortly.

All I can think of is that I thought nursing home nurses were bad. How can these people call themselves professionals when they refused to take care of the ABC's.

Sorry for the post, but I have needed somewhere to vent my frustration over this call.

Michael

[mobey]

This is always a tough situation. The problem is many of these Dr. office nurses haven't taken care of ABC's in many years. We have to expect very little from them since all they have done is guide thier patients to rooms and draw blood for the past 20 years. It's sad but true.

The worst part is when you get these type of nurses in the ER, then things get interesting!

[Just Plain Ruff]

I'm sorry, many many nurses in the doctors office setting have not done any type of nursing assessments for many many years.

They know that A comes before B and so on but that's about it.

You get a critical or very sick patient in their office and their sphincters plug up, they start to cluck like a chicken with no head and can't wait to get you in there and out of there.

The physicians also do not want critical patients in their offices because it makes their other patients uncomfortable.

So chalk this up as your first experience with a physician office nurse and consider the fact that you helped the dude so it all worked out.

[fishman]

I know what you are going through. And just like the others said, alot of RN's just don't do "real care". Alot of times, they don't do anything unless an MD instructs them too, they are not trained to think on their feet. Yet for some reason many EMSers are thought of as "below" these RN's ? Go figure. BUT just as any profession, there are good and bad..

[firedoc5]

We brought in one of our regulars drunk as a bear. Got him over to the ER bed and I started walking down the hall to start my paper work. The nurse flew past me saying the guy coded. My partner went back into the room and just lifted his chin up and he started breathing again. It's amazing what can be accomplished if you just keep your head and observe things.

[ERDoc]

I know what you are going through. And just like the others said, alot of RN's just don't do "real care". Alot of times, they don't do anything unless an MD instructs them too, they are not trained to think on their feet. Yet for some reason many EMSers are thought of as "below" these RN's ? Go figure. BUT just as any profession, there are good and bad..

:shock: :shock: :shock: Duck and cover newbie. You are right on one point, they are not trained to think on their feet, they are educated on how to do so. Browse through the forums and you will find what this means.

[emt322632]

One thing that you have to remember is that there are many subspecialties within nursing. Nursing is much like (forgive the bad word usage) doctoring, in that you are trained in certain aspects, and then can specialize in certain areas afterward if you wish.

Not all nurses can handle emergencies, and many aren't trained to do more than what a doctor tells them. Some are only exposed to certain specialties in nursing school, and then leave them far behind. I just finished OB and Psych rotation, and can say that I will not step foot in either location again:-)

But it's just like has been said, in every profession there are some good ones and some bad ones, it's the bad ones you hear about more often.

[chbare]

You know...it is a sad day when physicians start sticking up for nurses. What are they teaching physicians in medical school these days?

Take care,

chbare.

[itku2er]

You know...it is a sad day when physicians start sticking up for nurses. What are they teaching physicians in medical school these days?

Take care,

chbare.

To be nice to us maybe? :wink:

But on subject, Nursing is like any profession if you dont use the skills you loose them. But that doesn't excuse the rude comments and the lack of them doing anything to help this patient.

[Eydawn]

Bear in mind that those who do clinic/doctor's office care usually see more chronic problems or milder acute illnesses. If you don't deal with your adrenaline reaction on a daily basis, and something happens, it's going to be more difficult for you to react appropriately...

To wit: brought in a friend who landed on her shoulder on the soccer field to the college health center. I put her in a sling/swathe because it was *hurting* her... let me tell you, the RN flipped out when I asked my friend if she wanted me to go wait in the waiting room. Here I was thinking "privacy issues!" and the nurse was going "don't leave! Don't leave me with this! Don't leave her without a ride!" mentally... we had a good talk about it after she calmed down, lol. But you see? Not her cup of tea. Not what she does on a daily basis.

Wendy

CO EMT-B