Dieticians at your center do they........

[Epoman]

call your lab results "Your Report Card"? I can't stand that  I'm a full grown man and I'm not in school anymore. I hate that saying it really bothers me. What about you does it bother you?

[LifeOnHold]

Oh, yes it does bother me... apparently I'm the only one out of 15 patients who complained!

Wonder why we don't have 'report cards' for our social and financial problems, too... or would that depress the staff too much?   

[Epoman]

Welcome aboard thanks for joining. I'm glad to see I'm not alone in hating the term "Report Card" this is what this site is all about.
ranting and hearing the truth about dialysis.

[LifeOnHold]

As bad as the 'report card' crap is, at least they don't post them on the bulletin board for all the other patients to see, like they've done in some units I've read about!


Although now, with the patient privacy laws, I don't see how they can still do that.

[Iowagirl]

At my unit the dieticitan puts little seasonal chart stickers next to acceptable labs.  Yes grown people will be motivated into dietary and treatment compliance by collecting as many tiny seasonal stickers as possible.  She's a nice lady but even my 4th graders don't fall for that.

[Epoman]

At my unit the dieticitan puts little seasonal chart stickers next to acceptable labs.  Yes grown people will be motivated into dietary and treatment compliance by collecting as many tiny seasonal stickers as possible.  She's a nice lady but even my 4th graders don't fall for that.

Hey welcome to the board. If my dieticitian did that I would scream. You said "my 4th graders" are you a teacher? or do you have kids that are 4th graders? Goto the "Introduce Yourself" section and tell us about yourself. But again welcome to the board and come often.


P.S. I'm talking to all new members goto the "Introduce Yourself" section and let us get to know you.

[LifeOnHold]

Here's what that dietician must imagine we think:



"Hmmm... my life sucks, I'm sick all the time, I have no energy and no money... but wait!  If only I could get my hands on more stickers than anyone else in the unit, I would magically stop eating the foods I love and be a good little patient!"   

Holy crap, lady... what Psychology course did you take in college?! 

[Epoman]

Here's what that dietician must imagine we think:



"Hmmm... my life sucks, I'm sick all the time, I have no energy and no money... but wait!  If only I could get my hands on more stickers than anyone else in the unit, I would magically stop eating the foods I love and be a good little patient!"   

Holy crap, lady... what Psychology course did you take in college?! 

I hate anything that a center does to try to cheer us up. If they want to cheer us up how about all the techs and nurses donate a kidney to us.

[LifeOnHold]

Feh on donated kidneys!   I want my OWN kidney function back-- prednisone is BAD stuff and I will never take it again!


I know what would cheer me up at dialysis:  Good lookin' guy techs!   

[Iowagirl]

Those are few and far between.  We have a bunch of baby girl tech's and while they are mostly sweet girls(and the night shift ones are pretty good at the job) They really aren't my cup of tea to look at!  And I am not sure what type of psych training Dieticians have.  But I doubt any of it is terribly useful.  Patients are people and people are complicated beings.  Behavior is not changed by such simplistic measures.  I'd just like to see more people on dialysis treated like grown ups.

[Bajanne]

Well, I lucked out.  The Dietician at my centre happens to be a sister in the faith.  We fellowshiped at the same assembly for more than four years, so our relationship is not dietician/patient, but sister/sister.  I don't expect her to try any of that patronizing stuff on me.  At least, I will be able to nip it in the bud immediately!

[calypso]

lol, at my clinic they call it labs, not report card. If they did, the next time I went in for bloodwork I would say "I didn't study for my blood test can I take it another time?"

[Epoman]

lol, at my clinic they call it labs, not report card. If they did, the next time I went in for bloodwork I would say "I didn't study for my blood test can I take it another time?"

 

[tubes]

Yea, my dietician refers to it as "Your Report Card".  A few weeks ago she came up to me and said something like...."Your report card hasn't been faxed over yet."  I just stared up at her.  I had no idea what she was talking about. Then she told me she was talking about my labs.  I thought to myself, "Wouldn't that be easier to say then Report Card."

Come on...Labs, Your Report Card, Labs, Your Report Card.....Which Is Easier to Say? ? ?   

But I have to admit, she is a real nice lady.  She brings homemade treats everyonce in awhile.  I did get a really good recipe from her.  Everything she makes is so diabetics can have it too.  I'll have to post it when I find the recipe. Very Simple.

[Zach]

Don't get me started.     

[Epoman]

Don't get me started.     

Ohh Start, start, start.  Come on Zach what's your opinion?

[BigSky]

Personally it doesn't bother me what its called.  Both terms are used around here. 

As to the smilie stickers, stars etc. I like them myself.  Lightens the mood.

Kinda like the smilies that can be used with posts on here.

[Zach]

Over the years, I have seen them called different things.  Currently, it is simply entitled, "Progress Report."  This is the cover page to the individual patient's entire monthly blood workup.

It states the test name (albumin, urea, calcium, etc.) and goal, then the results with comments.  It also lists the previous two lab results, which I think is a very good idea.

The comments part is a little paternalistic.  "GOOD JOB!" is the comment when my albumin is within normal range.  But all in all it provides needed information.

It's the dietitians, in general, who are sometimes useless or clueless.  Now that's not to say that there are some really wonderful dietitians.  Those are usually the certified Renal Specialists ... they tend to know their stuff.  I've been fortunate to have a few of them at my unit.  It's the nutritionists who come to the unit with no experience in the renal diet and just walk around smiling and saying little of how to work with the nutritional requirements we have.  I don't need perky, I need useful information ... and then some perky.     

[angieskidney]

I thought it was bad enough when my dialysis unit social worker had to leave and now I have a new one that has never showed up to the unit in 2 months 

but NOW there is a new dialysis dietitian too!! Why are the ones I know all leaving?? This sucks ass@!!!! 

At least I can get the info here but now I can't rely on my staff 

[angela515]

Ahh yes, the "Report Card"... or sometimes called the "Progress Report", why not just call them what they are, lab results? It don't really bother me about the name, although I think it's stupid and should just be called labs.... what bother's me more is there comments they write next to each result. My phosphorus has been high for going on a year now, I haven't had a month where I have been in the "normal" range... I get little comments like "Don't forget your binders!"..or, "Are you not talking your binders??? Please don't forget!!"... I never forget my binders, and I hate them assuming I am not taking them just because my levels are high... I mean come on, be adult at least and ASK me... I am more offended that you assume I miss them instead of just asking am I missing them.

When my dietician calls me, which he usually always does because my phos being high... so he calls and asks me "what are you eating"... so I tell him, he offers his advice and suggestions, and always says he will send me a chart about what foods are high in phos and which are low... I told him last time, do NOT send me those damn charts, it will just be trashed as I have enough of them as is, and if I need any further info on a food, I will look it up online... He said well if you know them so well, why are you levels high? I said, let me offer a suggestion to you... for 1 week, pretend your on dialysis... and follow my diet, to a T... your the dietician, it should be easy, you know what you can and cannot eat... so let's see how you do. He thought that was a bad idea and said something about he knows he could do it, that's just pointless or something.... 

I hate anything that a center does to try to cheer us up. If they want to cheer us up how about all the techs and nurses donate a kidney to us.

I agree Epo... 

[jbeany]

Pointless?  He knows he could do it?  Oh puhleeease. . .   

The town I grew up in had a very large Catholic population.  Most of them couldn't even manage to give up coke or chocolate all the way thru Lent without cheating.  I'd sit in class in school around the second day of Lent, watching all of them jitter in caffeine withdrawal. 

We're supposed to give up dozens of things we love and crave for the rest of our lives, and they expect us to be perfect at it?

[angela515]

My thoughts exactly!! So when he gets my labs back this week, and calls to talk to me about them... I am going to tell him, I do the best I can... I know your trying to do your job and tell me what i can and can't have, but after being on dialysis over 2 yrs now... i am a pretty good judge and knowing what I can and cant have and how much of it... so please just gimmie my numbers and let me try to get them down... Dangit!

[angieskidney]

He said well if you know them so well, why are you levels high? I said, let me offer a suggestion to you... for 1 week, pretend your on dialysis... and follow my diet, to a T... your the dietician, it should be easy, you know what you can and cannot eat... so let's see how you do. He thought that was a bad idea and said something about he knows he could do it, that's just pointless or something....

Just shows dietitians don't understand. I mean, my nurse told me that there was one year where a professor told his nursing students that wanted to be dialysis nurses, to go simply 3 days on a solid renal diet (hemo dialysis diet) and not even ONE of them were able to do it!

[Russ]

At my unit the dieticitan puts little seasonal chart stickers next to acceptable labs.  Yes grown people will be motivated into dietary and treatment compliance by collecting as many tiny seasonal stickers as possible.  She's a nice lady but even my 4th graders don't fall for that.

Gee, you get stickers?  I only get a star.    

[shay_pcb]

At my unit the dieticitan puts little seasonal chart stickers next to acceptable labs.  Yes grown people will be motivated into dietary and treatment compliance by collecting as many tiny seasonal stickers as possible.  She's a nice lady but even my 4th graders don't fall for that.

Gee, you get stickers?  I only get a star.    

We get smiley stickers next to ours too!! lol