Just another rant

[sarahmanda]

  I've had it up to here with one of the techs at my clinic!!!  It is a small clinic (about 22 patients) and we have 2 nurses, 2 full time techs and one part time tech. Its the part timer that pisses me off. One of our techs (my favorite actually) has been off the past 8 weeks because she had a baby, so the PRN tech has been there every day. I can usually put up with her one or two days at a time, but I've been seriously considering putting my dialysis on hold until she leaves. The only reason I don't is because I know how sick I feel if I only miss one day. I've also considered the thought of running her over with my car, haha  

Anyway, this is what bothers me so much - First off, she is always on her phone. She has a realty business and a pyramid scheme she does in addition to being a D tech and someone is always calling her about something. If it's not some renter calling her, she's calling one of her kids and talking about nothing. In the four hours I sit there she probably fields anywhere between 8 and 18 calls. And when she isn't talking on it, she's texting someone. I have seen her, on numerous occasions, pay attention to whoever she was calling or texting while another patient's (thankfully not mine) machine was going off for several minutes. All the other nurses and techs keep their phones in the break room and take any calls off the dialysis floor. If it were some sort of legitimate reason (like say her daughter was having a baby, or her mom was real sick) I would understand, but its ridiculous!

Also, she's really rude. Just today, she told another patient that she didn't think the vascular surgeon would see him because a few weeks earlier he had turned down an appointment because he had another one at the time suggested (he didn't cancel, just said the one suggested wouldn't work). The reason the doctor hadn't gotten back to make a new appointment was because their entire office was off for the week! She is continually spouting off "facts" about things she knows nothing about, like what pre-transplant work up is like (she told one lady she would have to go to Dallas for two week for her work up...it took me 3 days for most of it, and everyone I've asked has said about the same thing), she said one of our old patients who had gotten a transplant should have been home two weeks earlier when he had only gotten his transplant 6 weeks prior & that center requires you to stay in the city 6 weeks after the time in the hospital (so 7-8 weeks), among other things.

This one is kinda minor, but I've said something about it to her 3 or 4 times, she always shoves the thermometer in my ear before and after treatments, and frankly it hurts. Like I said, I've mentioned it, but she hasn't changed at all. The rest of my problems with her are not really going to change, since its just her nature, but its things like her voice is incredibly grating, she's ridiculously loud (I can hear her over my headphones turned all the way up) and she puts my tap on backwards (so it rips out the hair)...things I can't really expect to change, but still gt on my nerves.

I've mentioned the two bigger problems to both of our nurses and am considering taking it to the head of the hospital (he goes to church with us and I know his whole family pretty well). My next thought after that is to contact the ESRD Network and see if an advocate can get something done.

Any other suggestions? 

[amanda100wilson]

This is not acceptable since this woman's behaviour impact not only quality of care, but also safety.  You have already talked to her about several issues and she ignores you.  The way that she acts, from your description is rude and disrespectful.  I think that you should escalate this up to the Unit Manager, since by doing this, you should hopefully help not only yourself, but the other patients.  I have worked as a nurse, and although the majority of people that I worked with we're professional, there were some, especially where the patients were particularly vulnerable, for example, the elderly, would treat them as if they weren't human, but just mere objects in the room.  Your 'friend' sounds as if she may be the same sort of burnt-out (although that is making excuses for her behaviour) that is clearly only doing this for the money.

I am not sure that you should go to your friend as a first recourse, since I expect that there is a formal complaints procedure that you can file.  Make sure that you put this in writing so that it is documented. 

[noahvale]

*

[sarahmanda]

The clinic I'm at is privately owned by the hospital and the administrator (to my knowledge) is the head RN, that's why I was thinking of going to head of the hospital.

To clear up what I was saying about the patient who had had a transplant, he had been in DFW for 6 weeks and the transplant center requires him to be there for a total of 7 or 8 with the hospital stay, she was saying he should have been home after 4, when I said something, she just told me how I didn't know what I was talking about, when I had been at the transplant center for my yearly just two weeks earlier and had asked that very question.

Thanks for the suggestions of doing my own temp and taping, they tend to be rather strict over patients using the thermometer (something about state regulations), but I could put my own tape on (its actually the tape at the end after we pull my needles that I'm more particular about).

I usually just put my headphones in, turn my music up and ignore her, but there is only so much I can do. And like you said, its not merely annoying, its putting the patients' health in danger.

[kitkatz]

Write her antics up and give it to the manager of your Dialysis unit.

[ChrisEtc]

If it genuinely bothers you that much tell the charge nurse you don't want to deal with this tech any longer.  Take charge of your treatment and don't let people treat you in a way you don't like.  I used to have people jam that thermometer in my ear and I went off about it.  Now they use the temp strips every time.  I also have one tech that I prefer to deal with and on the off chance she's not there then I ask one particular nurse to do it.  99.9% of the time one of the two is there so it works.  It's your treatment, your body, and you're in charge.  Don't let hem fool you into thinking otherwise.  The stuff about the loud techs I've yet to figure out.  There's one at my clinic that is so loud all the time, it's irritating but sometimes you just have to lighten up and roll with it.