i am a respiratory therapist. here's what i have seen in the last 2 months.1] a nurse " adjust" a ventilator and nearly blowing a patients lung. 2]on 2 occassions a nurse placed a non-rebreather mask on a patient with insufficent o2 flow nearly smothering the patient in their own co2. 3] trying to place a patient back on a bipap and " forgetting" to hook up the o2 causing the patients spo2 to drop to < 60%. i have spoken to other rts' who report the same kind of horror stories in other hospitals other than the one i work in. why is it nurses always have to mess with things you have little knowledge of ? seems that you just can't resist. but when a patient starts crashing who's the first one you call? an rt. some of you [ not all] are downright dangerous. will you let go of your egos at least for the patients sake ?
2006-08-04 19:26:04 · 7 answers · asked by kurleylovescheese 6 in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ Other - General Health Care
read the second answer [vanessa] nothing personal but i hope to hell she is not an rn. she can't even formulate a sentence. i do not mean to offend all nurses, there are some good ones. i'm just saying some of you are scary. this is NOT isolated to the hospital i presently work in. i think it appears to be pretty common.
2006-08-04 21:21:09 · update #1
I am not a nurse yet, still in school, but I've been working in the hospitals for a little while. What I've noticed is that nurses don't seem to work as well as a team as they should. This leads to them not wanting to ask someone about something when they really should. Nursing is a difficult and stressful job. I don't understand why so many nurses seem to make it even more difficult by having attitude problems. Just how women are I guess....too many of them in one place:)
2006-08-04 19:33:21 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 2⤋
I am sorry you have had that experience. I am a registered nurse and I would not dream of delving into the realm of respiratory therapy. I understand O2 is a medication and a delicate balance must be maintained. Have you filed variance reports when you have come upon the above situations? If not, that is the first step in getting this situation stopped. Also, I would recommend speaking to the director of nurses. Also, some in-services, directed by your department would be in order. I wish you the best.
2006-08-05 02:41:17 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Where are the Dr.s in all of this? My husband used to do this same job, and the Rt's were always the ones to blame, untill he blew the whistle. Many times they were short staffed, working a code, yet expected to moniter those veny settings, and when they could'nt,the nurses would "tweak" them. What a nightmare! How does one choose between a code blue, and someone who's been on a vent for a week? Who is more important?
2006-08-05 04:03:50 · answer #3 · answered by TJG 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You REALLY need to bring this up with your departmental head to see if they can broach the subject with the charge nurses or the nurse manager. It's a serious care issue and needs to be addressed as soon as possible, but you have to be a little careful to not tread on anyone's toes. People become VERY territorial in their departments and even more defensive when they feel like their work is being impunged.
It's really your manager's job to deal with it, but definitely get them to talk with the next link in the chain of command
But, yeah...I'm with you. If you don't know what the hell you're doing, leave the crap alone.
2006-08-05 02:34:33 · answer #4 · answered by Bob S 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
As a nurse, you DO have the power to do something about a
situation that arises. Tell your supervisor in confidence what the
problem is. But by all means take that other nurse aside and
tell them the way it is ! You sound like a strong enough person
to do this. Don't let ANYONE intimidate you. When it comes
down to it, you have every right to make a call. Much Luck...
2006-08-05 02:39:20 · answer #5 · answered by CraZyCaT 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Well, not to bad-mouth RTs in general, or to denigrate your expertise, I have personally seen RTs (and, to be fair, other department's therapists) take far too long to respond to calls for assistance. This leaves nurses in the unenviable position of doing the best they can for patients for which they are ultimately responsible. How many of those "other RTs" will admit they've been slow to respond?
2006-08-05 02:38:05 · answer #6 · answered by druid 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
IF YOU ARE TELLING YOUR TRUTH THEN WHY HAVENT YOU REPORTED THIS IMMMEDIATELY TO YOUR SUPERVISOPR SHIOFT SUPERVISOR OR ADMINISTRATOR are you watching this go on and saying nada?? you are as guilty as the personmnm you are accusing i think you are a downright nevermind you have bared yourself to all of us at yahoo they will know what to do
2006-08-05 02:33:31 · answer #7 · answered by vanessa 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋