Don’t Alarm the Patients
I once saw an ad on TV showing a postoperative patient returning from surgery and being told "the surgery went well, but you have cancer" by her physician, who promptly leaves the patient in the hallway.
As nurses, part of your job will be to dispel any misconceptions patients are left with after their encounters with their physicians. Often, patients need some kind of immediate emotional reassurance to help them sort out their diagnoses and what the future holds.
Whether a patient is a colleague or not, remember that when bad news is given, people tend to get scared by the same things. Too much knowledge can be worse than blissful ignorance in some circumstances.
In the movie Patch Adams, Robin Williams, in character, says "nurses are our teachers and the doctors' front line."
In one practice I once worked we had limited hours on Saturdays for acutely ill patients. My job on days was to answer the phone, triage calls from the parents and determine who needed to be seen that day and who could manage with home treatments until the following Monday. The doctor would often tell me to "be a wall Stephanie, be a wall." That meant I needed to help the parents feel confident in my advice to them.
We are not psychiatrists, nor are we psychologists. Our job is to help the patient understand what's said to them in a supportive manner that encourages them to ask questions so they can make calm, rational decisions about their care. Understand that we want to befriend them, but not "be friends" with them.
When I see you in the corridors or hallways, remember we are all in this jungle together.
I welcome questions and comments and may use them in a future column.