Who can a nurse trust to take care of her/him when they are sick or hurt? Who is good enough to care for your child?
When I have doctor’s appointments, I find myself a little doubtful that I will get good care. I know firsthand how hard it is to work in an emergency room/doctor’s office/clinic (in our very flawed healthcare system) and take REALLY good care of your patients. I also know that not all healthcare workers are created equal. After well over a decade in nursing, I have “seen too much” in the way of medical errors and poor judgement. So I almost EXPECT that I won’t be well taken care of. Yes, I think very highly of myself as a nurse. I am experienced, conscientious and caring. Is EVERYONE in healthcare that way? Of course not!
- When I was pregnant with my first child, I was scared to be left alone in my hospital room. I wanted a family member there with me at all times to make sure things were being done safely and that I understood everything going on around me. Lucky for me my mom’s a nurse, my sister’s a nurse, and my dad’s a pharmacist (and they were all there with me)! When I was alone, I found myself peering at my IV bag, making sure the meds that were hooked up were correct, watching the drip rate, and looking for air in the line.
- When my son had asthma attacks, I wouldn’t go to the nearest emergency room – I went to the pediatric urgent care where I worked at the time. I would contact my coworkers on the way, asked “Who’s on tonight?” and I CHOSE who I would LET take care of my child. (We all do that kind of thing).
- When I chose a pediatrician for my kids, I asked for references from the doctors and nurses I worked with – I trusted their judgement, and there was NO WAY I was just going to “pick one off the list.”
Over the last several weeks, I’ve been forced to visit the doctor frequently because of a medical problem that I can’t fix on my own, and my pessimistic side has been there throughout. The medical assistant who took my blood pressure at two separate visits said it was high and asked “Do you have high blood pressure?” I said “Um no never, not even when I was 9 months pregnant with both my children – it’s always 110s over 60s.” In my mind I was thinking “You’re doing it wrong.” When the nurse practitioner failed to send my prescription to the pharmacy and I had to call the doctor after-hours (who then gave me a horrible time), I thought “Calling in a prescription is the most basic function of working in a medical office – get it together people.” When I overheard the nurse practitioner talking loudly outside my door about another patient, I thought “Ever heard of HIPPA??”
Now I’m being herded through the system and on to my next stop – the “specialist.”
We’ll see how special they really are!
The Hungry Nurse 
That whole thing sounds awful — I can only imagine how much more disheartening it is as a professional yourself.
Disheartening is the perfect word for it! Thank you!
I’m not even a nurse and I rarely trust clinics I go to (I’m in the military so quality of care isn’t always the best). I’ve had doctors legit nearly kill me from misdiagnosis. Needless to say, I’m skeptical when I walk into any medical building haha Can’t even imagine how it is for someone in the profession – you know too much!
Ooh yeah, I’ve heard things about military medical care – yikes! Isn’t it sad that many people don’t have confidence in our healthcare system?? Thanks for the comment.
I hear ya, Cathy!!
Scary and sad right!?
Sometimes our knowledge can be a gift and a curse
I think it’s a tough balance. I wrestle with this too. As health professionals, I think we all do.
As a nurse, some of my meanest patients have often been, sadly, nurses and doctors who are eager to criticize. when you have to take care of someone for 12 hours and all they do is criticize, it’s really discouraging. or in the clinic setting, when you have spent a lot of time coordinating resources, but then hear criticism anyway.. -_- it’s really difficult.
But as a patient, I’m the same… you can’t help it, when you practice in the medical field, you naturally are more critical when people take care of you or your loved ones. It almost comes intuitively, to hold others to your standards. So I have to remind myself to be more cognizant of my bias (to be more judgmental) and refrain from being too critical of people taking care of me. I recognize that on the other side of the bed is a human too, who is no different from me.
I am sorry to hear about your frustrations with your PCP’s office. And sorry to hear they haven’t been able to find out the root of your issues. I agree, the healthcare system is so disjointed and dysfunctional in many ways. I hope that you have a better experience with the ‘specialist’ and that you feel better soon.
Thank you for your thoughts. It’s true, we are more critical of those who take care of us. It’s like an architect letting someone else design their house, or a baker letting someone make their daughter’s wedding cake!