If only hospital corridors could speak!

Nurses might just be the unsung heroes of the world of hospitals and healthcare, but chances are that you won’t even know it. We turn the tables, and bring you some of the secrets nurses wish you knew, but aren’t encouraged to tell you.

Secret #1: Your Nurse Probably Needs A Break

Hospitals notoriously force more patients onto nurses than they should be expected to handle. Unless you personally know a nurse, this is probably a surprise to you. That’s the reality, though: most hospitals are understaffed.

Cut your nurse some slack.

They are often overwhelmed, but trying their best to give you the care you need.

Secret #2: They Are Fighting For You

Very often, when your nurse isn’t caring for you, she is fighting for your best interests.

Nurses fight against doctors’ orders. A lot. This isn’t a matter of rebellion, though. They often have to go toe-to-toe against doctors and other superior health care professionals, just for your benefit.

 

Secret #3: Bringing You Your Medicine Is Actually Complicated

Nope, this isn’t a simple matter of browsing through shelves, and bringing you the right pills.

Your nurse looks at your prescription, and makes sure she knows what each pill is for. It’s her job to look for any contradicting medication, effects of interplaying medicines, and to watch out for potential side effects.

Your nurse might try to make this look easy, but it certainly isn’t!

Secret #4: The Variables In Your Discharge Time

When your doctor gives you a discharge deadline like “tomorrow morning”, your nurse often knows that this is unlikely. Variables include: your doctor finishing his/her rounds, your vital signs and lab results, and other doctors consulting on your case.

Yet another secret nurses have to keep from patients!

Secret #5: You Might Be Disturbed Through The Night

Thought you’d get a night’s peaceful sleep before a surgery the next day?

That might not always go the way you expect it to. Especially with large hospitals, synchronizing the various departments can be tricky. Someone might wake you up for a blood sample at 11PM, and someone from the X-ray department might wake you up half an hour later, just when you’ve gone back to sleep.

The secret fix: get your doctor to write a note preventing such disturbances.

 

Armed with these secrets, you might have a different experience the next time you visit a hospital.

References:

http://nursecode.com/2016/09/10-things-nurses-want-patients-to-know/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brie-gowen/ten-secrets-that-nurses-keep-from-their-patients_b_8881808.html