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| Jean Dujardin...lovely news that he won the Oscar |
Violent patients on intensive care are rare. In Accident and Emergency staff are assaulted on a daily basis, an unfortunate and...oh so common reflection of the drug and alcohol saturated life in modern Britain.
Last night we had to deal with a patient that was hypoxic ( low Oxygen levels) and violent.
The aggression we saw was unavoidable and uncontrollable( from the patient's perspective), so I suppose it was slightly easier to deal with than the pissed up yob who has an abundance of testosterone on a Saturday night but in the fracas that occurred before that patent was safely sedated and oxygenated one nurse was injured and another left bruised and a "little ragged around the edges"
I am lucky, as I have never really been fazed when faced with physically aggressive patients. My psychiatric training, I am sure is responsible for this ability to cope as very early on in my career, I was taught to work effectively in a team in the control and physical handing of unpredictable people.
Being calm is vital in these situations. Having a sense of humour often helps too....... But what I realised last night was the fact that general nurses often have not had the experiential training in dealing with the increasing problem of violence in general hospitals, that psychiatric nurses have in abundance.
Nowadays... I think that just has to change.......
Nowadays... I think that just has to change.......
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Weight watchers weigh in 14 stone 8 lbs
Weight Loss Last week 2 lbs
Total weight loss since Jan 2nd 1 stone 6 lbs
I can't believe that.. after all I had a lovely tussle with a whole box of jaffa cakes on Saturday night!!!
A hard job to do. I bet you're like Nurse Ratchett.
ReplyDeleteIt really is a disgrace, and I'm a little surprised that it's taken so lightly by the authorities. Maybe you should all be issued with CS gas aerosols. Or a couple of permanent heavies.
ReplyDelete.... just a little nicer Tom...
ReplyDeleteOur nurses deserve a medal for dealing with people like that. I almost feel ashamed to be British when you see what's turning up in A&E on weekend nights.
ReplyDeleteIn my experience of mental health work places it does grind you down. Good coping strategies help.
ReplyDeleteBut every now and then you have to go and move to a small village and...
Jean
ReplyDeleteIn this case the patient was hypoxic , so the agression could not be blamed on anything but lack of oxygen....
on that level, nurses HAVE to deal with the violence.. its just a fact of life
good point AL
ReplyDeleteI dont have to cope with this sort of thing daily.... I am lucky
This job is just so challenging. I admire all those who can do it and having been on A&E on a Sat night when the drugged up, p***ed etc are brought in from their holiday fun I have seen how the wonderful staff deal with all that is thrown at them.I have nothing but admiration for all who deal with the physical challenges this can bring. Jaffa cakes what a great treat. WELL DONE JOHN.
ReplyDeletePerhaps you should set up your own training course to teach inexperienced nurses how to handle aggressive patients. For a small fee I'd be happy to role play a drunken yobbo on a Saturday night.
ReplyDeleteWell John, you don't do things by half, do you??
ReplyDeleteBet you were glad to get back to the chooks!
Given patient-violence has been increasing for some years, I'm surprised general nurses don't always get systematic training on dealing with it. The lack of training can only add to the overall stress of the job. About time that was sorted out.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the weight loss and also congrats on knowing how to keep your cool when all around are in danger of losing theirs.
ReplyDeleteI have just been listening to a great audio book, called Blood, sweat and tea, written by an Paramedic working in London (the book started off as a series of blog posts).
ReplyDeleteHis experience of such behaviour is very enlightening and often humorous..
With a brother prone to violent outbursts since early childhood, I unfortunately quickly got accustomed to dealing with that. It is important training for any nurse, I think. And you're so right about the need for a sense of humor.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on 1 stone 6 lbs! That's 20 pounds, isn't it? A whole lot of potatoes!
Agreed on everyone should be trained to deal with violence in every dept. My best friend works in psychiatric dept at a hospital here in Ontario; I will have to ask him their policy where he is at on this point.
ReplyDeleteNice job on the weight loss; I think I should be getting back on the band wagon along with the battle with the carbs ... lol
I have been at the ER on weekend nights and it is always busy and "interesting".
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the weight loss John. I wish I had your willpower.
ReplyDeleteGosh, you're amazing. I hope if I ever go berserk it'll be wherever you're on duty! The suggestion that you give a course sounds like a very good one.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on continuing to do so well with the weight loss -- you're an inspiration...
I feel that nurses are the most under appreciated work force, my son has to deal with the public in all kinds of situations at the same time answer important questions and try to stay calm and caring.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how he does it.
Of course loving the job helps despite the bad pay and conditions.
You nurses are worth your weight in gold.
Briony
x
more training for our everyday nurses!
ReplyDeleteAgree.
ReplyDeleteWell done.
Agree.
Congratulations on your weight loss, John. That is great!
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, there are a lot of jobs where everyone needs to be taught more to be able to do it safer.
Have a great week!
I love how you follow your weight loss update with "On a "lighter" note...!
ReplyDeleteGood job by the way!
m.
Here in the States we have a mandatory program called CPI which trains us to de-escalate situations. That said, I've had my glasses broken twice and multiple black eyes. No counting of bruises. 'the weakest link...' implies someone is going to get hurt if everyone isn't on top of their game. My worst beating? A 10 year old because of the time it took to get backup.
ReplyDeleteI still love being an ER nurse :-) I just don't let anyone get between me and the door
I'm friends with a few nurses (all OR nurses, though one has moved over to oncology), and they've mentioned how a rise in Bath Salts among those looking for a new high has made for more violence in the ER/A&E. :0(
ReplyDeletecongrats on the continued weight loss!
I'm glad Jean Dujardin got the Oscar. I didn't think Meryl would--not that she's not a brillant actress, but i thought the Academy would give it to Viola Davis.
megan
Congrats on the weight loss, but don't be losing too much, now. You need some beef on those bones to better handle out-of-control patients.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting John. Handling violent people is something I used to do a lot of, and the better you are at it the safer it is for everybody involved. I'm really surprised all medical staff don't get training, it's such a frontline profession.
ReplyDeleteI taught on a 'psych' ward for kids for two years. We had to expect the worst behavior because these kids were not well. One day I was holding a 12 year old boy down on the floor until help arrived. Problem was that I failed to put him face down......it wasn't pretty! My face was full of spit. I learned a lesson that day.
ReplyDeleteThe Oscars where boring as usual, time for a change in format I'd say.