My Clinical Experience: Responding To Patients

This week’s clinical was pretty emotional for me. This is the first time I didn’t wanted to say goodbye to my patient. I kept thinking about him and his wife after my clinical day was over. Before I have the chance to meet with my patient this week, the regular nurse already informed me that this is the worst patient in the whole unit because of his wife. The regular nurse told me that she probably is the last nurse in this unit that is willing to take this patient; she also told me that actually is not the patient himself, it is the wife that everyone hates because the wife would yell at the staff and record them with her phone. With this kind of information prior to meet my patient, I already have a bad feeling that I might face some road
For example, everyone on 3A hates to take care of my patient for this week because of his wife’s attitude and action. But throughout the whole time I care for my patient, I didn’t feel any negative attitude from my patient nor from his wife (except one little incident that she was on the breaking point, but she apologize afterward). I think sometime as a nurse or any patient care professions; we needed to understand the patient and their family’s concern; they don’t want or mean to give anyone problem, it just at the moment of fear (fear for their love one’s situation) that they needed someone to comfort them or make sure the hospital staff are doing the right thing. As long as we show them that we are on the same page and we are not there to harm their love one, the family will be more appreciate what we do. Like my patient’s wife, she has been take care of her ill husband for the past month in the hospital; she just have her heart surgery three months ago; her job is on the edge of losing it; and now, she know how much her husband wants to attend his mother’s funeral. For any human being, with all these issues, anyone will have their breaking point. Therefore, we should really step back to look at the whole picture instead of just complaining that the patient’s wife is hard to deal with. For me, just being there to
According to our Fundamental of Nursing textbook (2013), “Touch is one of the most potent forms of communication” (p. 321). The textbook also stated that “It conveys many messages such as affection, emotional support, encouragement, tenderness, and personal attention” (p. 321). This is so true because by giving my patient’s wife a huge and holding her hands while she is expressing here emotional stress, she told me that she is happy that I am there for her and her husband. This compliment makes me feel so special because I felt like I did make a difference in someone’s