Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Please silence your cell phones

It is really annoying to walk into a treatment room and have the patient sitting there chatting away on her cell phone, but I will let it slide if gets off as soon as she notices I have come in the room. It is more than annoying if I walk in and then have to wait for her to finish her conversation. I also get rather annoyed when the cell phone rings continuously or beeps continuously for received text messages.
Good grief people! You expect me to respect your time and to see you as promptly as possible, I only ask the same of you. I can get to you quicker if I am not waiting for a patient to get off their cell phone to ask them a question or explain to them the procedure I am about to do.
This has really gotten to the point where I am totally over it!!! Therefore, extreme action must be taken before I totally go off on someone.
We have now posted a sign on the front door to silence cell phones when they are called to the back. The nurses also remind the patients to silence their phones when they are placed in the treatment rooms. Now, when I walk into a room and the patient is on her phone I tell her to notify the nurse when she finishes her conversation and that I am going to see the next patient.
If the cell phones start ringing or beeping about messages received I will ask them once to place it on silent or turn it off otherwise I will walk out of the room.
I have not asked my patients to do anything I don't do myself. I always have my cell phone in my pocket but it is on vibrate. I cannot silence it completely or turn it off because labor and delivery knows to call my phone if they need me quickly. If my phone vibrates I glance at it and only excuse myself to answer it if the caller is the hospital, otherwise I reject the call and the phone goes silent. I don't think I am being unfair, I just want some respect for myself, my time, and the other patients that are waiting.

1 comment:

Ciarin said...

OMG! I can so relate! I have walked out of rooms because the patient didn't end their conversation promptly.