Teachers, Accountants, Plumbers, Nurses, Secretaries, Postal Workers...

[Rozzie]

~Getting you a cup of coffee is not a priority for me. If you call and want one, I will do it as soon as I can, but if I have something more important to do (such as administering medication) you will wait for your coffee. It's called prioritizing, and I spend my entire day doing it.

Oh Disney Doll! Thank you! Thank you!

it's not a 5 star dining hall. It's a hospital. I am a nurse. I am here to take care of patiets, keep them alive. You are NOT going to die by not eating breakfast because you have to go to surgery. You are NOT going to die by only eating 1800 calories during the day. Don't ask families to sneak you food while you are NPO. You are only hurting yourself.

If you are upset because your family member has not had a bath, and it is noon, it is because there are NO techs. I am delivering life saving medications, calling critical labs, rushing someone to the Unit, etc. It is not because I am lazy. I am busy doing the jobs of 3 people, taking care of 7 other patients who happen to be more sick than your family member. If it is that upsetting to you that your family member is not bathed by noon, than here the towels, here is the soap, and here is some fresh water. I will be happy to come in and help you, and we can do it together. Sitting in the corner, refusing to help, and timing how long it takes me to do things you ask is only making the situation worse.

Gosh, this is cheaper than therapy! I feel so much better.

 

[Disney Doll]

it's not a 5 star dining hall.

Nor is it a hotel. You are receiving care, not service.

 

[SRUAlmn]

I'm a Kindergarten teacher and I cannot stress enough how important it is to READ TO YOUR CHILDREN!!! Even if they are 1 week old, DO IT Many people think that they cannot 'comprehend' what you are saying so it's silly, but hearing language and flow is SO beneficial for them

 

[Rozzie]

Nor is it a hotel. You are receiving care, not service.

Another thing. Like Disney Doll said, it's not a hotel. You are not welcome to sleep in the hospital bed next to your family member/friend. That bed is reserved for another patient. A sick patient that needs care.

Another thing. Smoking in your room is not a option. Oxygen is in use on the floor. I have a family to go home to at night, thank you very much. By smoking in your room, you are endangering the lives of nurses, patients, doctors, and family members. If you would like to blow up buildings, wait till' you are discharged. Oh, and if you would like to smoke crack in the bathroom, we will call the police.

 

[Disney Doll]

I'm a Kindergarten teacher and I cannot stress enough how important it is to READ TO YOUR CHILDREN!!! Even if they are 1 week old, DO IT Many people think that they cannot 'comprehend' what you are saying so it's silly, but hearing language and flow is SO beneficial for them

This has nothing to do with anything other than you have the cutest dog I have seen in a long time!!!!!!!!!!! Is it a Spaniel of some sort? I have an English Springer spaniel, and your dog looks somewhat like mine did as a puppy.

 

[barkley]

retired social services person here-

(for the public)
be totaly upfront about your circumstances-if i know the 'whole picture' i may be aware of programs/resources you would'nt dream were available. also-if you're dishonest and end up with an overpayment, while you may not be prosecuted it will go on your credit record as a bad/collectable debt.

don't tell me what the rules of eligibility are according to your friends, family members or someone you know who 'does it for another county/state'-rules can change by the minute, different places have different rules/interpretations of rules and likely the information you've got is outdated or inaccurate for your specific circumstances.

don't just leave your name and 'call me' on my voice mail-you are not my only case and i can't possibly remember over 300 individuals phone numbers off the top of my head.

call before you drop in-if you need something i might have to request it and wait 24 hours to get it myself. also-if i'm in a 2 hour schedualed appointment with another client you're likely going to have to wait-back up coverage is limited to emergency situations (and you losing the 5th set of copies of your kid's birth certificates that i've given you is not an emergency ).

you can talk to my boss and his/her boss and on up-but since the higher you go the more they are likely to not know program specifics/your specific case circumstances- you're still going to end up being told that i'm the best resource for information on programs that your specific circumstances warrant.

(when i supervised) if someone is rude, condescending or nasty to you--LET ME KNOW. i can't do something about it unless i can cite specific incidents.

(for my staff, co-workers, peers)

DON'T MESS WITH MY CLERK-treat him/her with the utmost courtesy and appreciation. a good clerk was worth their weight in gold and could make or break a work unit.

as a former teacher-

oooooooooooh lots of stuff-but one that may save parents embarassment-watch what you say/talk about around your kids. i heard the most personal details of people's sex lives, financial circumstances what they 'realy thought' about me, their neighbors, their in-laws....either directly from the kids to me or via show and tell (it's hard to keep a straight face when a kindergartener 'shares' that they went shopping with you for thong underwear because you want to ' light a fire under 'daddy' and heat up the bedroom' )

 

[Disney Doll]

retired social services person here-

(for the public)
be totaly upfront about your circumstances-if i know the 'whole picture' i may be aware of programs/resources you would'nt dream were available. also-if you're dishonest and end up with an overpayment, while you may not be prosecuted it will go on your credit record as a bad/collectable debt.

This is another one I can attest to from a nursing perpective.

I am a nurse, not your mother. If I ask you if you drink or do drugs, I am not going to yell at you or tell anyone. I need to know that information so I can treat you properly, so the doctor can order the proper medications, so when, after you have been in the hospital for 3 days and suddenly appear to go nuts, we know it's DTs and not you having a complete psychotic break...the 2 scenarios are treated very differently.

Plus, I can do alcohol or drug levels with your other bloodwork, so I'll know what you do even if you are lying.

And, if I do do alcohol or drug blood levels and then come back and ask you what you take/drink and how much, please don't lie to me. Blood doesn't lie. If I tell you that your bloodwork shows alcohol or opiates, just tell me what it is you do. It'll make all our lives much easier, plus, it may keep me from accidentally killing you, since there are some meds which shouldn't be given in the presence of certain substances in your body.

If I ask you how much you smoke, tell me. I am not going to lecture you...you must know at this point that smoking is bad for you and don't need yet another person to tell you so. Again, if you are a smoker, I can get you a nicotine patch so that the cravings don't drive you insane or cause you to do something like smoke in a room where there is an oxygen tank so you blow us all up. This happend at my hospital...the patient was in bed, lit up a cigarette, his oxygen caught on fire, he ultimately died from his burns, although not until he had suffered for a few days and a nurse who ran in there to rescue him had a heart attack. So don't smoke near oxygen.

 

[FroggyinArk]

so i geuss i can assume that cool beans is not bringing me any coffee after all then.

 

[JVL1018]

I used to work in a bank and my one piece of advice is to get that line of credit on your checking account to cover any overdrafts.
Every bank I've worked for had it at no charge(if there is a charge at your bank then circumstances may be different).
If you never use it, you never have to pay, if for some reason you screw up your checkbook and you dip into it, you will pay pennies if you pay it back soon instead of the bounced check fee.

It makes no sense NOT to have it.

If you DO bounce a check, you are a good customer and have banked there for a long time, go in and ask the manager to reverse the charges. Pretty much everyone who ever came in(even the habitual bouncers) got at least a portion of their fees back. Always ask.

Now for the pet peeves: If someone asks for your ID, they are just trying to protect YOUR money. You have your ID right there, why make a scene and spend three times as long arguing about something when you could have just handed it over and gotten your money and left?
No one is accusing you of any bad behavior, it's just policy for your protection.
If you are a regular weekly customer and the teller is new and you don't happen to have ID on you, you can wait for a teller who knows you, or tell the new one that so and so knows you.
I know on another thread someone who worked in a bank said that wasn't good enough, but in my places of employement, that was fine, the other teller just initialed the back of the check taking responsibility.

Be nice and you will get a lot farther.
I worked with the public for years and years-at A&P during high school and college and in banks..if you are nasty, people don't want to help you, period. No one thinks that you are important because you are loud and rude, trust me, they just think you're an idiot.
If you are nice, people are more than likely willing to bend over backward to try and help you.

 

[wendyl]

Another College Professor here:

Advice to college students: It's college--not high school, or elementary school--it's supposed to be hard. It supposed to require a heavy amount of studying and work. Everyone has different abilities---you may have to work harder than others in a particular subject in order to succeed. Find out how much work is needed for your success and DO IT. Don't be so quick and comfortable to blame poor test grades on test anxiety. It's not necessarily how LONG you studied that makes you ready, it's HOW you studied. If you're studying for a math test--don't assume you are prepared for the test just because you have read over your notes and everything seems to make sense. You aren't ready for a math test until you have committed to memory how to solve all problem types. The ONLY way to know if you've done that well enough, is to pull ALL different types of problems from your math book, and sit down and do them until you are getting them all right WITHOUT needing to look at the book or your notes for help. This might mean doing 100-200 problems--depending on the person. If you keep doing poorly, don't just say "Oh well, I'm just not good at math", INCREASE YOUR EFFORT.

 

[mum4jenn]

I'm a Kindergarten teacher and I cannot stress enough how important it is to READ TO YOUR CHILDREN!!! Even if they are 1 week old, DO IT Many people think that they cannot 'comprehend' what you are saying so it's silly, but hearing language and flow is SO beneficial for them

I totally agree!!! I am not a teacher but I do work in the school system. I started buying books for my dd before she was even born and even read Good Night Moon while she was still in the womb. She had so many books they would not even fit in a three shelf book case anymore so at the end of the school year I took all the "baby books" to my school and the teachers with little kids and babies could get what they wanted. Her book case is almost full again!!! And this year at the end of second grade her test scores show she has the ability to read and understand mid 8th grade books!!! She is very smart and I know alot of that is because she loves books!!

 

[maddiemouse]

PLEASE don't get a long haired dog or cat, never touch it with a brush or comb, and then expect me to torture it by combing all the matting out after weeks or months of neglect, instead of humanely shaving the poor critter, because you like it "fluffy". If you don't want to brush on a regular basis (like every day) keep it cut short.

 

[jennyf917]

I'm a waitress - please go to McDonalds if you're not willing to tip.


I make $3.25 per hour, way below minimum wage. My WAGE comes from TIPS from customers.

I'm sorry if you don't think that is right and not leaving a tip will make a statement. Tipping is the norm in the United States.

I pay 8% tax on the register total from my shift, if you don't tip I get the "privilege" of not only serving you for free, but PAYING a portion of your meal as well.

Please, if you can afford to go out to eat at a sit-down restaurant, don't forget to TIP!!

Thank you!

I'm a server too, but you make more per hour than me! I make $2.13! I would just like to say, crappy tips happen. I don't let them ruin my day. Sure, it sucks, but then I factor in the good and great tips and try to roll with it. The one thing that I ask of all of you who eat out in restaurants-- please remember that we are people, too! So when I come to your table with a smile and ask you how you are, please respond! I know that people have bad days, I do, too. But there is nothing worse than having grumpy people who respond to "How are you doing today?" with a gruff "water with lemon". And don't take your bad day out on me, no matter how well you tip. If you do, really, it DOES hurt my feelings! The end.

 

[SRUAlmn]

This has nothing to do with anything other than you have the cutest dog I have seen in a long time!!!!!!!!!!! Is it a Spaniel of some sort? I have an English Springer spaniel, and your dog looks somewhat like mine did as a puppy.

Aw! Thank you so much. She is a cocker spaniel. Yours is SO CUTE too!!!

 

[minkydog]

I'm a pediatric nurse. i work on a telephone triage line--parents call in to ask what to do about their sick kids and I help them figure out if they need medication or the ER or if the situation is complicated I can call their doctor.
Over 80% of the time the situations are something that a knowlegable nurse can handle--tylenol, benedryl, and motrin are my best allies.

First I'd like to say, most of you are doing a great job You are handling your child's illness or injury without losing your heads and I commend you.

Second, you don't have to be afraid of illness. Kids get sick. Most of the time it's going to be viral. If your child can play now & then, is breathing and drinking well, he's going to be okay. Behavior is predictive of outcome;a child who can't play, won't drink or make eye contact is a very sick child and should go to the ED. The rest of you--wait until morning and see your regular doctor instead of clogging up the ED. Save the ED trip for those concussions, burns, broken bones,seizures and chemical ingestions that fate might blow your way.You don't have to hit the panic button every time Junior gets sick.

Third, know that you are an expert on your child. If something seems terribly wrong, then maybe it is. Parents have keen intuition--use it! Keep asking questions. Educate yourself on how to manage illness so you feel prepared.

 

[Cool-Beans]

so i geuss i can assume that cool beans is not bringing me any coffee after all then.

http://images.picsearch.com/is?zc05rvxXeRShKKl71PFSfAIOPluiuL0k2t5BP0yswSQ There you go (mumble mumble under my breath). ETA: Oops, it didn't work. You'll have to click if you want your cup.

Sorry that took so long. I was trying to get the old counter-top off. I'm putting a new one on all by myself. They guy at the Home Depot told me how to measure and gave me a pamphlet that shows me how to put the new one on.

Can't wait to see how it turns out!

I really do love my job and my patients. It just seems that the ones who need help the most ask for it the least...and vice versa.

All jobs have drawbacks, I guess. That's why they offer to money to do it, right?! Sorry about being so whiny.

 

[Rozzie]

[

I really do love my job and my patients. It just seems that the ones who need help the most ask for it the least...and vice versa.

Ditto on that!

It does feel good to vent to those that understand.

 

[jennobrn01]

Great topic!

I am an OB nurse as well. My one piece of advice that the childbearing woman of this nation desperately need to know and understand:

Trust in your body. It was made for this. Your labor and delivery will not be like an episode of "A Baby's Story". It is uniquely your own. Believe in your strength. Birthing a human is an enpowering experience!

As for nursing in general: It is a front-line, unsung, gritty, often ridiculed profession that requires expending the mental, physical, spiritual, and emotional strength for the one's we serve.