Responding to a Complaint at Work You have probably heard the saying about pleasing some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time. The part about all of the people even some of the time is a far stretch, and not likely to happen. Nurses deal with sick and injured people, so cheerful, happy customers are not the norm for sure. When people are in pain, or worried, they may not be as polite as they normally would be, or that they should be, and as a nurse, you often get the brunt of their frustration and pain. Complaints from Patients You could treat 10 patients exactly the same, and 5 might rate you as excellent, while 5 may list you as needing improvement. People are different, and there are reasons behind why people act, and expect the way they do. Think of a time that you were in a department store, and an unrealistic customer made the sales clerk so upset, she didn't know what she was doing. That customer could be your patient. Odds are, she will treat you just as she treated the sales clerk. It's not right, but it is simply the way some people are. Nothing you could possibly do will change it. You can only control yourself, and your own actions, you have no chance of winning over someone that does not have the intention to do so. If a patient tells you they are planning to complain about you, be polite, and carry on as usual. In most cases, a human resource department or your supervisor will consider the circumstances of a complaint lodged against you. For instance, do you routinely have a patient or co-worker complain about you? Did this patient complain about multiple people? There are always contributing factors, so don't make the assumption that your personal record will be affected based on one complaint. Related: Healthy Food & Drink Choices A Complaint Mitch was a nurse, and had worked for a hospital for 7 years. His wife took a job in another state, so Mitch moved and took a job at a local hospital in the new town. Mitch has been working only 3 weeks, and liked his new job and co-workers. One day Mitch got a patient that he will never forget. An older woman in for a hip replacement confronted Mitch when he introduced himself, saying men should not be nurses. Mitch shrugged it off, however the woman continued to express her dissatisfaction of Mitch as her nurse. She made a request for a different nurse, however, Mitch was the expert on joint replacement, so his supervisor advised him to remain as her nurse. Mitch endured several days of verbal torment from this patient, however, he was professional and ignored it. Mitch had never received a complaint, and
gave little thought to this one, however, he should have done a little more to defend himself with his supervisor. In this case, his supervisor failed to document the unfounded complaints, and did not react to the situation. Two weeks later the supervisor left their position for another job, so when the patient lodged a complaint with the hospital, Mitch did not have documentation to back him up. The complaints were unfounded, and untrue, but without documentation, Mitch was put on suspension. Fortunately the assistant supervisor had overheard the situation as it occurred, and went to his defense, essentially saving his job. Mitch did not have tenure on his side in his new job, and the supervisor did not properly document the situation. Mitch returned to work, and the complaint was removed from his record, however, without the aid of his coworker, it could have been a very different outcome. In this case, the supervisor failed to properly document, and in hindsight, it may have been a good idea for Mitch to have followed up and requested the situation be recorded and documented, since he knew the patient was unhappy with him. Related: Working With Patients Involved in Accidents A lesson was learned in this case, if you have a patient that is complaining without valid reasons, be certain to discuss it with your supervisor, and follow up to ensure it is properly addressed. The reality is, some people are complainers regardless of the situation. If you have a complaining co-worker, odds are they complain about others as well, which limits their credibility. If the complaint comes from a patient, be sure the situation is documented, as it may protect you in the event of an investigation. Related: International Nurses Association Please follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest and Twitter