Now the purpose of the call light is right there in the name--to call! However, the delicate balance of call light use seems to be lost on most folks. Lets review how to get the most out of every use of the call light.
The call light is the patients (and families!) link with nursing staff. It is the communication tool provided to each patient to get what they need when they need it. I don't think we, as hospital staff, do a good enough job explaining how and when to use the call light, so here's my best shot so you as the consumer can get the best service possible.
Disservice #1: Under use
I always feel terrible when I walk into a patients room and they have either been in pain, hungry, thirsty or in need of the bathroom but didn't call for what they needed because they didn't want to bother anyone. We are here to take care of you, so let us know what you need! As a nurse, these types of patients make me nervous because they are the same ones that won't call when they are having chest pain, shortness of breath or other changes in their condition that it is better to intervene on sooner rather than later. Asking for what you need is not bothering anyone, and we rely on you, as the patient, to let us know.
Disservice #2: Overusage
Now after reading #1, we have established what appropriate usage is, now lets talk about what it is not. It is not calling every five minutes for differing requests (i.e. I want ice ***5 minutes later*** I want water***5 minutes later***I want a warm blanket***5 minutes later***I want coffee****five minutes later... you get the idea) It is also not calling for nursing staff to provide services to visitors. Now when I say "services" I don't mean like how to get out of the building or what visiting hours are, although most hospitals are providing a pamphlet to patients on admission to answer questions such as these, as well as the channels on the TV and where to get food, I am talking about requests such as "Please make a dinner reservation at restaurant 'x' for a party of 6 for 7:00" (no joke, this actually happened). It is also not to get your visitors food, drinks, pillows, blankets, movies, etc. I assume that since they brought themselves in they are also capable of caring for these basic needs on their own. The last and biggest one, at least for most of the nurses and CNA's I know, is not calling for something you can do yourself. Examples of this are "Please move my foot", "please pull my table closer", "please move my pillow up/down/etc", "hand me my glasses", "Move my tissue box closer". These types of requests are really frustrating because just because you are in the hospital, does not mean (at least in most cases) that you are a complete invalid and unable to care for yourself. We are here to take care of what you can't do for yourself, surgery, IV medications, cardiac monitoring, not to flip your pillow to the cool side--again.
Disservice #3--Not using it at all!
This disservice involves family members repeatedly leaving the room to go find someone to assist you the patient, or them as family members. I completely understand why this one happens: family members don't want to use the patients call light because it is for the patient, or they don't feel it is urgent so they think that going and finding someone to help them will be less disruptive. The problem with this is the way hospitals work: nurses are assigned a group of patients, usually between 4 and 6, and they have no idea about all the other patients on the floor. Finding a nurse or CNA is not necessarily finding your nurse or CNA, so in the time it took you to wander around the floor, find the wrong person, have the wrong person go find the right person, then the right person come attend to you takes about five times as long as if you or your family member had used the call light in the first place. The other problem with this method of getting help is that in a hospital, a lot of staff wears the same set of uniforms: the lab, the housekeepers, the nurses, the CNA's. So when you ask for your loved ones incontinent wear to be changed, I guarantee you the housekeeper can not help you.
I labeled the above issues "disservices" because in the end it means that you are not getting the care you need when you need it if you don't know how to properly utilize your call light. To get the most out of your call light try the following steps:
1) call when you need something!
2.) group your needs! think of everything you need or think you will need in the foreseeable future, so you can get the most out of every call
3.) be specific about what you need. When you call say exactly what you need i.e. "can I get another pillow and some water?" not "I need my nurse" This way your nurse or CNA can come prepared with what you need. It means faster service for you and fewer trips for your nurse.
Happy Calling!
