Things You Should NEVER Do In A Hospital

I have spent thousands of hours in hospitals, and over that time I've picked up on some definite do's and don'ts. Because most people (hopefully) might not spend too much time in the hospital, I realized they might not know certain protocols or mistakes that make life hard on hospital staff, and ultimately the patients. Today I run through the definitive cheat-sheet for how to navigate hospital life to get you, the patient, out of their and back on your feet as soon as possible!

The "Q" Word 00:00
Elevators 00:33
The 5-Second Rules 01:04
Leaving Early 01:46
Trashcans 02:24
Hospital Foods 2:55
Nurses Are Better 4:40
Helicopters 5:10
Leaving AMA 5:32
When Doctors Make Mistakes 6:01
Extra Medicine 6:40
Sleeping 7:21
End Of Life 7:50
Lying 8:28
Personal Valuables 8:59
Opening Mail 9:32
Bear 10:15
Bear's Clothes 11:43

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-Doctor Mike Varshavski

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* Select photos/videos provided by Getty Images *

** The information in this video is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images, and information, contained in this video is for general information purposes only and does not replace a consultation with your own doctor/health professional **

[carolyngarrison]

My nurse contribution: Visitors - never ever let your toddlers/small children crawl around on, or play on hospital floors. Not in the waiting rooms, patient rooms, not ANywhere.

[anitakent]

When my mum was in hospital at the end of her life she was unable to talk about D.N.R. She had talked to us (her children) about it. I had to tell the doctor that she did not want her life prolonged if her heart stoped. They resuscitated her 10 times before I was so upset that I screamed out enough she did not want this. They then rang my other siblings to find out what I said was true. So yes please talk to your doctor about a DO NOT RESUSCITATE order. It will take a lot of stress off your children

[maxbaxter]

Imma come clean: one time I was in the hospital for sepsis infection and one of the night time nurses was being extremely rude to me basically saying I was faking my infection symptoms for attention and I simply said "I hope you have a quiet shift sir"
Surprise: it wasn't a quiet shift for him

[roorooboo]

My law student contribution: Always read the Informed Consent Forms. It is extremely important you understand the procedure and its risks (from the common ones to the rare ones). I cannot stress this enough, read the Informed Consent and ask all the questions you may have before you sign it. No doctor who is worth their salt should refuse to answer your questions; questions are expected and even encouraged.

[arosebski]

Yes, advocate for yourself! The doctors almost gave my mom the wrong chemotherapy drug before she had a stem cell transplant. She kept telling them it wasn’t right, it wasn’t the one her oncologist told her she was going to have and they insisted it was. She kept insisting until a nurse who had picked up an extra shift and wasn’t even supposed to be there noticed how nervous and worried she seemed. The nurse asked what was up and my mom explained. The nurse was the one to finally convince the doctors it was wrong. The next day the entire department, including all the heads of it and a bunch of other hospital higher ups appeared in her room begging for forgiveness and for a second chance. My mom said “I literally don’t have a choice. I will die if I don’t have this transplant and no one else anywhere near here will do it.” They were extra extra careful after that and were almost obnoxiously nice to us. Advocate for yourself until they’re forced to believe you!

[macD]

Many years ago, my grandfather left AMA. He knew he was about to die and, he said he wouldn't die in a hospital, that he wanted to die at home. He also said, there were too many things at home to take care of before he died. So, when he was given the news, he probably wouldn't last another day or two, he checked himself out. He went home that morning, took care of his garden and a few other things around the house, as well as some paperwork, then around supper time, he said he was going to take a nap. Gave his wife a kiss and hugged her, sat down in his recliner, put on the tv and went to sleep for the last time. He always said, he'd know the time he was going to go.

[michellem]

Doctor Mike opening fan mail is like watching a child open gifts on Christmas, such a joy to watch! And Bear is so sweet with him, truly makes my heart happy 😃

[YOURGIRL]

Also speak up when you enter into an emergency room if you don't feel right. I went into the ER due to a bad toe infection. But for the past couple of days I had a bad pain in my left shoulder blade. They triaged me and I did tell them about the pain but they were incredibly busy. I waited there for over three hours and I kept feeling worse but I figured I should just go home because I didn't want to be a bother. Just as I was about to walk out they called me back. When they listened to my chest they realized I was having a heart attack. They placed three stents that day. I wouldn't have lived if I had went home.

[nataliethibault]

“Never insist the doctor is better than the nurse” OH BOY IS THAT THE TRUTH, in my experience, I spent several months in the hospital, and let me tell you... I WAS SO GRATEFUL when the nurses would do things especially dressing changes. Not to say doctors are not essential and wonderful humans for doing what they do, but there’s nothing like a nurse when it comes to bed side manor and calming down a terrified 21-year-old with a ruptured femoral artery. Love your content !!

[shobe_luna]

I was admitted once and I remembered that the doctors were trying to draw blood from an artery. I have always had a hard time getting my blood drawn. This time it was really painful for some reason. They failed 4x (1 nurse and 3 doctors) and on the 5th try it was like a senior nurse who nailed it. Thats when I knew, nurses are really superior when it comes to drawing blood

[AshtonKish]

End of Life Convo is a big one!! I've been a big advocate for palliative care for years and years - I even gave an end-of-life and palliative care presentation at my community college in my early 20s just because I was so passionate about it.
Don't be afraid to have these conversations!! My grandmother told me I was the only family member who ever asked her about her wishes when she was 86 years old. There's a reason she made me her Power of Attorney. When she ended up in the hospital for something that seemed routine? Turns out it wasn't -- and it took them a couple of weeks to recognize that! I had to advocate hard for her comfort, but I knew what she was willing to endure and where her stopping point was because I'd talked to her about it.

DON'T WAIT TO HAVE THESE CONVERSATIONS.

[richardwebb]

The prescription segment is very true. My grandpa had been admitted to the ER when we had call paramedics. His eyes rolled into the back of his head. It occurred from his medications. The ER doctor in charge that night was irritated at his physician for not double checking with a solid follow up. That ER doctor didn’t mean to be irritated, he just wished all primary doctors would do a 100% follow up instead of going with partial insight from the patient and ask family members for their observation when they tag along to help them.
The end of life is also a must for discussion. It helped a lot with my grandpa, thankfully he’s still here. He said DNR/no cpr. It was Tough to deal with. I didn’t get angry, but he’s been tough as nails for as long as I can remember. It was seeing how frail he’s become that bothered me after losing my grandma and aunt. I came to the conclusion that they do wish to be pain again, so we must ensure their wishes are carried out no matter how bad it hurts.

[kidney]

"never be a afraid to advocate for yourself"
I feel I have made a thousand videos about this piece of advice. Always talk to your doctor. Always ask for explanation. Show them that you care. Show them that you are getting informed about your condition. It can make all the difference in the world.

[Tirani]

Then wisest thing I was ever told in a hospital by a nurse: you come to a hospital to get treated, but you go home to get better. This after I complained about being woken up several times the night by folks checking on me or to do blood draws. She was absolutely right, and made me stop and think about it. I have never complained again about being woken up at the hospital.

[throneisbed]

I've never personally thought nurses were lesser than doctors, probably in part because one of the few things I remember of a hospital trip when I was six was there was a man in scrubs who was nice to me and made me feel a little less terrified (which is quite something, considering over-emotional six year old with a deep, bleeding head wound who would later go on to become a theatre kid), and I talked to Mum about what I thought of this man, and I called him a doctor to which Mum corrected me on that he was actually a nurse.
The other few things I recall with clarity are the medication process before the stitches where I think they tried to give me an oral medication but I was a stubborn little lad and outright refused, so they instead put it right up my nose where I distinctly recall firmly thinking "I am not going to swallow this." only for it to be swallowed anyways.
Oh, and the egg sandwich. Clearest thing I recall of that trip, being on a recovery bed and being given an egg sandwich which I greatly enjoyed and a red apple which sat in the backseat of the car for literal months :P

[GCATLiving]

Dude, them stickers are AMAZING!

My tip: DO NOT STAND in front of an elevator door. You never know if a coding patient needs to get out. I don't know how many times I've been in the employee elevator (I understand visitors don't get this) and, when the doors open, I am face to face with someone trying to get in meaning I can't get out. C'mon people!

[socklver]

Patient contribution: Don’t get mad when you hear that person at 3am screaming like a wild hyena. They are most likely in unimaginable pain or discomfort. Imagine how you’d feel in that position, knowing people are getting angry for something you can’t control…It sucks that it keeps you up, but you’re not the only one there with medical problems.

[heatherennis]

I had a seizure and fell off a train platform, and I kept telling the doctors and nurses I was in pain. The doctor actually discharged me at 2 am. I refused to leave, the doctor said he would have security remove me. I waited in the waiting room for an administrator to arrive, explained what happened, and she readmitted me and ordered an MRI. That's when they discovered my pelvis was fractured in front and back. When you have a degenerative musculoskeletal disorder and have a fall, the ER staff should always make sure you can walk unassisted and be able to go to the bathroom before they discharge you. If you can't do either, they should not be discharging you.

[harshu]

When doctors are close to the patients family, they should be extremely careful about HIPPA. My therapist who also happens to my dance teacher and aunt mentioned my case with extreme details to our family, technically she didn't violate the HIPPA law but gave enough clarity in the case to make my family understand who it was about, she didn't do it intentionally but it was a big problem for me as my mental state was revealed. Dear doctors, please be careful when treating your family.

[christianduncan]

I was in the hospital for a broken leg. They had an IV hooked up to me for hydration and antibiotics. I was still thirsty though. My mom asked if I could have Gatorade from the vending machine. The nurses gave an estatic yes because Gatorade helps hydrate and makes hitting the body's blood tubes easier. They always got it on the first try.