Ask Me

This is a very true op-ed article I came across today. It seems more and more groups who have nothing to do with the everyday practice of medicine are inventing ways to influence our practice and control our every move. Dr. Leap, in this article, discusses an article with which I am all too familiar: the "Ask me" button. Our hospital began passing these out sometime in the fall. They have trite little reminders on them that are supposed to prompt us to wash our hands. "Ask me if I've washed my hands!!" As if my hands aren't chapped and near bleeding most of the time because I wash them so much. But wait! We are supposed to wash our hands upon entering AND leaving a patient's room! What happens if I just washed my hands after I left the room next door, walked 2 feet to get to this new patient's room. Am I supposed to now wash my hands again - assuming the air in the hallway is infested with bacteria and my hands are now primed for iatrogenic nosocomial murder??? What about the rest of me that I didn't scrub with antibacterial antiseptic? Should I wear a biohazard suit from room to room?

The newest and latest craze coming down the wire from the JCAHO (the "JC Ho" as I like to call them) is "no food in any public areas." While this is all nice and good for people with designated and protected lunch time (like nurses, aides, respiratory techs, hell - everyone but residents and physicians), this absolutely will not work for those of us who do not get 30 minutes to 1 hour set aside daily to eat our lunch. Hell, over half the time I don't even have the time to go to the cafeteria and actually GET a lunch, much less actually be able to EAT one. And now, they are trying to make it to where I can't even bring something and eat it where I might actually have a chance to do so - with me!?!?! I suppose it might be a good way to lose weight, right?

Anyway, enjoy the article, and the next time you see your doctor and are having a bad day, think about what he or she might have had to do that day. It might just help you see things from our perspective.

The Real Story Behind the "Ask Me" Button"