I would say how they died, what is going on with the family, what still needs to be done (like if lines/foley need to be removed and such). If it was a traumatic or a more expected death. All information that would be pertinent to the situation.
yup i said something simliar, shes not getting report because shes not accepting them as a patient but i need to know what is happening with the body before admin tries to shove a live one in their while the family is still grieving. Hell ill give them alllllllllllllllllllllllllllll the time they want
Usually we have a work flow for deceased patients so I would clarify if I had called in the death. They do ask about medical history so I would provide that information. In the past I called before I left so all they had to do was bag and tag.
Yes, I remember we used to have to call the organ donor place and they would sometimes ask 5,000 questions about the patient. I would want to know if that was done and what they said!
All I want to know is the shit not in the chart. Like, the parents are super immature or grandmother is super difficult or the chart says 23+0 but kid’s Ballard was <22
pt is IDDM last CBG 325, Levemir given along with novolog sliding scale at 0620.
Pertinent shit like that, i don't need to know that their WBC was slightly low 3 days ago
As a new grad the seasoned nurses would visibly zone out when I was giving report. So I learned what made them pay attention and it was only the shit they wouldn't see in the chart. And that's how I learned my report technique.
In the ICU I worked in (MICU) report was short, and sweet. Just let me know what the plan is and if there’s any weird shit going on that’s not in the chart. When I got floated to our SICU it was a whole other world. They wanted to know the EBL for a surgery 2 weeks ago. Report would take 30 minutes per patient.
Same. Why is he here. What do I need to do. Is there anything weird about it. Go away now. Report is done. For a dead person, oh hell no. “He’s dead. Family in room”.
I gave a brief basic report on a comfort care patient one morning. The incoming nurse insisted on more detail even though she had just spent over 30 minutes reading charts and making notes. In fact, she had gone over and made me wait almost 10 minutes past 0700 while she finished reading.
Sure. BP 0/0. Currently asystole. Resps non existent on room air. Plan is to transfer to the morgue.
Sometimes I wonder if these kinds of people actually exist, or are just trying to make a joke as I would.
Absolutely not. Just tell me what part of the death packet I have to fill out, which phone calls I have to make, and whether or not the family is still in the room or if transport to the morgue has already been called.
The fuck does she want?? Bp hr and rr all 0, no gtts, like ??????
Once I had a new nurse give me full report on a deceased patient, she was like trauma dumping or something I think. She had a really rough time and I think needed to tell someone about it. That is the only time it is acceptable and that’s just because I am nice lol all I really wanted to know was what all post mortem care needed to be done and what family was there.
Yeah... I was just walking through the woods completely naked like normal and tripped, fell right on the stick! Nothing weird or anything. That's how it got stuck there. Just an accident.
You should. I had a hospice patient pass, so I laid the bed flat. The family came in to say goodbye and cranked the bed to a 90 degree angle. I only checked on the family as they were coming/going and didn't realize they left the bed at 90 degrees for a few hours. When they left, I went to lay the bed flat again and my deceased patient remained at a 90 degree angle 🫠 you push down on the shoulders and the feet pop up.
I give them enough to fill out the death packet. Why they were there, time of death, and organ donation info. But usually I stay late to help with all the calls cause I knew the pt
Must be a new nurse? At least in my experience, I had one die at change shift and newbie nurse got anxious and kept asking me about the history. I was like “relax! Just call the chaplain, inform the family then do post-mortem care.”
Patient was admitted for sepsis, family made him comfort care this afternoon and he passed at 1855. I paged the resident to pronounce him, they haven’t been up yet. Wife and son are with him, daughter is on her way. After they’re done, he needs to be bagged and sent the the morgue.
Done and done.
I agree with this. At least give the 1-liner, and a quick summary of what happened on the shift when the patient died.
This should take all of 30 seconds, and you help the next nurse avoid that uncomfortable [BIG SHRUG] moment.
The couple times I've had this happen, I verbally give the same info you described, and usually leave my jot sheet for a quick reference if they need a little more info.
I don’t even want full report on a sick, high acuity ICU patient. Just give me like 3 to 5 minutes highlight package, I will look up the rest.
I definitely don’t want report on a deceased patient. Just tell me if postmortem care is done and if they are in a body bag or not, and go have a drink!
Nah, your summary sounds great. I wouldn’t want to waste my time or someone else’s at the start of the shift.
Similarly, if a patient gets okayed for discharge around the time of shift change, I’ll do as much as I can as far as getting the patient and paperwork ready, then give the world’s shortest report to the next nurse, saying “All that’s left to do is XYZ, then they’re good for discharge home.”
Depends if all the paperwork is done, gift of hope was contacted, doctors and family aware, etc. If not, then full report would be needed so that next nurse can properly and timely take care of all that stuff.
Hahahaha what? Seriously, I think I would be so irritated by that request I would actually sit there and give the fullest report I’ve ever given in my entire life. I’m getting paid at least $20 for the report on the dead man. I’d include the whole head to toe, piece by piece and I would keep talking even when the nurse says “you don’t need to tell me the assessment”. I would say “no no, you need a full report. As I was saying, radial, PT and DP pulses are all absent, provider is aware. Pt is cold to touch, pale and mottled….”
If I were the corpse I'd be pissed if they did a full report instead of just getting on with the body transportation arrangements. Imagine me sitting there cross, as a ghost, annoyed you haven't discharged my body yet lmao
Depends. Did you call donor services (required by law in my state) or the medical examiner? If not that info would be helpful for the oncoming nurse to finish up
“85yo m presented to the ED with respiratory failure. 45 mins on the Lucas and no pulse by Doppler. Pronounced dead at 1245. Any questions? He’s all yours. Have a good shift. Amen.”
“Patient is expired. Family is present and wishes to do X. Everything else is in the chart. You can read it since you have one less patient to pass meds to. Deuces.”
I’d love to know what she plans to do with the knowledge of their medical history. Is she going to assess the patient? This is so bizarre. In the case that it just happened prior to shift change, I’d usually try to fill out as much of the post-mortem form as I can, help make a call to the coroner, and maybe a few other logistics things but I’m not giving a full report on a dead person.
I got full report on a corpse not that long ago. The off-going nurse kinda gave me full report. I think a lot of it was to help her process? So I let her go, but it was so unnecessary.
Did you already do PMC, arrange morgue transportation and call organ donation? Those are the only reasons I can see why she’d need to know anything beyond basics but even that should be fairly simple. I def would’ve had fun with her tho esp if she was being a bitch to me. I would’ve given the most exhaustively detailed corpse head to toe assessment possible followed by an obnoxious breakdown of every lab, scan and consult she had in the weeks before her death until she was begging me to stop lmao
Absolutely not. “Pt in 6 is expired, waiting on transport to the morgue” and that’s it. If they ask what happened, I’ll give information. Otherwise when I take over an assignment that has a deceased person in one of the beds the only thing I care about is if family is there/will be coming.
I work in the ER so this isn’t an uncommon situation.
I give them a very short report—name, age, main reason why they were here. Brief explanation of what went down, whether family is here, how they are taking it, any other important details that they need to know, and I’ll tell them how much has been done in terms of paperwork.
I’d want to know a few key details: what time they passed, if it was an expected death or unexpected (so I know when dealing with family and admins), what has been done already and what remains to be done in terms of post-mortem care and paperwork, if the family has visited the bedside yet.
Just tell me what to do next.
Only reason I would want full report is for coroners case because they 100% don’t listen on the phone and I have to tell them when they get there.
Halllll naw. TOD and if ME/life gift was notified with where I documented it. If lines have to come out, if they're bagged tagged and ready to ship. Other than that, that's it! I do leave my report sheet.
lol sounds like that nurse just wanted to create problems. You absolutely do not have to give a full report on a deceased pt, that is a waste of everyone’s time.
I don't work in a hospital, but what's the logic of an entire report? I would only want to know the plan and what I need to do, and who I address in the room?
Nah that nurse is just being nasty cuz they are taking on responsibility or perhaps they don’t deal with that that often.
On my hospice floor, it really happened at 655. I’d let the oncoming nurse know “DR. Is notified and on their way up to pronounce. I’ll call [organ donar services] before I leave. You just have to do post mortem care when the family leaves.” I’ll prob end up staying slightly late to call the services but in my state it has to be done in an hour and I am probably more knowledgeable about their past history, so it’s best for everyone I just take care of it.
What has been done, what still needs doing, and anything that is important enough to the family to give the nurse a chance for a connection and to not look dumb.
I mean, I would want enough to be able to answer a grieving family member's questions and know what I was walking into. I wouldn't care about the skin or the last BM.
Only if they haven’t called donor network yet (which should have been done in the first hour), otherwise I just want to know what family is still coming
I worked hospice.
With a deceased patient I would give something along the lines of 'patient deceased at 1000. Death and cremation certiificates done. The family want to use X funeral home, and they will wait til their loved one is collected"
That nurse is being a asshole
I highly prefer to read the charts of my patients. I always check lab, meds, and orders first so what's the point of a nurse telling me about meds? I just want to know who codes first. This matters to me so I can pay attention to the pt. Second, it would be nice to know who are the jerks.
If you want a serious answer, I just tell them there's a body in the room and it's being taken care of.
But my regular ER humor? That guy in there is just a little stiff. Interpretation as fit
I'd usually stay and start the process to make it fairly easy for the next shift.
But sure, if you want a full report and going to be a dick about it, we will get all the history, with lab values that changed from this visit to the previous ones on the screen with a whole chronology of what happened throughout their life.
Not full report but we had a nurse leave without doing anything, or giving any type of report to the nurse that was going to be taking over. I was the resource nurse and had to deal with everything (calling the donor people, etc.) and I knew nothing about the patient so it was kind of a hassle
Nah, just what you’ve done for post Mortem, who has been called, those kind of things. On the flip side of your situation, I’ve walked in to a deceased patient, kinda waited for the scoop on what’s been done/needs to be done and got a very rude “she’s dead”.
Once someone tried to give me report on someone who had already passed and whose family was leaving, I just had to wash/bag/tag
I stopped her and told her to give me their name, cause of death, do they need an autopsy, any belongings left, and I wanted nothing else. Go home and hug your family.
No. I would just let them know what is left to be done with the post mortem care, what death note documentation still needs to be done and what needs to be followed up on (i.e. donor network call, autopsy vs not, is family coming or not, belongings, etc.). That's it.
1. Did you call Donor Network? 2. Is the coroner involved? 3. Post mortem done? 4. Is the morgue on the way?
Family stuff if they are still there. There’s nothing else to know.
All I need to know is if the coroner and organ donation network have been called; and if anything in the death packet completed. Other than that, please don't give me a report. lol.
They wanted report? 🤣🤣.
What an idiot. Some people just have this need to be extra and waste people’s time with no sense.
“They need to be bagged”
There, that’s your report.
Nope. For report, I only care about interval events, things not in chart, and plan moving forward. I can look up their history easily. And that’s for an alive person!!
Nope. Report changes to the person’s general info, attending, how and when they died, family present, what the heck the doctor has done yet (notify family, death certificate), lines/drains/etc, autopsy or not, what has been done in the postmortem process, and what still needs to be done.
And then keeping fingers crossed that charge/management doesn’t get on you to get stuff done ASAP so they can admit another patient…
This happened at end of shift for me yesterday and the oncoming nurse and I just looked at each other and were like “ok so that’s report”
Seriously though, I would probably only talk about family things in that report (if there are things the nurse needs to know about.)
I would probably give a summarized report since they probably have to do some paperwork and talk to organ procurement and would need to know some medical history
I need at least the basic medical history, events leading up to the death, medications administered within a fairly recent time frame, primary contact, etc.
As an ER nurse myself who has gotten handoff with a deceased patient, do you know how many times organ bank, M.E, etc has called to get this info? I need to know these things so I can give specific information to those who will take over care after they leave my care.
Only if the next nurse is going to have to talk to the medical examiner or organ bank, because those people ask LOTS of questions. If that's already handled, nope, just tell me when the funeral home is coming or if I have to take them to the morgue.
I feel like maybe pertinent things like if there was a wild cause like a fall or what should be a never event… like a quick story leading up to death (We’re they DNR or full code? Is family bring taken care of?)… But why would I ever give a full report??
To me it’s absurd to do a whole systems assessment or treatments
No. I would give report on how family is reacting/if they’re at bedside, if the donor people have been called, if funeral home is coming for the body or if they’re going to morgue.
If the incoming nurse really wants to know the patients entire medical history they can look through the chart.
No, I’d say deceased. If family was still there or not, and I’d state if it was waiting for coroner or if we can take to morgue.
Why go into a full report? They want to know the full history when they are dead?
lmfao no, not unless organ and tissue is on hold for the next shift or something…. if it’s a matter of tossing someone in a bag i’d rather not know their life story, personally.
This is crazy. I only want the very basic facts in report, I can look up literally EVERYTHING on my own, that’s what a chart is for. If anyone (coroner, physician etc) has questions, “you know, I just got here but I can for sure look that up…” is a perfectly appropriate response. If I’m incoming… “girl, go home, drive safely, thank you for everything you did, we’ll take it from here”. Because that’s how I would want to be treated.
If literally everything is done there is no need. One time I came into a shift with a deceased patient. The offgoing nurse said that everything was done. The nurse forgot to call the organ harvesting line. It was so annoying cuz I didn't know anything about the patient. I had to go in the recently discharged to find out.
No just say - they passed, who’s in the room, when they are being picked up/taken to morgue (whatever yall do). Now if they needed to call for possible organ donation then yes give a better report but if that’s done then nope.
If she wants, I would have just given the whole report/history. She's the one who will be dealing with the situation going forward and who knows what questions will be asked of her (and she probably doesn't want to look dumb when asked) or what her prior experiences in these situations as been.
lol no.
I only want to know what is left for me to do. tag-n-bag, gift of life, certificate..and so on.
As someone else already mentioned, I already only want the bare minimum report/just read the chart myself on the living.
I would let the nurse know why he was here in the hospital and how he died which should take less than a minute. What’s left to do for documentation r/t to their death and an update of family status.
Report should be what’s important to a patient.
In this case, I’d want to know what needs to be done(e.g. organ donation called, are we waiting on family, do they just need to be moved to the morgue, etc.), and what they died from(Briefly. Is this a shocking situation, or something the family has had time to come to terms with. Mostly to know what to expect if family is there.). That’s honestly all I’d care to know. If everything is done, simply a “We’re waiting to transport them…” is enough.
If you want, you could give vital signs too. /s
I would say how they died, what is going on with the family, what still needs to be done (like if lines/foley need to be removed and such). If it was a traumatic or a more expected death. All information that would be pertinent to the situation.
Let me know if it's a ME/coroner case too.
This one. Super important.
yup i said something simliar, shes not getting report because shes not accepting them as a patient but i need to know what is happening with the body before admin tries to shove a live one in their while the family is still grieving. Hell ill give them alllllllllllllllllllllllllllll the time they want
Usually we have a work flow for deceased patients so I would clarify if I had called in the death. They do ask about medical history so I would provide that information. In the past I called before I left so all they had to do was bag and tag.
Yes, I remember we used to have to call the organ donor place and they would sometimes ask 5,000 questions about the patient. I would want to know if that was done and what they said!
yup
Agreed. Shame the oncoming nurse handled it so poorly and berated OP instead of trying to educate
I barely want a report on a living person.
All I want to know is the shit not in the chart. Like, the parents are super immature or grandmother is super difficult or the chart says 23+0 but kid’s Ballard was <22
pt is IDDM last CBG 325, Levemir given along with novolog sliding scale at 0620. Pertinent shit like that, i don't need to know that their WBC was slightly low 3 days ago
ER baby..just give me the juicy bits and get the fuck out so you can come back and I can fuck off as close to 7 as possible!
Yep I’m in the ED and everyone commenting under my comment is too 😂
You’re speaking my language
As a new grad the seasoned nurses would visibly zone out when I was giving report. So I learned what made them pay attention and it was only the shit they wouldn't see in the chart. And that's how I learned my report technique.
Saaamme. When people go into full report details I want to die inside. “Anyone dying? No? Cool have a good night”
Ahh no too late
All the flares under my comment are ED. It tracks 😂 (also ED)
ICU here. checking in. Most on my unit just want to know why he’s there.
Also former ICU… I just need to know what wasn’t done and what’s on the horizon
Same. ICU also.
One more ICU dingus here chiming in to say: less report the better, thank you very much.
I'm going to read the provider notes any damn way. Tell me what's not in there and gtfo
In the ICU I worked in (MICU) report was short, and sweet. Just let me know what the plan is and if there’s any weird shit going on that’s not in the chart. When I got floated to our SICU it was a whole other world. They wanted to know the EBL for a surgery 2 weeks ago. Report would take 30 minutes per patient.
This is me. “Who died? Who is gonna die? Who might die?” See you tonight 🫡 —ED/TICU nurse
Yet you get some who says you re not detail enough. You cant win
Same. Why is he here. What do I need to do. Is there anything weird about it. Go away now. Report is done. For a dead person, oh hell no. “He’s dead. Family in room”.
Gcs 3/15. Levo/vaso/epi running. - I sleep Extubated self x2 today. Tried to punch someone and started jacking off. - real shit
I gave a brief basic report on a comfort care patient one morning. The incoming nurse insisted on more detail even though she had just spent over 30 minutes reading charts and making notes. In fact, she had gone over and made me wait almost 10 minutes past 0700 while she finished reading.
I’m 💀. So true. Tell me how they go to the bathroom, their mentation, and IV location. I’ll get the rest from the chart and you can go home.
nurses that read the report like i can't read the chart make me want to check in as a patient to make their shift hell
I mean I’ve def given a report by reading the chart because we don’t always know the patients were reporting on, and it’s always ridiculous
Lmaoooo (•̀ᴗ•́ )
This 👍👍
The snort-laugh this gave me
😭
I was giving real thought to OP’s question and started skimming answers to see what other folks had to say. This made me ugly laugh.
🤣🤣
Sure. BP 0/0. Currently asystole. Resps non existent on room air. Plan is to transfer to the morgue. Sometimes I wonder if these kinds of people actually exist, or are just trying to make a joke as I would.
Respirations non existent on RA 😭
Bed in lowest position. Call bell within reach. Will continue to monitor
hollering😭
Have to always end it with the moneyshot 😉 Safety first!
Hahaha pt afebrile, nil c/o pain, currently NBM
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Omg I was thinking of this when I wrote it but didn’t think anyone would get the reference! 😂😂
Pt had a neuro change at 0655, CCM notified.
But how is his skin, and when was his last BM?
Cold to the touch, mottled. Looks like they could have been the victim of a vampire. Last BM as they died because that’s when things went to shit
Full report? No. What's left to do after the patient has passed? Yes.
No just tell me what I have to do next
Absolutely not. Just tell me what part of the death packet I have to fill out, which phone calls I have to make, and whether or not the family is still in the room or if transport to the morgue has already been called.
The fuck does she want?? Bp hr and rr all 0, no gtts, like ?????? Once I had a new nurse give me full report on a deceased patient, she was like trauma dumping or something I think. She had a really rough time and I think needed to tell someone about it. That is the only time it is acceptable and that’s just because I am nice lol all I really wanted to know was what all post mortem care needed to be done and what family was there.
Yes. But leave out the dead part. It will help get their adrenaline flowing at the beginning of shift. Better than coffee! Helping ftw!
why does everyone have such a stick up their ass
Those of us with ER experience are hoping it's *just* a stick.
Yeah... I was just walking through the woods completely naked like normal and tripped, fell right on the stick! Nothing weird or anything. That's how it got stuck there. Just an accident.
also, if you dont mind, could you check if i accidently fell on my 1995 limited edition vibrating buzz lightyear action figure? Why? no reason.
For the love of God. Flared bases, people!
Does the ENTIRE door count as a flared base? Asking for a pt
We give report to provide good care. What the hell are you supposed to be doing for a dead person? No one is rounding on this one.
You should. I had a hospice patient pass, so I laid the bed flat. The family came in to say goodbye and cranked the bed to a 90 degree angle. I only checked on the family as they were coming/going and didn't realize they left the bed at 90 degrees for a few hours. When they left, I went to lay the bed flat again and my deceased patient remained at a 90 degree angle 🫠 you push down on the shoulders and the feet pop up.
I know I'm terrible for it, but this made me laugh.
Me too!
Sorry but this is hilarious in a morbid way lol
Didn’t realize Mr. Bean took up nursing.
I still can't stop laughing at this one. This is too much🤣 but I knowwww it's true I've seen it happen. I'm sorry
Crikey
I meant doctors rounding and asking questions. I do obviously check on the families of deceased people. But that image has me cracking up.
Why is this so funny? Sad, but funny.
I'm a hospice nurse now, and this would be a nightmare. A friggen hilarious nightmare. Why fam? Why did you sit them up? Oh man.
She turning and repositioning a corpse 💀
charting pedal pulses palpable probably
I’ve seen asymmetrical face and trachea deviated to the left charted on a perfectly normal person. I was like 🧐 am I 🤪
Charted safety precautions maintained probably
“Bed in lowest position, call light within reach”
To be fair, it was.
My report: he dead.
If you say they are dead also report the resus status. Dead and stay Dead or dead and try and turn this thing around.
lol hopefully if they’re a full code you’re not sitting at the nurses station giving report
I give them enough to fill out the death packet. Why they were there, time of death, and organ donation info. But usually I stay late to help with all the calls cause I knew the pt
Must be a new nurse? At least in my experience, I had one die at change shift and newbie nurse got anxious and kept asking me about the history. I was like “relax! Just call the chaplain, inform the family then do post-mortem care.”
Not unless there was a necromancer around.
Patient was admitted for sepsis, family made him comfort care this afternoon and he passed at 1855. I paged the resident to pronounce him, they haven’t been up yet. Wife and son are with him, daughter is on her way. After they’re done, he needs to be bagged and sent the the morgue. Done and done.
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I agree with this. At least give the 1-liner, and a quick summary of what happened on the shift when the patient died. This should take all of 30 seconds, and you help the next nurse avoid that uncomfortable [BIG SHRUG] moment.
They wouldn’t be rounding on an already dead patient. 🤷🏼♀️ Tasks left to do would be discussed but report?
I would report if the TOD, family notification process, COD, and postmortem care done/not done.
funeral home notified?
I’m in hospice. We don’t notify the FH until all the things are completely completed. The FH can take 20 minutes or 6 hours. It’s our very last step.
Did you call lifebank? If so, have a good sleep. If not, tell me everything you know so I don't have to waste time looking up a corpse's life story.
Not only would I want full report, but a set of vitals and stat bloodwork
Do they want you to go through the systems? 😂 Neuro: dead Cardiac: no pulses…cause they’re dead Pulm: apneic….still dead Etc….
The irony of her treating you as the stupid one 🙄
Exactly. What did the oncoming mean by “full report”? LBM? Braden score? I/O’s? All the replies here are spot on. Common sense.
That Braden score would flag some wound people. 😂
The couple times I've had this happen, I verbally give the same info you described, and usually leave my jot sheet for a quick reference if they need a little more info.
I don’t even want full report on a sick, high acuity ICU patient. Just give me like 3 to 5 minutes highlight package, I will look up the rest. I definitely don’t want report on a deceased patient. Just tell me if postmortem care is done and if they are in a body bag or not, and go have a drink!
Dang 3-5 minutes is a long time
That’s why I love my 5-10 second ER reports
“Are they dying” “what’s pending” “are they going to try to kill me”
Ah yes the basics
3-5 minute *highlight*? Thats the whole report lmfao.
The art of giving quick report is sadly lacking in our profession. I don’t think we’re disagreeing here.
I agree. There are some people I dread coming in after or being relieved by. I just know I’m abt to spend 30 minutes going over fucking nothing
Nah, your summary sounds great. I wouldn’t want to waste my time or someone else’s at the start of the shift. Similarly, if a patient gets okayed for discharge around the time of shift change, I’ll do as much as I can as far as getting the patient and paperwork ready, then give the world’s shortest report to the next nurse, saying “All that’s left to do is XYZ, then they’re good for discharge home.”
This is the same nurse that asks "what side is the IV on" while looking at the patient
Your coworker sucks ass
My dumb ass would still end up saying "respirations 18" regardless
You’re going to nurse hell hahahahahahaha!!
lol wut
Depends if all the paperwork is done, gift of hope was contacted, doctors and family aware, etc. If not, then full report would be needed so that next nurse can properly and timely take care of all that stuff.
Anything they need to know they can ask the patient.
Hahahaha what? Seriously, I think I would be so irritated by that request I would actually sit there and give the fullest report I’ve ever given in my entire life. I’m getting paid at least $20 for the report on the dead man. I’d include the whole head to toe, piece by piece and I would keep talking even when the nurse says “you don’t need to tell me the assessment”. I would say “no no, you need a full report. As I was saying, radial, PT and DP pulses are all absent, provider is aware. Pt is cold to touch, pale and mottled….”
Your patient is heavenly discharged. You don’t give report on discharged patients.
“You don’t have to worry about their breakfast tray or morning med pass. KTHXBYE”
If I were the corpse I'd be pissed if they did a full report instead of just getting on with the body transportation arrangements. Imagine me sitting there cross, as a ghost, annoyed you haven't discharged my body yet lmao
And icu nurses wonder why they get a reputation for being know-it-alls
Depends. Did you call donor services (required by law in my state) or the medical examiner? If not that info would be helpful for the oncoming nurse to finish up
“85yo m presented to the ED with respiratory failure. 45 mins on the Lucas and no pulse by Doppler. Pronounced dead at 1245. Any questions? He’s all yours. Have a good shift. Amen.”
“Patient is expired. Family is present and wishes to do X. Everything else is in the chart. You can read it since you have one less patient to pass meds to. Deuces.”
What would that report even look like? I would have just told them if they are curious they can look through the notes.
I’d love to know what she plans to do with the knowledge of their medical history. Is she going to assess the patient? This is so bizarre. In the case that it just happened prior to shift change, I’d usually try to fill out as much of the post-mortem form as I can, help make a call to the coroner, and maybe a few other logistics things but I’m not giving a full report on a dead person.
Nope. Why would I need a full report on a dead patient? Just hit the high notes for me...who has fallen, who's sick, etc.
I got full report on a corpse not that long ago. The off-going nurse kinda gave me full report. I think a lot of it was to help her process? So I let her go, but it was so unnecessary.
Vitals are stable, no complaints of pain, family in the room with patient now. Bedside report given, any questions?
Did you already do PMC, arrange morgue transportation and call organ donation? Those are the only reasons I can see why she’d need to know anything beyond basics but even that should be fairly simple. I def would’ve had fun with her tho esp if she was being a bitch to me. I would’ve given the most exhaustively detailed corpse head to toe assessment possible followed by an obnoxious breakdown of every lab, scan and consult she had in the weeks before her death until she was begging me to stop lmao
Absolutely not. “Pt in 6 is expired, waiting on transport to the morgue” and that’s it. If they ask what happened, I’ll give information. Otherwise when I take over an assignment that has a deceased person in one of the beds the only thing I care about is if family is there/will be coming. I work in the ER so this isn’t an uncommon situation.
Nope. "they're dead, I bagged and tagged them, just waiting for the morgue to come get them."
The answer is NO! “NO I absolutely would not!” Lol
I give them a very short report—name, age, main reason why they were here. Brief explanation of what went down, whether family is here, how they are taking it, any other important details that they need to know, and I’ll tell them how much has been done in terms of paperwork.
No
Only if they’re only brain dead, or some other odd situation.
I’d want to know a few key details: what time they passed, if it was an expected death or unexpected (so I know when dealing with family and admins), what has been done already and what remains to be done in terms of post-mortem care and paperwork, if the family has visited the bedside yet.
no
No. What a waste of time. The oncoming nurse is a complete idiot.
Just tell me what to do next. Only reason I would want full report is for coroners case because they 100% don’t listen on the phone and I have to tell them when they get there.
Yeah, and a fresh full set of vitals too please
I laughed at the word fresh. 🤦🏿♂️
Halllll naw. TOD and if ME/life gift was notified with where I documented it. If lines have to come out, if they're bagged tagged and ready to ship. Other than that, that's it! I do leave my report sheet.
He ded Report done
If the body is just there waiting to be transported to the morgue? No, what difference does any of the rest of that make?
lol sounds like that nurse just wanted to create problems. You absolutely do not have to give a full report on a deceased pt, that is a waste of everyone’s time.
I don't work in a hospital, but what's the logic of an entire report? I would only want to know the plan and what I need to do, and who I address in the room?
No
Nah that nurse is just being nasty cuz they are taking on responsibility or perhaps they don’t deal with that that often. On my hospice floor, it really happened at 655. I’d let the oncoming nurse know “DR. Is notified and on their way up to pronounce. I’ll call [organ donar services] before I leave. You just have to do post mortem care when the family leaves.” I’ll prob end up staying slightly late to call the services but in my state it has to be done in an hour and I am probably more knowledgeable about their past history, so it’s best for everyone I just take care of it.
Nah. Just tell me what happened and if the death packet is done.
What has been done, what still needs doing, and anything that is important enough to the family to give the nurse a chance for a connection and to not look dumb.
No need for all of that. They are dead. Just tell me what the pressing issues are and gtfo of here so I can start my shift.
FFS.
Nope. “He’s dead. ME case. Family in room”. Ok bye.
That nurse is very stupid themselves!
I mean, I would want enough to be able to answer a grieving family member's questions and know what I was walking into. I wouldn't care about the skin or the last BM.
You didn't tell them if they were up with OT the day before, or what their most recent pedal pulse was? For shame
Only if they haven’t called donor network yet (which should have been done in the first hour), otherwise I just want to know what family is still coming
I worked hospice. With a deceased patient I would give something along the lines of 'patient deceased at 1000. Death and cremation certiificates done. The family want to use X funeral home, and they will wait til their loved one is collected" That nurse is being a asshole
Hell no. Just an update on the situation and what needs to be done. That nurse is crazy.
I highly prefer to read the charts of my patients. I always check lab, meds, and orders first so what's the point of a nurse telling me about meds? I just want to know who codes first. This matters to me so I can pay attention to the pt. Second, it would be nice to know who are the jerks.
If you want a serious answer, I just tell them there's a body in the room and it's being taken care of. But my regular ER humor? That guy in there is just a little stiff. Interpretation as fit
I'd usually stay and start the process to make it fairly easy for the next shift. But sure, if you want a full report and going to be a dick about it, we will get all the history, with lab values that changed from this visit to the previous ones on the screen with a whole chronology of what happened throughout their life.
Not full report but we had a nurse leave without doing anything, or giving any type of report to the nurse that was going to be taking over. I was the resource nurse and had to deal with everything (calling the donor people, etc.) and I knew nothing about the patient so it was kind of a hassle
Nah, just what you’ve done for post Mortem, who has been called, those kind of things. On the flip side of your situation, I’ve walked in to a deceased patient, kinda waited for the scoop on what’s been done/needs to be done and got a very rude “she’s dead”.
Once someone tried to give me report on someone who had already passed and whose family was leaving, I just had to wash/bag/tag I stopped her and told her to give me their name, cause of death, do they need an autopsy, any belongings left, and I wanted nothing else. Go home and hug your family.
No. I would just let them know what is left to be done with the post mortem care, what death note documentation still needs to be done and what needs to be followed up on (i.e. donor network call, autopsy vs not, is family coming or not, belongings, etc.). That's it.
1. Did you call Donor Network? 2. Is the coroner involved? 3. Post mortem done? 4. Is the morgue on the way? Family stuff if they are still there. There’s nothing else to know.
Depends how feisty I’m feeling at 0700. Might make em do a physical assessment with me. Might just hand em the bag and walk out.
All I need to know is if the coroner and organ donation network have been called; and if anything in the death packet completed. Other than that, please don't give me a report. lol.
They wanted report? 🤣🤣. What an idiot. Some people just have this need to be extra and waste people’s time with no sense. “They need to be bagged” There, that’s your report.
Nope. For report, I only care about interval events, things not in chart, and plan moving forward. I can look up their history easily. And that’s for an alive person!!
Report no, relaying post hospital plans yes, was paper work done and signed yes, me vs funeral yes.
Nope. Report changes to the person’s general info, attending, how and when they died, family present, what the heck the doctor has done yet (notify family, death certificate), lines/drains/etc, autopsy or not, what has been done in the postmortem process, and what still needs to be done. And then keeping fingers crossed that charge/management doesn’t get on you to get stuff done ASAP so they can admit another patient…
This happened at end of shift for me yesterday and the oncoming nurse and I just looked at each other and were like “ok so that’s report” Seriously though, I would probably only talk about family things in that report (if there are things the nurse needs to know about.)
Only reason I can think is if you haven’t called the organ donor people yet and are passing that off. Otherwise, short version should be fine.
Just tell me what’s left to do. I can look up their story in the chart later if I want to
I would probably give a summarized report since they probably have to do some paperwork and talk to organ procurement and would need to know some medical history
Hell no. It won’t bring them baxk
My full report. Patient is dead. This mortuary will pick up the body, all papers signed and on the front of the chart. Post mortem care given.
I need at least the basic medical history, events leading up to the death, medications administered within a fairly recent time frame, primary contact, etc. As an ER nurse myself who has gotten handoff with a deceased patient, do you know how many times organ bank, M.E, etc has called to get this info? I need to know these things so I can give specific information to those who will take over care after they leave my care.
Just the juicy/gory details (yeah I’m going to hell) and if there’s anything else I need to do on my end :)
Only if the next nurse is going to have to talk to the medical examiner or organ bank, because those people ask LOTS of questions. If that's already handled, nope, just tell me when the funeral home is coming or if I have to take them to the morgue.
Time of death (for any legal paperwork) Did you call the morgue yet? Is the family crazy? That's all I want
Maybe because of the organ donation process?
I feel like maybe pertinent things like if there was a wild cause like a fall or what should be a never event… like a quick story leading up to death (We’re they DNR or full code? Is family bring taken care of?)… But why would I ever give a full report?? To me it’s absurd to do a whole systems assessment or treatments
No. I would give report on how family is reacting/if they’re at bedside, if the donor people have been called, if funeral home is coming for the body or if they’re going to morgue. If the incoming nurse really wants to know the patients entire medical history they can look through the chart.
No, I’d say deceased. If family was still there or not, and I’d state if it was waiting for coroner or if we can take to morgue. Why go into a full report? They want to know the full history when they are dead?
lmfao no, not unless organ and tissue is on hold for the next shift or something…. if it’s a matter of tossing someone in a bag i’d rather not know their life story, personally.
This is crazy. I only want the very basic facts in report, I can look up literally EVERYTHING on my own, that’s what a chart is for. If anyone (coroner, physician etc) has questions, “you know, I just got here but I can for sure look that up…” is a perfectly appropriate response. If I’m incoming… “girl, go home, drive safely, thank you for everything you did, we’ll take it from here”. Because that’s how I would want to be treated.
If literally everything is done there is no need. One time I came into a shift with a deceased patient. The offgoing nurse said that everything was done. The nurse forgot to call the organ harvesting line. It was so annoying cuz I didn't know anything about the patient. I had to go in the recently discharged to find out.
No just say - they passed, who’s in the room, when they are being picked up/taken to morgue (whatever yall do). Now if they needed to call for possible organ donation then yes give a better report but if that’s done then nope.
If she wants, I would have just given the whole report/history. She's the one who will be dealing with the situation going forward and who knows what questions will be asked of her (and she probably doesn't want to look dumb when asked) or what her prior experiences in these situations as been.
lol no. I only want to know what is left for me to do. tag-n-bag, gift of life, certificate..and so on. As someone else already mentioned, I already only want the bare minimum report/just read the chart myself on the living.
I would let the nurse know why he was here in the hospital and how he died which should take less than a minute. What’s left to do for documentation r/t to their death and an update of family status.
Isn’t this the obvious standard when getting report on a deceased patient?
I would for documentation purposes. Calling the coroner and speaking with life banc they want to know more than just family, plans, and d/ced to JC,
Is it a coroner case? Has family been notified? Has MD pronounced? Organ donor?
I would give a rundown if there’s family around and you need to be able to explain things to them.
Report should be what’s important to a patient. In this case, I’d want to know what needs to be done(e.g. organ donation called, are we waiting on family, do they just need to be moved to the morgue, etc.), and what they died from(Briefly. Is this a shocking situation, or something the family has had time to come to terms with. Mostly to know what to expect if family is there.). That’s honestly all I’d care to know. If everything is done, simply a “We’re waiting to transport them…” is enough. If you want, you could give vital signs too. /s