By LeAnn Thieman

The current shortage of healthcare professionals has placed unprecedented stress on healthcare staff.

With so many sick patients, hospitals are becoming intensive care units. Nurses are expected to do much more with much less. Healthcare professionals are devoted to providing optimal, attentive service, and usually they do. But sometimes they barely have time to meet the physical and medical needs of the patients, and they lament the fact that on many days they cannot offer the emotional, mental and spiritual support they long to share.

What to Do When Everyone is Too Busy to Care for Your Loved One

Here are 11 tips to getting you and your loved one's needs met when the hospital is short-staffed:

1. Introduce yourself to the staff member. Extend a hand to shake. Call them by name. Express your gratitude for the care you or your loved one is about to receive.
2. Ask for what you need in a polite and grateful manner, using a kind, firm and positive tone. Do not be adversarial. Begin sentences with phrases such as, “I appreciate your help so much. Please help...”, or if the need is not urgent you may say, “When you get a chance, will you please...?”
3. Don't feel like you are being pushy or rude. During illness, the patient has less ability to absorb information and they need you to advocate for them. You know them best.
4. Acknowledge that you recognize the staff is busy. “I can see you are really busy and I am grateful for your help. Will you please...?”
5. Offer to help to the degree to which you are comfortable. “How can I best help you care for Johnny?” or perhaps, “I enjoy helping him with his bath. Can I fill the basin with water and start, and then you can take over?”
6. Ask the nurse to review the doctor's orders with you. At the time of admission and with each visit, the doctor writes orders on the chart. Reviewing them will help you know what to expect.
7. Ask for an explanation of the equipment is the room. Inquire, “Is there anything I should watch for?”
8. Find out what time the doctor usually makes rounds and then try to be there at that time...even if it's early morning or late at night! Write a list of questions to ask.
9. When possible, have a family member present during the patient's hospital stay. Some families find that staying at the hospital ensures their loved one’s needs are met promptly. Healthcare workers may also see family members who stay at the hospital as a willing part of the team and may connect with them.
10. Casually place yourself between a healthcare provider and the door when talking with them. This subtly coaxes them to listen to you until your dialogue is complete.
11. Never hesitate to kindly ask for the supervisor when an issue or concern may hinder the patient's care. Everyone has a supervisor.

By being positive, kind and cooperative, yet firm, you and your loved one will likely receive the best care possible.