What was the MOST ridiculous thing a patient came to the ER for?

Specialties Emergency Nursing Q/A

And did you have to treat them?

I am just curious. Your stories always seem to either crack me up or shake my head in amazement.

Thanks for sharing ?

laurakoko said:
It happened this weekend! I have always heard these stories that someone "lost" something in an orifice...I just thought it happened once or twice, and the story kept getting around... until Saturday

70 year old male, in the ER with a POTATO in his rectum!

HIS story: He was rubbing the potato with "salve" (lotion?/topical med?) on his butt, and he slipped and fell in the bathtub, and the potato went right up there. He came to the ER about 8PM, it had been there since 12PM, and he couldn't get it out himself.

Well, neither could the ER doc. He went to the OR !!!

CRAZY!

:uhoh3:

Oh yeah, it's truly AMAZING what objects people "fall on." We had a pt with part of a broom handle wedged where the sun don't shine and he adamantly insisted that he FELL on it! I HATE it when that happens! :rotfl:

Specializes in NICU, Infection Control.

Chad--I did that last summer--picked up a friendly stray I knew was prego, took it to the vets for a tune-up and maintenance till the blessed event, brought her and 5 kittens home. Cat-in-residence was less than happy about it. :rolleyes:

Four kittens got adopted, Mama went to Humane Society and got adopted, kept one. He and former "queen" of the house get along marginally at best--there's a lot of hissing @ our house!

I can't wait till he's older and out of the adolescent cat phase--he's into everything!

Hate to say it, but I went to the ER for a UTI once. I wouldn't call a UTI an emergency, however I had NEVER had one, knew what it was, and was in EXTREME pain and unable to urinate.

I originally called a local physician and the secretary was very rude to me b/c I had no insurance and told me she didn't have an appt open for two weeks...talked to a nurse and she was even worse. By the time I got off the phone with them it was late. No urgent care centers nearby...

I drank about a gallon of cranberry juice (per my grandma's orders), which increased my urge to pee, but not my ability, and made the pain worse.

Finally, I couldn't STAND IT...I was in major pain. So I had my sister drive me to the hospital, as I was doubled over in the passenger seat (and I have a high pain tolerance!) I walked right in and told the ER nurses that I had a UTI. They seemed a little perturbed to say the least, made me wait forever, then actually lost the urine specimen that I so painfully spent 20 minutes trying to squeeze out!

Got the bill a month later! $600. It makes me sick...I didn't want to go to the ER, but I felt like I had no other options. Luckily, there were not many people waiting, and no serious conditions while I was there.

Anyway.....just had to vent a little.... :angryfire

Oh no, that is absolutely awful! I was in a similar situation but had a much better experience. I am an American in Canada and did not have the health insurance here. I had UTIs before, but this one was probably the worst.

It was 3am and I knew exactly what was wrong with me. It was so painful I couldn't stand it, so I didn't even wake hubby up. Drove myself to the ER, walked in and told the triage nurse I was sure I had a bladder infection. My urine sample of a few drops was blood red. They had me in and out in an hour! It was great. I got the pill that turns your pee orange (which is all I wanted at the time.. they don't sell it OTC in Canada!) and antibiotics and off I was back at home to sleep.

I was very fortunate to be in, treated and back home within an hour. IMO that is something that warrants and ER visit especially if it's late at night and you can't get relief until the morning.

edit: I meant to add I was only charged $100 for the whole thing! I was so scared it was going to be a huge bill.

Specializes in Tele, Infectious Disease, OHN.

Definately the guy who came in at 11:30 on a Friday night for weight loss..

and do you have to treat them?

I am just curious. Your stories always seem to either crack me up or shake my head in amazement.

Thanks for sharing :)

Chad--I did that last summer--picked up a friendly stray I knew was prego, took it to the vets for a tune-up and maintenance till the blessed event, brought her and 5 kittens home. Cat-in-residence was less than happy about it. :rolleyes:

Four kittens got adopted, Mama went to Humane Society and got adopted, kept one. He and former "queen" of the house get along marginally at best--there's a lot of hissing @ our house!

I can't wait till he's older and out of the adolescent cat phase--he's into everything!

You guys are awesome!!!!! I, too, am an animal lover---have 5 cats of my own and "take care" of another one who has apparently been abandoned (or perhaps his owner died--he seems like an "old lady's" cat the way he acts)--I found him nearly dead of a bad URI in my garden last winter, brought him in and nursed him back to health with Vicks and a vaporizer, and force fed him pureed meat and tuna with plenty of water. Our "resident" cats still don't like him--they are incredibly jealous--but he is such a mellow cat. We haven't even named him--just call him "that one fellow" or "big boy." (He is gigantic, which makes me think that an old lady had him and fed him very, very well--too well.)

Specializes in ER (new), Respitory/Med Surg floor.

I adore cats! I actually wanted to be a vet but only liked cats and chose nursing instead. My cat rugrat was a mom to all our other bunch of cats and had their children well four and we kept my white fluffy one simba seen below! I also found one on an entrance ramp to a highway dehydrated. My dad and I took him home and named him lucky. but oh yeah cats will care for their young! What grossed me out is the sound of Rugrat eating her afterbirth!!!!

http://www.geocities.com/mysticalwaters1/Picture12.jpg

That is a very very odd kitty hat. Do I dare ask where you found it? I can't say much though I have put a paper "nurse cap" on George(big momma cat). And yes before anyone says it I know George is a boys name and is a little odd for a female cat.

That is a very very odd kitty hat. Do I dare ask where you found it? I can't say much though I have put a paper "nurse cap" on George(big momma cat). And yes before anyone says it I know George is a boys name and is a little odd for a female cat.

LOL--all our cats have been around since my kids were in grade school. Our cat, Christopher was named Crystal by my son(now nearly 20) when he was in kindergarten because we thought he was a girl--we called him Crystal until we took him to get spayed, and found out "he" needed to be neutered, instead!

3 of our cats were named after various boyfriends of my daughters (now 25 and 27. Boyfriends are looong gone and forgotten, but their names are immortalized in the cats.

I adore cats! I actually wanted to be a vet but only liked cats and chose nursing instead. My cat rugrat was a mom to all our other bunch of cats and had their children well four and we kept my white fluffy one simba seen below! I also found one on an entrance ramp to a highway dehydrated. My dad and I took him home and named him lucky. but oh yeah cats will care for their young! What grossed me out is the sound of Rugrat eating her afterbirth!!!!

http://www.geocities.com/mysticalwaters1/Picture12.jpg

That was a good thing that you and your dad did for Lucky. I tell my daughters not to trust men who don't like animals! I hope you have a boyfriend or husband who is as caring as your dad. Most people would have driven on by.

Simba is adorable; so is his nursing cap! He certianly looks well fed!

I have my own story on this...

Years ago, when I was a student nurse I decided to try tanning. I am a very fair skinned Canadian, so I should have been very cautious. New to tanning I didn't know just what would happen, I tanned for a 'mere' 10 minutes.

I was pink that night, pink and itchy and sore. The discomfort grew and escalated as I went to bed. I applied lotion, it was soothing and felt good when fresh on, but dried and the discomfort was there all the more, it seemed. I took a bath around midnight, my skin craved coolness, water was soothing. I was getting panicky as I had clinical in the morning and needed some rest. There was some Tylenol in my personal care supplies so I took some, bathed again, and applied lotion yet again. The lotion was drying and the effect not lasting so I applied it yet again and wrapped my limbs and chest and back in saran wrap (was getting desperate for sleep).

It was around 2:30 am, still no sleep and ran out of ideas to gain comfort I walked on over to the Emerg (was living in Nurses Res at the hospital that I trained at). Fortunately they were not busy so I didn't have to feel too guilty for coming with overexposure from a tanning bed. The doc gave me some T3's and sent me off to sleep and told me to not tan anymore or reduce my time way down as my skin did not take well to it.

I did sleep after taking the T-3's. :zzzzz

A patient came in via ambulance for a sunburn. Needless to say she waited in the waiting all night, I don't know if she was ever seen or left, but even hang nail patient would have been seen before her.

Definately the guy who came in at 11:30 on a Friday night for weight loss..

Exactly, what did he want? Did he have a CC or did he want liposuction on the spot?

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