Dumb things new nurses do....

Nurses New Nurse

Published

Drew routine labs from a PICC that was STILL infusing TPN..

Got a call from lab with a critical Blood Glucose of 900.

Learned my lesson, turned off TPN, FLUUUUUSHHHHED the line, re-draw labs...:cheers:

Specializes in med/surg, home health.
if you don't crush meds and put them in a peg tube because the tube will clog, then how do you do it?

:no:You Don't put them in the bag that contains their liquid nutrition, (like I did). You stop the pump and put the meds into the tubing directly into the peg tube. (and as someone else here said "flush, meds, flush"

When I was a new nurse 8 years ago I worked on an Ortho floor that had many other types of med/surg patients. I was taking care of a lady that had rotator cuff surgery and her arm was in a sling. While trying to bath her, she was concerned how bad she smelled in that armpit from it being closed all the time so we washed well and patted dry. She then asked for some baby powder to apply. I advised her that we could not use baby powder because the hospital didn't allow it due to the powder getting in the air and causing respiratory problems (I've never seen anyone have problems from that, but whatever). I told her I would double check though. There was a physical therapist that I did not know out in the hall and I asked her if we had baby powder. She said not that she knew of. I stated, "well, I need some kind of powder or deodorant to put on a patient's armpit that is in a sling." She said, "We have some powder that you put on ostomies in the supply room." So I got some and applied heavily to patient's armpit. I came back about an hour later and she said she had a "weird feeling in there" so I took her sling strap off and found that her armpit had been glued to her body by the ostomy powder. It was adhesive powder and it said that on the label!!!! So when she began to sweat, it turned to super glue!! Took all afternoon to get it cleaned out. I still to this day don't know if that therapist was messing with me or not!!! I felt really dumb. Several nurses STILL give me a hard time about it!!

Specializes in Medical Surgical/Addiction/Mental Health.

Gave Humalog 70/30 injection with a pen…forgot to remove the cap when administering the shot. Patient said…”wow…you have finesse with a needle. But I don’t think I got the insulin.” He continued with, “The cap is still on the pen.” We laughed for about five minutes over that one!

Specializes in Clinical Research, Outpt Women's Health.
:yeah:
Specializes in Trauma, ER, ICU, CCU, PACU, GI, Cardiology, OR.

only, a week after receiving my rn license i recalled a situation with a pt. that was scheduled for or. i worked the grave yard shift as many new grads do, and i noticed the doctor's order was still waiting for someone to check off, for a prep, appendectomy. in addition, i noticed the warning on the front of the chart that read " pt. is a mute" i gathered my supplies, introduced myself to the patient, although he was halfway asleep, i began to prep the pt. for his appendectomy. the nursing manager called me in her office, and told me that i had "shaved the wrong pt." :eek: even though i have done a great job". needless to say, from then on i triple checked all of my patients id badges and doctors orders.

p.s. i'm still lol re: quote from gracied

i once un-spiked a bag of ns in a pressure bag without first releasing the pressure - i got instant, explosive rain that lasted about 20 seconds!!! fortunately the patient was intubated/sedated. i got a lot of laughs when i left the room looking like i had just taken a fully-clothed shower.

Specializes in ICU.

Ok, I have done a few of them, like not unclamping the piggy back and taking a saline bath.

But my very favorite stupid memory........

I was helping my colleague do post mortem care The patient had a Udall in the groin and it was kind of halfway out, and I went to cut out the stitches and just pull it out. Patients dead! He was like "ummmmmm, it's in an artery, do you think it's going to bleed all over the place. I had done it before, not problems, so I assured him everything would be fine. SO we pulled it and no bleeding and we put a pressure dressing on it.

Well, it was a rather heavy set patient and when we went to put the shroud underneath, I tossed the patient towards him, the dressing came off and he got SOAKED with blood. All over his white sneakers, scrubs, everywhere. I felt horrible. He got some scrubs, took a shower (noc shift in ICU, he had only one other patient so luckily he had time) I kept bathing his shoes in peroxide. I felt awful, and offered to buy him some new sneaks.

I think the even funnier part was that he needed shoes so he asked the nursing supervisor (she is just about the stupidest nurse ever) to get post op shoes. She comes back with one. He says "but I have 2 feet"

Good times.

Specializes in Cardiac.
So I got some and applied heavily to patient's armpit. I came back about an hour later and she said she had a "weird feeling in there" so I took her sling strap off and found that her armpit had been glued to her body by the ostomy powder. It was adhesive powder and it said that on the label!!!! So when she began to sweat, it turned to super glue!! Took all afternoon to get it cleaned out.

I have to tell you that this one really made me laugh! As soon as you said "ostomy" and "powder", out loud I sat here saying "ohhh please don't be glue!" .... LOL Thanks for the visual :)

Specializes in Care Coordination, MDS, med-surg, Peds.

These are too funny!! Remember, tho, it ain't just the new nurses that goof up!! WE ALL DO IT!!! One time, back a few years, I was flushing a line with Saline using a syringe and a needle-remember I said a few years ago-. Well, in my gracefulness, I stuck that needlr right thru the port and into my finger.... So, I am standing there, with my finger nailed to the Iv tubing with the needle thru the port and line. I was afraid to just pull the needle out, cause then I would contaminate the pt. So I stood there a couple minutes, then just turned off the IV, lifted the bag and tubing down, after clamping below the port and went and changed out all the tuging. The pt was asleep, never knew a thing.

One night I was walking into a room to hang a IVPB by gravity from the hook on the rack above the bed. I have a balance disorder and knew better, but i was looking up as I was walking, got dizzy and fell accross the end of the bed with the patient lying there laughing his good looking butt off!! I was mortified.. But we had a good laugh!!!!

Specializes in med/surg, home health.

This one is my least favorite to tell because I was horribly embarassed. I had a med/surg patient who's mom was with him, he was about 35 years old. Well I asked him if he wanted his mom to step out while I washed him up, he said no my Wife can stay:eek: I swear she looked 60 to me!

And she might have been 60! I made a similar mistake. I now just ask "visitors" to step out. Or if I'm inquiring, I ask "Is this a relative?" Learned to never assume anything in this business!:bugeyes:
Specializes in Care Coordination, MDS, med-surg, Peds.

the funniest booboo I saw, was the pt was sitting inthe chair in the room and let his wife lie down in the bed with covers on. the CNA took the vital signs of the "PT IN THE BED" LOL.. which was really the wife!! The CNA got to the door of the room, said, wait a minutes, this pt is supposed to be a male, turned around to find the pt laughing. She took the correct vital signs and came out of the room so embarassed!!! LOL

Well, it was a rather heavy set patient and when we went to put the shroud underneath, I tossed the patient towards him, the dressing came off and he got SOAKED with blood. All over his white sneakers, scrubs, everywhere.

That reminds me of a girl I once went to school with: on one of her clinical days, a patient expired so in postmortem care her preceptor yanked a rectal tube out of the body. It ended up splashing back fecal matter all over this girl who was standing in range of fire. Sadly for her, her preceptor wasn't as kind as you and instead she LAUGHED at her student and did not apologize.

...and your gem about the supervisor was just too much ;)

Specializes in ER.
the funniest booboo I saw, was the pt was sitting inthe chair in the room and let his wife lie down in the bed with covers on. the CNA took the vital signs of the "PT IN THE BED" LOL.. which was really the wife!! The CNA got to the door of the room, said, wait a minutes, this pt is supposed to be a male, turned around to find the pt laughing. She took the correct vital signs and came out of the room so embarassed!!! LOL

This happened in triage in the ED just last week! The tech called the patient name (male) but the wife stepped up. The tech had her sit in the chair and dutifully got vital signs and a weight, charted it on the patient's chart and moved on. When I got the patient in the Triage room, he told me no one had taken his vital signs but the wife said they took hers! I can't completely blame the tech for this one because neither the patient or wife mentioned it initially! So it never hurts to check the armband!!

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