What is the grossest thing that's happened to you???

KatieMI, BSN, MSN, RN · Jun 11, 2017

Fishing for a piece of diamond necklace in open abdominal wound with several open large and small bowel fistulae projectively spilling content all over, with two CENAs holding half-cut off pannus dripping blood and pus on my hands.

The necklace belonged to SNF "caregiver" who decided, against common sense and multiple warnings, to wear it while caring for that post-surgical, very demented, very disoriented and very spry patient, who promptly reached for it, pulled and threw it in her own huge wound during dressing change.

jobellestarr · Jun 11, 2017

Found a little old lady dead in her bed with her body was frozen with her sitting up with arms bent as if she was running and the hands half clenched. Her eyes and mouth were opened. I think she had a stroke or seizure half awake. Strangest and scary thing to see as a young nurse.
Also had a guy exsanguinate orally wile hanging on to the medicine cart- he didn't make it.

OMG! That is bad.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Jun 11, 2017

That would have to be the time I gave a slew of G-tube meds to a patient, walked to the sink to wash my hands and then the patient proceeded to projectile vomit everything that had just gone into the tube onto my hair, scrubs, shoes, everywhere.

SopranoKris, MSN, RN, NP · Jun 11, 2017

I really want to know what is the grossest thing that has happened to you as a nurse. Has poo or vomit flung at you? I'm super curious. Thanks to all ^_^

I had a trach pt who was in our unit d/t Pseudomonas. If you've ever had a pt with Pseudomonas, it has a distinctly bad odor. Normally, when I'm suctioning a trach with an open system, I wear a face shield. During the shift, the pt started desatting. I was in another room and ran over to this patient. Needed immediate suctioning, no time to put on the face shield. Had to act quick because they had a mucous plug. So, I managed to get out the mucous and when I pull it out, the pt coughed through the trach.

SPLAT!!!

A big, huge, green, nasty, smelly splatter of Pseudomonas-infected mucous gets on my shirt, chest, neck, chin and I could feel that droplets of it were on my face. UGH!!!! I used the disinfecting wipes, but the damage was done. I ended up getting Pseudomonas because of it. I was sick for over a month. Not fun at all. That was the grossest thing. I can still remember that awful smell and the sinking feeling when it happened.

The 2nd grossest thing was my pt who went acutely delirious after getting Seroquel. Pulled off their ostomy bag, so they were in a lake of liquid poop. And they kept touching the stoma with their bare hands. Had to clean them up and then scrape out all the poop under their finger nails. It was EVERYWHERE!

Lev, MSN, RN, NP · Jun 11, 2017

I was once cleaning up an obese patient with powder in her pannus and genital area, unknown to me at first. When she moved, the powder flew up into my face and I tasted it in my mouth. I was completely grossed out.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Jun 11, 2017

I had to think about this because although I have seen a tons of gross stuff and been present, I haven't had it actually happen to me much that I can recall. Well besides gross perverts, which I am fortunate because I have a list of things I can't stand. However I remember one, taking off a patients socks and dang near having respiratory failure and an asthma attack from the thick pummel of dry skin fog that came my way. :|

Davey Do · Jun 11, 2017

Had a geriatric male patient who I swear, as he stood by his bed, aimed and shot his loose stool at my leg.

Davey Do · Jun 11, 2017

I once had an elderly and very confused lady who vomited into her meal tray...and then she began to eat again. I almost yakked myself!

Mmmmm! Two warm meals for the price of one!

Davey Do · Jun 11, 2017

While working as a community nurse for a mental health clinic, some staff and clients were sitting around a therapist's office just having a friendly little discourse. One elderly client pulled out her top dentures, ran her finger around the palate indentation, scraped off some residue, popped her finger into her mouth and proclaimed, "Mashed potatoes!"

Kooky Korky, BSN, RN · Jun 11, 2017

While a CNA, I was helping a pt to the toilet post-op eye surgery. His laxative had not worked too well pre-op, but it

sure did after surgery - all down my leg.

I think I've also been squirted on skin and in the eye with or had a glove break while dealing with pee, pus, blood,

tube feeding, Heaven knows what all. Thank God no one was HIV+ or had hepatitis or some other fatal or terrible illness.

themonyo · Jun 11, 2017

as a urology nurse I can relate. happened 1 time to me.

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Jun 11, 2017

I had a trach pt who was in our unit d/t Pseudomonas. If you've ever had a pt with Pseudomonas, it has a distinctly bad odor. Normally, when I'm suctioning a trach with an open system, I wear a face shield. During the shift, the pt started desatting. I was in another room and ran over to this patient. Needed immediate suctioning, no time to put on the face shield. Had to act quick because they had a mucous plug. So, I managed to get out the mucous and when I pull it out, the pt coughed through the trach.
SPLAT!!!
A big, huge, green, nasty, smelly splatter of Pseudomonas-infected mucous gets on my shirt, chest, neck, chin and I could feel that droplets of it were on my face. UGH!!!! I used the disinfecting wipes, but the damage was done. I ended up getting Pseudomonas because of it. I was sick for over a month. Not fun at all. That was the grossest thing. I can still remember that awful smell and the sinking feeling when it happened.
The 2nd grossest thing was my pt who went acutely delirious after getting Seroquel. Pulled off their ostomy bag, so they were in a lake of liquid poop. And they kept touching the stoma with their bare hands. Had to clean them up and then scrape out all the poop under their finger nails. It was EVERYWHERE!

OMG I have no words.