Wow that was stupid!!

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Ok I really messes up I think. I had a patient who had cpap said patient did not want to wear it but they finally did. The patient told me it was leaking well being a new nurse and knowing that my patients know thmselves and equpment better than me I found this leak and stopped it.. ( with tape) Yeah it was the co2 outflow. It just looked like a broken area that was leaking. Well the patient ended up pulling off after maybe 15 min because this patientndidnt like to wear it anyway. When I asked respiratory about this leak (because I was going to call her anyway) she just looked at me and explained but dang unfeeling stupid. I mean want if Ileft the tape on!!!!!

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What?

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I'm sorry r u saying what because I rambled or because that really was stupid

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Specializes in Acute Care Cardiac, Education, Prof Practice.

I think the best thing to do in this situation is find a respiratory therapist on downtime and talk to them about the ramifications of the CO2 outflow being blocked. This should answer your questions on outcomes for the patient.

Unfortunately we all have different types, makes, models of CPAP's/BIPAP's and might not be familiar enough to give good advice on your situation.

As always each mistake is a learning experience and a chance for growth!

Best of luck!

Tait

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A chance for growth..... I like that thank you!

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When a CPAP/BiPap pt complains of a "leak", they most likely are referring to a leak of air from the seal of the mask, the cushion that touches the skin. If you put your hand up around the edges of the mask you can sometimes feel it. I myself have been on BiPap for almost 10 years and leaks are annoying, esp when they are going into the eyes! Having been on it for so long also gives me an advantage in dealing with it at work. Don't beat yourself up. Take it as an opportunity to learn. You might see if a resp therapist can give you a mini education session. Who knows, maybe you could become the "goto nurse" about patients on CPAP/BiPAP. There are lots of resources on the internet that may be helpful. Good luck.

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I'm sorry r u saying what because I rambled or because that really was stupid

No, I said "what?" because I couldn't understand the original post.

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Oh ok I was half asleep when I posted this.

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At our hospital, Respiratory is responsible for putting patients on their Cpap/BiPap and checking to make sure the equipment is working.

Glad you called respiratory and no harm was done.

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Nursing humbles us sometimes.

A little humbling now and then is not a bad thing.

Overconfidence in your abilities is a more dangerous thing.

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Yeah I suck w/C-Paps as well. I had a family member tell me the machine was all set up and all I needed to do was press the button. Easy right? RT comes around at midnight and tells me it was not connected to the 02 and the lady was sat'ing in the 80's. I was mortified and was afraid I killed my patient (she was admitted for resp failure and was in ICU initially). Needless to say I call RT to see all my patients on C-Paps from now on. Which turns out was their job anyway, but they were running behind. You live and you learn.

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Yeah I suck w/C-Paps as well. I had a family member tell me the machine was all set up and all I needed to do was press the button. Easy right? RT comes around at midnight and tells me it was not connected to the 02 and the lady was sat'ing in the 80's. I was mortified and was afraid I killed my patient (she was admitted for resp failure and was in ICU initially). Needless to say I call RT to see all my patients on C-Paps from now on. Which turns out was their job anyway, but they were running behind. You live and you learn.

yeah. Your mistakes are the best lessons.. But I hate those kind of lessons but as long as everyone is ok they are the best

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