Unexpected instances where your nursing skills came in handy

tothc2 · Feb 8, 2013

I was at a church Christmas party a year ago and a woman there in her 60s became diaphoretic, sob, and was having indigestion. (Im still in school at this point) My mind immediately went to MI so I got some aspirin and had her chew it and her husband was going to drive her to the ER because she refused EMS. As she was walking out to the car she developed AMS and collapsed to the floor. I checked her carotid pulse and there was nothing. I had someone hold c-spine because she had hit her head and I started compressions and told her husband to call an ambulance. They arrived (what felt like an eternity of doing CPR) and defibrillated her back into a perusing rhythm and took her to the hospital. She ended up being ok but what a night!

K+MgSO4, BSN · Feb 8, 2013

My first job after I graduated was a fixed term contract that started 3 months after I graduated so I went back to working in the bar that I had worked at throughout uni.

One evening one of the guys was setting up the cocktail bar above where I was working in the main bar. I hear a shout "Karen, Karen" as there is a open lift shaft from the cellar to the 2 bars. I call up, "whats wrong".............. I hear this guy shout get up here I've hurt myself. I run up the stairs and find my friend with an arteiral laceration to his wrist where a bottle of vodka fell from the optic onto his outstreched arm.

I pulled my apron off and wrapped it around his wrist as someone from the kitchen was pulling their car around to take him to the doctor that the owner had called.

he was fine after a litre of fluids and a repair of his lac.

FlorenceFrightengale · Feb 8, 2013

One night at work, my friend, a tech, was complaining of having to pee more often than usual and being very thirsty. I have no idea what possessed me, but I checked her blood sugar. (She had no medical history, is in her early 30s and has no family history of diabetes, either). It was over 400! Can you say newly diagnosed diabetic? I marched her butt to the ED!

jnurse13 · Feb 8, 2013

WOW!!

isiskdt · Feb 8, 2013

Back when I had first finished nursing school for my BSN and before I had taken the boards, I was home in the apt. where I lived when I heard all of this shouting and commotion outside of my window so I went out to investigate. When I got outside I found one of the children (a boy about 9 years old) sitting on the step and his grandmother screaming and running about the yard. I quickly assessed the situation and saw that the boy was squirting blood from his right carotid. Apparently the kids were playing on some concrete blocks that were being formed and used as a barricade for other construction being done. The problem was that they use still rods inside the huge concrete bodies and had not encased them in the concrete yet. The kids were walking on top of the concrete items and this child had slipped causing the beam to puncture his carotid. I set one person to call 911 and sent another to grab a towel for me which I used to apply pressure to his neck. I had the boy lie down while I did this. I instructed is grandmother (whom I knew because I had used her for my "life assessment project") to calm down because her anxiety was causing him to panic and increasing his adrenalin. I kept the boy still and calm while applying pressure until the ambulance came.

Later that day the boys aunt came around (she was a police woman). She wanted to thank me for saving his life. She said that she was informed by the medical staff that without my quick thinking he would have bled out and died. There was no other recognition or acknowledgement about my act made but that's all right. That feeling really made me feel good and reinforced the fact that I was in the right field for me.

ak2190 · Feb 10, 2013

My grandmother came to visit and one night I walked to the bathroom and found her sitting with the door wide open and she had a dazed expression on her face and couldn't answer any questions. I immediately checked her BG and it was 35! I didn't have any gel or anything and so I ended up giving her orange juice with sugar in it. I'm just glad she could swallow. I was still a student when this happened. Afterwards, I made sure to check her BG every single night and give her a snack and get her doses of meds adjusted. Good experience though and now I can recognize low glucose levels way before most people can, just by looking at someone or hearing their voice.

traumanurse2b? · Feb 16, 2013

Still a student here but I've already had to utilize some training. This was actually about 4 years ago, when I was fresh out of high school and EMT-B classes (didn't get certified), and newly married. We had a drive by outside of our apartment and afterwards could hear people screaming so we went outside. The shooters were gone and there were 2 people that had been hit (not even the intended targets). The young woman had been struck in the arm and was standing there with blood pouring down her arm, and a young man was lying in the shadows on the ground, 2 men were already attending to him. I don't remember much because of the adrenaline. I do remember yelling to bystanders for towels or something for the woman's arm, trying to get her to lie on the ground, and she kept crying and saying it hurt.

When I finally made it over to the young man, the 2 men there already had his c-spine stabilized but they couldn't get the bleeding to stop, and there were no exit wounds to be found. I remember having my hand on his face and trying to get him to talk to me but I could tell (even with my overall lack of experience) that he wasn't hearing me. I remember it took forever for police and EMS to arrive because the area was not secure, and then later hearing that the suspects had been running through the complex with guns, trying to find somewhere to hide, while we were out there helping those people.

The young man did pass away, they said on the news that it was en route, but I still can't shake the feeling that it was while I was there talking to him, and feeling like there was more that I could have done. That was the night I realized I wanted to be a trauma nurse.

NurseOnAMotorcycle, ASN, RN · Feb 19, 2013

Back when I was a student I was running a race on a VERY hot day when my running buddy said "Look! There's a guy on the ground over there!"

A security guard was standing over a very obese man on the sidewalk tapping his cheek and saying "Wake up, man." The guy was pale to bluish. I ran over there and asked the guard if he knew CPR. He said he did. I yelled "WELL THIS IS THE TIME TO USE IT!!!" I ripped open his shirt and there was a zipper scar. I started CPR while the guard held the airway. I shouted orders to the runners who ran for the AED or whipped out cell phones and called 911. The run finish line had an ambulance there so one fast fast runner did an all out sprint for it.

I hate spit bubbles! Just as I was about to force myself to give air to the guy the paramedics showed up with masks (THANK GOD!). I gave my name and background (student from XYZ hospital) and what information I knew about the guy and finished the race.

Epilogue: I went to work later that day to hear from my NM that the guy made it to our emergency room before dying.

Daisy_08, BSN, RN · Mar 15, 2013

Nothing exciting from me.

But my Aunt, a nurse back in the day, was visiting NY and did CPR on a guy on the subway who had an MI. Got her picture in the paper and everything - and he lived!

Tait, MSN, RN · Mar 15, 2013

Does offering constant advice about my mom's house full of geriatric dogs count? :cyclops:

sdemt · Mar 15, 2013

I'm a new nurse, but have worked as an emt for years and in a busy ER as tech. Nothing has prepared me as much for life as starting in as a RN in Psych. I remember being at the pharmacy getting my medications, and next to me was a man, who was pretty obvious he has some mental impairment. The pharmacy tech asked for his I.D, and they guy couldn't find his I.D and started getting really loud and freaking out. The pharmacy tech did NOTHING I turned to the guy and said his name (heard the tech say it early) I said "you're okay, let's just check all your pockets one more time." He yelled, "but I already checked them" I said, I know you did, but let's just have a second look. Frustrated the guy looked again and sure enough there were all his cards and I.D, he said "Oh there it is!" and I said good job!! Now you can get your meds ? As I was leaving a man standing in line said "thanks for helping that guy when no one else was." I said no problem and I was thinking you have no idea with I deal with on my job. Ha! I love being a mental health/Psych RN. It truly refines your interpersonal skills.

amygarside · May 17, 2013

sdemt said:
I'm a new nurse, but have worked as an emt for years and in a busy ER as tech. Nothing has prepared me as much for life as starting in as a RN in Psych. I remember being at the pharmacy getting my medications, and next to me was a man, who was pretty obvious he has some mental impairment. The pharmacy tech asked for his I.D, and they guy couldn't find his I.D and started getting really loud and freaking out. The pharmacy tech did NOTHING I turned to the guy and said his name (heard the tech say it early) I said "you're okay, let's just check all your pockets one more time." He yelled, "but I already checked them" I said, I know you did, but let's just have a second look. Frustrated the guy looked again and sure enough there were all his cards and I.D, he said "Oh there it is!" and I said good job!! Now you can get your meds ? As I was leaving a man standing in line said "thanks for helping that guy when no one else was." I said no problem and I was thinking you have no idea with I deal with on my job. Ha! I love being a mental health/Psych RN. It truly refines your interpersonal skills.

nice job! great courage there!