Embarrassing/Clumsy Moments!

Nurses Humor

Published

Well, I just had to laugh at myself for this graceful moment..

I was filling out an application at a LTC/SNF, sitting in their nice little seating area in the grand dining room during lunch time. After an hour of rewriting my resume for them onto the facility's application and filling out about 8 essay questions about myself, I get stand up to hand my application to the secretary... Immediately I realize that my foot had fallen asleep, but I was past the point of no return and my brain was telling me to 'put my foot down before you lose your balance!' However, when I put my weight on my totally numb foot, my ankle just caves in my cute little pumps and I nearly fall over. I hobble/fall as best I to the arm rest of the chair I was sitting in, but I have already caused quite a commotion (I think I frightened a few little old ladies). :grn: The secretary, a cna, and the director of human resources all rush over and ask if I'm ok, bless their hearts. I try to explain/laugh that my foot fell asleep and I didn't realize it until I stood up on it. Whoops! I'm at home 'rice'-ing it now, and just thought I'd share my clumsy moment with y'all! :bugeyes:

(and I've been a ballerina for 20 years! jeesh!)

Have any funny/embarrassing/clumsy moments to share? I'm sure we all need a good laugh..

Specializes in Health Information Management.
I was taking care of a day two cabg post op that was still plugged into everything so I had tubes and wires on both sides of the bed. I was trying to get everything organized so I could dc it. and when I turned to go to the other side I was wrapped in tubing and wires and fell I reach my arm out to catch myself and snap I broke my elbow. I jumped straight up and he ask me if I had hurt anything Of couse I told him no and went outside and howled because it hurt so bad. When I came back in he told me he heard me scream outside his window. Monitor wires and oodles of tubing always trip me up.

Been there, done that, and have the osteoarthritis to prove it (see my first post in this thread), so I know how much that must have hurt and how embarrassing it must've been! I'm pretty impressed you managed to remain calm and collected until you were (or at least thought you were) out of his earshot.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in School Nursing.

Oh, I have tons of these. I am tall and have big feet...let's just say that grace is not a word that has ever been associated with me!

When I was working in the hospital, I was constantly tripping over IV poles, random chairs, and invisible speed bumps in the hallway. Once I had gotten my pt up into the chair in the room and was getting ready to help the tech change the bed when I tripped over something and winded up sitting in the pts lap. Thank God he was not post op something! We both had a good laugh about it and he warned me jokingly that his wife might have a few words with me when she found out!

Now as a school nurse, I am still not immune to it. I have a rolling office chair, and once I was putting a bandaid on a kid's lower leg and scooted out towards the edge of the chair...apparently a hair too close to the edge because the chair shot out from under me and I winded up seated on the floor! The student and I got a good laugh out of that one too. I am also constantly tripping over the child-size chair that sits in front of my desk. The ladies in the office have gotten so used to it they just call out "nurse, you ok" when they hear the tell-tale ruckus.

The most embarassing was when I was a student on my preceptorship. I was doing some procedure, I can't remember if it was a dressing change or starting an IV or what, but I was deep in concentration and slightly bent at the waist focusing on what I was doing. I barely noticed when my pants began sliding down in the back...but there was not anything I could do about it anyway because I was gloved. My preceptor walked up behind me and subtly pulled up my pants for me. At the same time she whispered in my ear "say no to crack". I almost lost it! Somehow the pt was none the wiser.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in med/surg, wound/ostomy.

Acouple of years ago out hospital was in to music therapy and meditaion. I was trained on meditation using music and duel earphones so that I could get the patient to relax. We had to be passed on the technique, so my evaluator was with me. I had chosen a apatient that I knew quite well from previous hospital visits. So the room is darke, and the music is playing. I give the patient the mental imagery that he is on a beach in Florida, about to go on a serene sailboat. I tell him it is quite hot, and that he is now sipping cool water past his parched lips - but I could not think of the word "parched" and instead say "past his hot lips." Well, that was it. We are now all laughing, including his wife. He then nick-named me Hot Lips and called me that whenever he came to the hospital.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Oh, my goodness, these are too funny! Makes me want to share... Hmmm, so many to choose from...

There I am at work, minding my own business, when my Danskos decide to throw me to the floor: in the pre- and post-op area with multiple patients, family and staff members in full view, I stand, clipboard in hand, and, twisting my ankle with first step, tap-dance my way across the room trying to regain my balance. No go - land in a heap right at my patient's feet. OUCH!

The Danskos were permanently retired; not to be trusted again!

RN Polly

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in CT stepdown, hospice, psych, ortho.
Acouple of years ago out hospital was in to music therapy and meditaion. I was trained on meditation using music and duel earphones so that I could get the patient to relax. We had to be passed on the technique, so my evaluator was with me. I had chosen a apatient that I knew quite well from previous hospital visits. So the room is darke, and the music is playing. I give the patient the mental imagery that he is on a beach in Florida, about to go on a serene sailboat. I tell him it is quite hot, and that he is now sipping cool water past his parched lips - but I could not think of the word "parched" and instead say "past his hot lips." Well, that was it. We are now all laughing, including his wife. He then nick-named me Hot Lips and called me that whenever he came to the hospital.

That's CLASSIC.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Pediatrics.

Hahaha! I'm glad I'm not the only one :lol2:

Lovvve reading these! Keep 'em coming!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU, wound care, burns, HIV, ID.

I know I'm far from the only idiotic man who has done this, but when I was a nursing student, I actually said to one of the nurses, "I didn't know you were pregnant!", to which the woman replied (of course), "I'm not." :eek: Sigh. That was over 20 years ago and needless to say I have never made THAT mistake again!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in School Nursing.
I know I'm far from the only idiotic man who has done this, but when I was a nursing student, I actually said to one of the nurses, "I didn't know you were pregnant!", to which the woman replied (of course), "I'm not." :eek: Sigh. That was over 20 years ago and needless to say I have never made THAT mistake again!

LOL, I have heard that you should never assume a woman to be pregnant unless you see the baby crowning :lol2:

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU.
I know I'm far from the only idiotic man who has done this, but when I was a nursing student, I actually said to one of the nurses, "I didn't know you were pregnant!", to which the woman replied (of course), "I'm not." :eek: Sigh. That was over 20 years ago and needless to say I have never made THAT mistake again!

I did my senior preceptorship on a high risk OB floor. One of the nurses was very pregnant. Then one day she came up to the floor in regular clothes. She had already had the baby and was actually being discharged that day from the OB floor. She was just coming to say hello. I obviously didn't know this information. Me being the idiot that I can sometimes be said, "So when are you having the baby?" I felt really bad when she started to cry and in a very squeaky voice said, "I already did!! I'm so fat!!"

Whoops...

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU, PICU, School Nursing, Case Mgt.

Ok, two things come to mind immediately. But I do them repeatedly.

I work nights and I always wear a lab coat...get cold and need extra pockets for stuff.

Always walk through doors, in a hurry, in the dark and WHAM...pocket of lab coat gets caught on the door handle/lever...and RIP...and I come to an abrupt halt.

Hopefully, what I am carrying in my arms or hands doesnt get hurled to the floor...however, I did PICU and NICU for many years...it wasn't pretty :eek:

(no, I never actually dropped a baby on the floor, but I did destroy many lab coats.)

I was going to design one that had the pockets on elastic until I realized that it would probably act as a giant sling shot and propel me back and forth, back and forth in the doorway several times...bbbbrrrrroooingoingoing!

Then add into the equasion the fact that I wear those funny little rubber shoes and have been a recepient of the dredded "Croc Stop" on many occaions.

You know, you are happily walking down a hall minding your own business....walk,walk, walk...STOP, trip....walk,walk,walk...turn and head down another hall and repeat.

I know, why do I keep wearing the Lab coats and Crocs?

Creature of habit and I like giving the other nurses on my shift some comic relief!

s

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.

oh, you're such a good person to think of your colleagues that way!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU, PICU, School Nursing, Case Mgt.

Always glad to oblige!

s:p

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment