Murphy's Laws of Nursing | Life of a Nurse

Fun facts (or are they) about nursing ... Anyone who has been a nurse for more than a few weeks or months will smile and nod because you know these are all so true! Nurses Humor Nurse Life

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The Nursing Catch-22:

If you're running around horribly busy, you're unorganized and need to prioritize, but if you're not running around horribly busy, you're lazy and need to find more work to do.

Remember folks - Murphy was an optimist! :p

Add your Murphy's Law below!


? When you need the money, your shift is cancelled; when you have a weekend planned, you have to do overtime.

?  Realizing the patient you've just injected has a serious infection causes you to stab yourself with the used needle.

? A 500 pound patient needs all care, while your 80 pound patient needs a finger dressing ... and your colleague has a "bad back."

?It's you're first night shift for three years. And it's a full moon.

? You're doing the "Only 27 more minutes of the shift from hell happy-dance", only to turn around to see your supervisor standing there.

? In a critical situation, the most highly qualified clinician will offer the most advice and the least support.

?The absurdity of the suggestion is directly proportional to the distance from the bedside.

?As soon as you finish a thirty minute dressing the doctor will come in, and take a look at the wound.

? The disoriented patient always comes from a Nursing Home whose beautiful paperwork has no phone number on it.

? Your nose will itch the very moment your gloved hands get contaminated with bodily fluids.

? The patient who has been dying all night finally meets his maker 12.5 minutes before shift change.

? You walk out of a patient's room after you've asked them if they need anything: they will put the call bell on as you are about three quarters the way down the hall.

?The patient furthest away from the nurses' station rings the call bell more often than the patient nearest to the nurses' station.

? The doctor with the worst handwriting and most original use of the English Language will be responsible for your most critical patient.

? You always remember "just one more thing" you need after you've gowned, gloved, and masked and gone into that isolation room.

? The correct depth of compression in adult CPR is a bit less than the depth you just reached when you broke those ribs.

?When you cancel extra staff because it's so quiet, you are guaranteed a rash of admissions.

? If you wear a new white uniform, expect to be thrown up on.

? Corollary: Residents always poop on your brand new shoes.

? When management smiles at you, be very, very afraid ...

? Staffing will gladly send you three aides--but you have to float two of your RNs.

? As soon as you discontinue the IV line, more fluids will be ordered.

? Mandatory meetings are always scheduled after you've had the night from hell and just want to go home to bed.

? You always forget what it was you wanted after you get to the supply room. You always remember when you get back to the other end ...

? Doctors only ask your name when the patient isn't doing well.

? Success occurs when no one is looking, failure occurs when the boss is watching.

? As soon as you've ordered the pizzas, 25 patients show up at the ER registration desk along with three ambulances all with cardiac arrests!

? For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism.

? Ten seconds after you have finished giving a complete bed bath and changing the bed, the patient has a giant code brown.

? If a patient needs four pills, the packet will contain three.

? Your buddies who were reading the paper at the nurses' desk a minute ago always disappear when you need help ...

? Expect to get your pay raise the same day the hospital raises the parking rates (and other charges)

? The better job you do, the more work you can expect to be handed ...

? The amount of clean linen available is inversely proportional to your immediate needs.

? The more confused and impulsive a patient is, the less chance there is for a family member or friend to sit with the patient.

? The perfect nurse for the job will apply the day after that post is filled by some semi qualified idiot.

? If only one solution can be found for a problem, then it is usually a stupid solution.

? When the nurse on the preceding shift has surrounded the patient with absorbent pads, the code brown will hit every sheet and miss every pad.

? Rest assured that when you are in a hurry, the nurse's notes have not been written.

? When you are starting an IV on an uncooperative patient, or dealing with a huge code brown, there is a phone call for you and it's that crabby physician that you have been paging all morning.

? Fire drills always occur on your day from hell

? The first person in line when the clinic opens will not require urgent care. The sickest person will arrive 5 minutes before closing: "I thought I'd feel better"

 

You know these always happen. Murphy and his law, hate that guy!!

1. You have finally cleared out the clinic and sat down to do that thing you have been trying to do ALL DAY when a staff member starts chit-chatting about her hemorrhoids for 30 minutes.

2. A kid will go down in the gym as soon as you are about to give your diabetic their insulin.

3. That mom that you tried calling 417 times at 416 differnet phone numbers WILL cal lyou back as soon as you are gloved up and ready to clean a wound.

4. The parent that said they would pick up their child 3 hours ago (I will be in there in 5 minutes, I will be there in 5 minutes) will show up just as you went through the trouble of getting a lunch tray for their kid.

Anyone else have any?????

Just as I doze off to sleep... My alarm goes off and I have to go to work

getting a phone call back from someone you've been trying to get a hold of and 163 kids walk in your office with petty complaints.

Specializes in School Nursing.

I have to say this happened today.Never fails when I am trying to get paperwork done..

A student cut her toe and I gave/did everything I could.

The minute I get back to my office they are calling me saying she "looked like she was going to pass out"!

Its a small teeny tiny cut, really! Needless to say I had to go through the motions, BP and all the fun stuff. Student was asking me how long she could rest for- guess what class she was missing....MATH ! lol

Never fails when I am trying to get paperwork done

Or screenings, just try to pull a few kids in for H/V and there will be a huge rush!

How about the kid laying quietly on the cot who has not made a sound UNTIL you are talking to someone else either on phone or in person and they must talk to you right away???

Specializes in School Nurse.

Flu shot day for staff...emailed 4 times and sent reminder the day before...still show up without paperwork, wearing long sleeves, BTW I have bronchitis - can I still get shot?

Flu shot day for staff...emailed 4 times and sent reminder the day before...still show up without paperwork, wearing long sleeves, BTW I have bronchitis - can I still get shot?

Are you hiding out in my building...this was my morning!!

Specializes in kids.

The kid who is being treated for a concussion is the one who will whack their head on a door.....

Specializes in School Nursing, Hospice,Med-Surg.
The kid who is being treated for a concussion is the one who will whack their head on a door.....

How many more times can I like this??

My OI student will definitely be the one to fall, get smacked with basketball in PE, etc, etc...

Specializes in Home Health,Dialysis, MDS, School Nurse.

I have a student who had a head CT earlier this week and an MRI today for a newly developed head tic/tremor. Guess who came in yesterday with a nice goose egg from bumping heads with a friend??

Specializes in Med-Surg, Oncology, School Nursing, OB.

I just posted this somewhere else but when a teacher sends a student down and says they think they are sick because they "aren't acting like themselves" (as I roll my eyes internally) and they check out fine so you send them back only to have them puke in class. I really hate that but it happens.

ug... Just now.... I'm setting up my room to do some urgent vision/hearing screenings. I have a student resting with a

headache (afebrile)-- He sits up and projectile vomits what appears to be a gallon. :nailbiting: Luckily, dad must have been around the corner because he was here to get him in minutes! This poor young man looked miserable!