Open mouth ... Insert foot

sweetmonichick15 · Aug 1, 2010

Well I work in a pharmacy and a man came to pick up his perscription, the name he was picking up for was Kelly. So, he asks a question about this medication and I keep asking about if his wife had these questions and if she was taking her medications correctly. He then informs me that he was Kelly. I felt so embarassed, and apologized several times. But the absolute worse part about this is the next month I did the same thing to him... ugghh. Lol! :smackingf

Sparrowhawk · Aug 1, 2010

Oh honey! Lol! That was priceless...you couldn't have known though lol! I'm glad he wasn't touchy...but yeah I would be mortified too.

All the good ones are married or gay..you know that!

sassy_squirrel · Aug 3, 2010

All the good ones are married or gay..you know that!

And this one is about to be both!

canesdukegirl, BSN, RN · Aug 3, 2010

I work in the OR, and our hospital is close to an Army base. I can always tell when the new 82nd Airborne soldiers are training, because we have a rash of calcaneal fractures. This one particular week, we had done roughly 10 calcaneal ORIFs. I was paired with one of the two ortho trauma docs for this entire week, who happens to be the Chair of the division. While he was prepping another cal-fx patient, he turns to me and asks, "How many of these have we done this week, and why are they all coming in when I am on trauma call?" Without thinking, I replied, "I don't know. I guess you are just the Calcaneal Queen." Umm...insert foot into wide open (but masked) mouth! I felt like such a jackwagon!

This same surgeon (who appreciates a good ribbing and doesn't mind getting it back) challenged me to guess his age. That should have been my red flag. He has white blonde hair and spends a lot of time in the sun without sunscreen. I thought to myself, "Guess low, guess low!" So I said, "Hmm...you look about 52 to me." He just looks at me, drops his instrument and said, "Thanks. I am 45." So to add insult to injury, and not being born with a filter on my mouth, I said, "No WAY!" Can't really get out of that one gracefully, now can I?!?

Ruby Vee, BSN · Aug 3, 2010

where i was working we had two teams of residents: the red team and the blue team. it was july and a new bunch of residents came through. one of them was a really, really cute african american guy. he asked me where rounds were starting. well the red team starts on one end, and the blue team starts on the other. i needed to know which team he was on. you can see where this is going, right?

"well, what color are you?" i asked, meaning red or blue.

"i'm black," he said rather indignently. i'm thinking that i wish the floor would just open up and swallow me, desparately searching for something to say to save the situation. and dr. cute is fixing to have a really hissy fit -- not that i'd blame him.

"i can see that," i said. "but are you red or are you blue?"

"oh," he said, and i could see the head of steam is was building up start to deflate. "i'm blue."

was that a nice save, or what? we got along just fine after that, and he teased me for years about being "colorblind."

VivaRN · Aug 9, 2010

A routine part of a patient's first visit at my clinic is OB/GYN history. One couple came to the wife's first appointment together. I documented that she'd had a tubal back in the 90's.

The couple returned for the wife's next appointment 3 months later. She'd had some irregular periods consistent with perimenopause. I emphatically counseled them that, despite irregular periods she could still become pregnant, so be careful and use protection!

They looked at me with wide eyes. "But I've had a tubal! I can't get pregnant!"

I felt myself blushing as I backpedaled "oh you're right, here it is on the chart, never mind all that"

Open mouth, insert foot...

nerdtonurse?, BSN, RN · Aug 9, 2010

Okay, this one makes me blush to even remember....

It had been one of THOSE shifts, okay? I usually do manage to fire up a brain cell or two when I give report, but we'd been running from vent to vent all night. Half the ICU was circling the drain, and the other half were doing really good impersonations of Linda Blair in the Exorcist from ODs and ETOH intoxication or were demented and screaming.

So, I had one patient that was actually semi normal; in with DKA. Now, this guy had bilateral BKAs, not from the DM, but from a really bad motorcycle accident. He was still fairly athletic, and could transfer himself from bed to chair and wheel around his ICU cube if he had to. He was better to the point where we'd dc'd the insulin drip and I knew he'd go upstairs as soon as the docs rounded.

So, what do I tell the next shift nurse? Thinking about how the guy can move himself from bed to chair without assist? "Alert, oriented and ambulatory." The next shift nurse looked at me and said, "ambulatory? a bilat BKA ambulatory?" I couldn't help myself, I really couldn't. I bent my 2nd and 3rd fingers at the knuckle and "walked" them across the desk, "Yeah, ambulatory." She lost it laughing.

We both got a good laugh out of it, especially when the oncoming nurse realized I meant he could get himself around, and really wasn't making my BKA "knuckle" around on his stumps....

jadu1106 · Aug 26, 2010

This is NOT the way to make an impression on your FIRST DAY.
So after much work, I am now officially a CRNA! WooHoo, Yeah! I worked as an RN in the ER for a few years before hand, while I banked some money to go back to school. So, yesterday was my first official day as a CRNA, now, there is an anesthesiologist resident there everyone was calling Dr.W. He seemed like a REALLY nice guy (pretty cute too) all the nurses said he was a "sweetheart"
Well, Dr.W was gathered around a bunch of us, he was showing the nurses the engagement ring (really nice diamond band) he purchased for his soon-to-be fiance. Of course we were all giddy (and trying it on) , I mean come on, what girl doesn't love jewelry, LOL. One of the other team members passed the ring to me and I looked at it, and upon trying it on Dr.W asked my opinion and If I like it, I told him that it was very nice, but it was a little modern for me, seeming like he was being inquisitive I told him, it seemed a little "masculine". To which he smirks and says "Well, I guess its a good thing I'm marrying a man then isn't it?" :eek:
I wanted to crawl back to the ER and die! I felt like such an a**. I almost couldn't even face him for the rest of the day. At the end of my shift I pulled him aside and apologized profusely. He gave me a hug and told me not to worry, and he wasn't offended at all, he told me it actually amused him for the day.
Ok, I'm hoping you all will share a few embarrassing "open mouth... insert foot" moments with me to make me not feel so bad after today. Love reading all your posts!!!!
*sigh* WHY, do all the good ones have to be gay???

Meg88,

OMG!!! This is too funny!! :lol2: I am laughing so hard!!! I can so totally see myself doing that!! :)

Thank you for posting and making me laugh!!

jadu1106

Not_A_Hat_Person, RN · Aug 26, 2010

One of my nursing home residents went to the hospital. It ended up being an extended stay, and the family didn't want to hold his room. They came by one shift to remove his things. I liked the resident, so I told his son "I hope to see him back here sometime." His son just looked at me, then said "No offense, but I don't."

Cat_RN, ASN, BSN, RN · Aug 27, 2010

This is NOT the way to make an impression on your FIRST DAY.
So after much work, I am now officially a CRNA! WooHoo, Yeah! I worked as an RN in the ER for a few years before hand, while I banked some money to go back to school. So, yesterday was my first official day as a CRNA, now, there is an anesthesiologist resident there everyone was calling Dr.W. He seemed like a REALLY nice guy (pretty cute too) all the nurses said he was a "sweetheart"
Well, Dr.W was gathered around a bunch of us, he was showing the nurses the engagement ring (really nice diamond band) he purchased for his soon-to-be fiance. Of course we were all giddy (and trying it on) , I mean come on, what girl doesn't love jewelry, LOL. One of the other team members passed the ring to me and I looked at it, and upon trying it on Dr.W asked my opinion and If I like it, I told him that it was very nice, but it was a little modern for me, seeming like he was being inquisitive I told him, it seemed a little "masculine". To which he smirks and says "Well, I guess its a good thing I'm marrying a man then isn't it?" :eek:
I wanted to crawl back to the ER and die! I felt like such an a**. I almost couldn't even face him for the rest of the day. At the end of my shift I pulled him aside and apologized profusely. He gave me a hug and told me not to worry, and he wasn't offended at all, he told me it actually amused him for the day.
Ok, I'm hoping you all will share a few embarrassing "open mouth... insert foot" moments with me to make me not feel so bad after today. Love reading all your posts!!!!
*sigh* WHY, do all the good ones have to be gay???

Personally I don't think you should be embarassed at all! Being gay isn't anything to be ashamed about and I'm sure he doesn't think so;) I think you could have made a funny quip back to him about it being a very fitting ring for his fiance then and moved along!

I wouldn't have been embarrassed on that one, so don't feel so bad :) I have, on the other hand, really embarrassed myself many, many times. I seem to have a knack for sometimes acting like a turd.. hehe

Cat_RN, ASN, BSN, RN · Aug 27, 2010

Well I work in a pharmacy and a man came to pick up his perscription, the name he was picking up for was Kelly. So, he asks a question about this medication and I keep asking about if his wife had these questions and if she was taking her medications correctly. He then informs me that he was Kelly. I felt so embarassed, and apologized several times. But the absolute worse part about this is the next month I did the same thing to him... ugghh. Lol! :smackingf

HAHAHAH- I've had this happen to me with a man named Kelly as well! I didn't think I even had the right patient, I was so embarassed.

ULGH- I've also called a woman with VERY short hair who was looking down reading, 'SIR'. (It was verified to me by several others that she DID look very androgynous, but to this day I'm still mortified/horrified/super ashamed!!..)

Then there was the adorable little boy of about 3 in green who's name ended up being CAITLYN... OOPS! Didn't find that out before I asked what HIS name was... (But hey, we have the same name)!