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I know all areas of nursing have sick patients or patients who can get sick at any time. but what areas of nursing would you be in with the last amount of vomit?
Vomit? Don't go into pediatrics, surgical, ortho, ER, medical, etc. Patients get sick all the time from medications, pain, flu bugs, food poisoning, etc. I've held vomit bags for patients, washed my hands, and promptly went back to eating my lunch.
Now phlegm? Could never, ever work on a pulmonary floor, so kudos to y'all nurses that can!
Sorry to say, OP, you'll have to do your time before getting away from the body fluids.
As a student, I figured I really wouldn't like dealing with vomit, or blood. Before I started clinicals that is. I am okay with each now, as it is always situational - you handle it and move on, just like anything else. Also, it really helps that it's not my own. There's actually worse things than vomit, or blood, in most (not all) instances. A little bit of experience tells one that it's (whatever it might be) not that bad, and could nearly always be much worse. Plus, it helps to remember that while it kind of sucks (is not a glamorous part of the job by any means) to be the caregiver it probably sucks much worse to be the patient who is more dependent on someone else and needs as much help as some patients need. See? Could always be worse.
Another Onc worker here that doesn't do well with vomit. It started after being pregnant and vomiting the entire 9 months with both my boys(even vomited with both one last time before labor.) Before that it didn't really bother me. Now I can hand the patient a basin and stand there with my eyes watering.
Coroner's forensic nurse investigator sounds like my dream job. I wonder if I could actually find a job if I went that direction with my education.
I wish that were true. We had a pt who died with a total bowel obstruction. We had to clean her multiple times before we could bag her. So did the mortuary staff. Dead people can vomit.
Yeah, I did postmortem care on a guy like this once. The nurse had just gotten the wife out of the room before the endless brown river started pouring forth. I have never seen so much liquid of any kind come out of a human body. It was awful, but I did have fun with my kids' horrified reactions when I related the story at dinner the next night. Yes, I'm sick, I know.
lovetosleep
98 Posts
That's so funny! When my cats vomit and I am at home alone I will also cover it with something and wait for my husband to come home. When we had a dog, I attempted to clean up its vomit once but instead accidentally vomited on top of it. I ended up covering both piles with a towel and waited for my husband to come home. I thought my husband was going to kill me, lol.