Brain farts

Straydandelion · Mar 23, 2009

......and tell her what's going on. She walks over to the pump, unclamps the tubing, low and behold, it works!! I felt like such an idiot ......... :chuckle

VERY familiar :yeah:

taz628, BSN, RN · Mar 23, 2009

Hmmm... putting in a new IV, pierced through the vein, was pulling the catheter back out and *forgot to put pressure* on the vein... when the catheter tip was back in the vein, I ended up with blood all over my leg... my leg clad in WHITE scrub pants. :facepalm:

I vaccinated my scrub top one time. I was injecting the vaccine and POOF! the stuff starts squirting back at me... apparently I didn't have the needle screwed in quite tight enough? Ah well. :)

diane227, LPN, RN · Mar 23, 2009

I have seen other nurses do this. But at least it was not something that was harmful to the patient.

Roy Fokker, BSN, RN · Mar 23, 2009

The only decent place I saw left to stick I practically had to hang upside down to get to, with her arm at a weird angle. So, I stick her, and get it...except I put it in the wrong way! (Catheter was pointing toward her hand, not her head.) All I could do was shake my head...nine years I've been doing this now, you'd think I'd manage to not mess that up!

You didn't mess up :)

The "direction" of the catheter has no implication on med/fluid administration. The catheter is "in" the vein - that's all that matters!

Remember: it's called "venous access" not "venous access in the direction of blood flow to the heart"!

cheers,

Roy (who has inserted plenty of such IVs pointing 'away from the heart' and has seen doctors do 'em too)

Atheos · Mar 23, 2009

I've rolled a resident AWAY from me (behind pointing at me) when changing them because I wasn't paying attention.

Nothing like a poop spray to start the day!!!!!!!!!!

Lorie P. · Mar 23, 2009

heard one of the other nurses say one night" get those numbs back in the bed" pt was bilat bka's , asked her why she said that her response oh, couldn't say legs he doesn't have any, i just shook my head and walked on down the hall, went to check on my pt, who had had a new lbka, and checking his pain level ,almost asked how is your numb? instead of how is you leg? boy did i feel stupid!

IVRUS, BSN, RN · Mar 23, 2009

You didn't mess up :)
The "direction" of the catheter has no implication on med/fluid administration. The catheter is "in" the vein - that's all that matters!
Remember: it's called "venous access" not "venous access in the direction of blood flow to the heart"!
cheers,
Roy (who has inserted plenty of such IVs pointing 'away from the heart' and has seen doctors do 'em too)

I understand that this has been a mistake that many, including MD's, make but it isn't a mistake that should be repeated. The concern that clinician's have as to placing the appropriate size of catheter into the appropriate vein is a valid one, however it should also be concerning to have a catheter in a vein infusing against blood flow.

Ones main concern in regards to this practice is the fact that the catheter is being "whipped" around in the blood vessel since its placement is against the normal flow and the damage to that smooth Tunica Intima is compounded. Not only that fact, but think of what the infusion does to the smooth endothelial cells as it is positioned to infuse the med/solution into smaller vessels, not bigger.

If a catheter is found to be infusing toward the fingers, not the heart, it needs to be changed.

DD

Medic2RN, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Mar 23, 2009

Here's a nice brain fart:

I was working in the ER with a confused, combative patient and needed to throw a foley in her. I had another nurse helping me hold her legs. My charge came in and told me I had 2 other patients that just arrived, I started thinking about everything I still had to do with this patient, and then the other nurse began talking to me.

"What are you doing? It's higher...." she asked. I was prepping the patient's rectum! I rolled my eyes!! Good grief!!

"You need to take a breather after this!"

I started to repeat my work mantra, "I can do one thing at a time, etc". I was glad when that day was over!!

linda2097 · Mar 23, 2009

"What are you doing? It's higher...." she asked. I was prepping the patient's rectum! I rolled my eyes!! Good grief!!
"You need to take a breather after this!"

You would have noticed by yourself when you looked for the urethra. Hey, there's nothing wrong with a squeaky clean rectum. Consider it a deluxe bed bath!

nerdtonurse?, BSN, RN · Mar 24, 2009

Not medicine, but critical to nursing...

Have you ever been so tired at 0400 that you forget to put the coffee in the strainer and the pot back under the spigot part of the coffee maker (fill up the pot, pour the water, someone yells that Doctor X is on the phone, you put the pot on the counter and run to the nurses desk...and realize while you're trying to get the doc awake enough to give a coherent order you don't smell coffee)?

Bad news is, I had to spend 20 minutes I didn't have cleaning up the mess of boiling hot water all over the kitchen -- good news is, a lot of MRSA probably died that night...*smirk*

gentle · Mar 24, 2009

Here's a nice brain fart:
I was working in the ER with a confused, combative patient and needed to throw a foley in her. I had another nurse helping me hold her legs. My charge came in and told me I had 2 other patients that just arrived, I started thinking about everything I still had to do with this patient, and then the other nurse began talking to me.
"What are you doing? It's higher...." she asked. I was prepping the patient's rectum! I rolled my eyes!! Good grief!!
"You need to take a breather after this!"
I started to repeat my work mantra, "I can do one thing at a time, etc". I was glad when that day was over!!

It's a free colon cleansing. :chuckle

Medic2RN, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Mar 24, 2009

It's a free colon cleansing. :chuckle

Thankfully I didn't stick it in there....then you'd have to wonder.

One time I received a patient who supposedly had a rectal tube. When I did my morning assessment, I was surprised to find not a FMS, but a foley cath stuck up the butt. Who the heck would do that? THAT was an incredible brain fart....I have to believe it was one, scary to consider the alternative!!