Dubious Victories

[Davey Do]

There's a thread about the first nursing judgement that made you feel like you know what you were doing. The OldDude tells a great story where his actions saved an adolescent's life. The OldDude's life saving interventions resulted from a combination of good assessment skills, hard knowledge and facts and finally, good ol' gut intuition.

How do you follow and act like that?

You don't. You come up with a new thread titled Dubious Victories.

I wanted to go back and work in OR sometime after I got my RN in 1990. I had enjoyed working as an LPN scrub nurse in 1986 and '87 at Weed Rover Township Hospital and got a position at St. Anomaly's Health Center. It wasn't an easy transition, starting new and getting to know the people, place and procedures. I didn't care for my "mentor" and the other nurses just didn't seem to like me but I wanted to give the job a chance. I worked at it for awhile, dealing with some pitfalls and stumbling blocks here and there.

I was to first scrub on a total abdominal hysterectomy with a doctor known as "The Nazi Surgeon", Dr. S. I was warned that Dr. S was very difficult with which to get along. Dr. S had his own personal instruments. Dr. S could be brutal.

I wanted to prove myself and I studied Dr. S's procedure card and got everything down to a "T". The surgery went well and at the end Dr.S said, "Good job!"

Dubious Victory. I tried working at St. Anomaly's for a couple of months but got tired of the constant negative feedback and left for another position.

Ever have any Dubious Victories? Thought you really did something only to have it not appreciated or ignored?

[OldDude]

I think the movie was Heartbreak Ridge with Clint Eastwood as the drill instructor who wore a different t-shirt every day and the platoon was supposed to adapt and overcome and wear the same color shirt he was wearing for that day - otherwise endure the ire of Gunny.

When I was in the ER back in the day there was a crabby old surgeon that would come in for consults. I cringed when he would come in because I could never figure out what color t-shirt he was going to wear. He was never happy and I never did successfully anticipate what he would want when he would come in so I had to endure his ire because it wouldn't be appropriate for me to hit him in the throat with a shovel. So this experience for me would fall under the category of Dubious Defeats!

[TriciaJ, RN]

Not so much a victory, but I'm reminded of something that happened when I was working psych. I was walking down the hallway and about to pass a patient who was an older lady. She blurted out "Nurse, you're so sophisticated!" I had no idea what she meant by this, so I just said "Oh, thank you!" Patient: "It's all put on, is it?" ?

[Davey Do]

56 minutes ago, OldDude said:

When I was in the ER back in the day there was a crabby old surgeon that would come in for consults. I cringed when he would come in because I could never figure out what color t-shirt he was going to wear. He was never happy and I never did successfully anticipate what he would want when he would come in so I had to endure his ire because it wouldn't be appropriate for me to hit him in the throat with a shovel.

[Davey Do]

1 hour ago, TriciaJ said:

I was walking down the hallway and about to pass a patient who was an older lady. She blurted out "Nurse, you're so sophisticated!" I had no idea what she meant by this, so I just said "Oh, thank you!" Patient: "It's all put on, is it?"

[Daisy4RN]

I was flying once and came back from the BR and noticed a teenage girl who looked like she was ill (leaning over with her head in her hands). I didnt think too much about it but kept watching her, sure enough a few minutes later she slumps over in her seat. Mom next to her calls the flight attendant who along with another gentlemen (family?) assists her to the floor. She seems to check for breathing and then calls for a MD/nurse. While i have thought about this before and how a MD/nurse could run in and save the day now that it is actually happening my first thought was please let there be a Doctor in the house. But alas no Doctor or other nurse. So i get up and go assist. This gentlemen who i thought was family turned out to be just another passenger. First, he wanted to lift her back into the seat (while still unconscious), then he wanted to stick a piece if candy in her mouth (still unconscious). She was breathing on her own, had a pulse so no CPR was needed and since no equipment available (not for lack of trying) there was not much that could be done. I stayed with her on the floor, comforted Mom, and kept so called do gooders away. We landed and off they went with EMT. I didnt mind helping and didnt expect anything but i have to say i was a little annoyed that no one from the airline even thanked me for helping (the Mom did though). So my husband and i get off the plane and go to a nearby (airport) bar/grill. The same guy from the plane ends up there too and starts making a scene telling everyone that i just saved this girls life, telling the bartender he should give me a free drink etc. It was really embarrassing, and then i was sorry i had been annoyed that nobody thanked me (ie be careful what you ask for!). Of course i never found out what happened but i was glad to be able to help (what little i could).

[missmollie, ADN, BSN, RN]

Patient was trached and O2 sat was reading 65%. Not a single nurse in the hallway. Hit the assist button and grabbed an ambu bag, connecting it to the trach and gave breaths. That's the first time I realized I was THE nurse at that moment. After what seemed like hours, others showed up and the patient was moved back to the ICU. O2 saturation had increased to a normal level.

Now I know that patient had a plug, and I dislodged with the bag. I bag trach'd patients all the time to clear the airway and think nothing about it, but it never has gotten to that point where the O2 is reading 65%.

[TriciaJ, RN]

1 hour ago, Daisy4RN said:

I was flying once and came back from the BR and noticed a teenage girl who looked like she was ill (leaning over with her head in her hands). I didnt think too much about it but kept watching her, sure enough a few minutes later she slumps over in her seat. Mom next to her calls the flight attendant who along with another gentlemen (family?) assists her to the floor. She seems to check for breathing and then calls for a MD/nurse. While i have thought about this before and how a MD/nurse could run in and save the day now that it is actually happening my first thought was please let there be a Doctor in the house. But alas no Doctor or other nurse. So i get up and go assist. This gentlemen who i thought was family turned out to be just another passenger. First, he wanted to lift her back into the seat (while still unconscious), then he wanted to stick a piece if candy in her mouth (still unconscious). She was breathing on her own, had a pulse so no CPR was needed and since no equipment available (not for lack of trying) there was not much that could be done. I stayed with her on the floor, comforted Mom, and kept so called do gooders away. We landed and off they went with EMT. I didnt mind helping and didnt expect anything but i have to say i was a little annoyed that no one from the airline even thanked me for helping (the Mom did though). So my husband and i get off the plane and go to a nearby (airport) bar/grill. The same guy from the plane ends up there too and starts making a scene telling everyone that i just saved this girls life, telling the bartender he should give me a free drink etc. It was really embarrassing, and then i was sorry i had been annoyed that nobody thanked me (ie be careful what you ask for!). Of course i never found out what happened but i was glad to be able to help (what little i could).

The guy wanted to be part of something big! He's probably one of those people who has a million stories about all the lives he's saved, or all the people he's put in their place, whatever. He probably went home and regaled his friends with how he personally saved her life with the linty mint in his pocket.

[Daisy4RN]

36 minutes ago, TriciaJ said:

The guy wanted to be part of something big! He's probably one of those people who has a million stories about all the lives he's saved, or all the people he's put in their place, whatever. He probably went home and regaled his friends with how he personally saved her life with the linty mint in his pocket.

[Daisy4RN]

3 minutes ago, Daisy4RN said:

Yea you are probably right about that! Although it wasnt a small mint from his pocket lol, it was a big hard candy that he got from another passenger because he "knew" that her blood sugar was low (and he wanted to shove it in her mouth). People are just scary sometimes.

Respone to Tricia's post. I gotta stop doing this on my phone lol

[hppygr8ful, ASN, RN, EMT-I]

As a psych professional you may appreciate this one. We were doing a probable cause hearing on an involuntary commitment and it was my turn to represent the hospital. I took my chair in a room with the Physician, an administrative law judge and the patient's rights advocate and the patient, a very delusional and psychotic woman of about 50 years who was impeccably groomed and dressed. She sat in a chair with her legs crossed and listened as the judge explained the hearing process and asked if she understood. She looked each of us in the eye and stated "I consider you all to be card carrying members of the axis of evil and will refuse to participate in this farce." She stood up and walked out of the hearing.

The judge looked around the room and said " Well now that the axis has had our annual meeting, anybody interested in lunch?"

Hppy

[JKL33]

2 hours ago, Daisy4RN said:

then he wanted to stick a piece if candy in her mouth (still unconscious).

What is it with that! Candy fixes everything I guess.

My LO was syncopal at an oral surgery office when returned to bolt upright position after being head-down for 2 hours (for a ridiculously simple oral surgery ?) and these weirdos run out of the room to ask if anyone has any candy!!

Candy would certainly make life in the ER easier. V-fib? Have a Werthers! Fell off a roof? A Star Brite peppermint for you! Ruptured ectopic? How about a Life Saver (at least that has a "breathing hole" for when you choke on it)!! ?