What was the MOST ridiculous thing a patient came to the ER for?

Specialties Emergency Nursing Q/A

And did you have to treat them?

I am just curious. Your stories always seem to either crack me up or shake my head in amazement.

Thanks for sharing ?

I had a patient present once that told me he was checking his pulse and felt it missed a beat so he thought he better get it checked out, and another who came in and said i have sore leg, asked him how long it had been been like that for and said about 6 months to year, i then asked what made it so bad that you had to come today, he replied well there was nothing on tv today so i thought i better come check it out.

Specializes in ED, L&D, ICU, Charge.

Please tell me social services got involved with the "pregnant" 4 year old........why in he He11 would they think she could be???????? :sniff:

why in he He11 would they think she could be???????? :sniff:

Because it wouldn't be the first time it's happened; although, to my knowledge, this is the ONLY time it's happened.

A 5-year-old peruvian: world's youngest mother - Oddee.com (5-year-old mother, youngest mother record)

Specializes in ED, L&D, ICU, Charge.

I hate when people come to the ER wanting us to give them ER packs of Tylenol or Motrin or antibiotics because they can't afford it...although they can obviosly afford the pack of smokes in the pocket, the soda in the hand and the decked out cell phone that keeps going off every couple of minutes........PRIORITIES PEOPLE!:mad:

Specializes in ED, L&D, ICU, Charge.

But what I mean is, if you truely thought there was any way that your 4 year old got pregnant, social services better be involved cuz I doubt the father is the love of her life......disgusting :barf02:

Specializes in Hospitalist.

First, with the 5 year-old, that was in 1939, so I would question the accuracy of her age. I've had many people from rural Latin America who have no idea when their birthdays are or how old they are, so I would say it's entirely possible that she could be 8 or 9 or older. Especially in places like Guatemala, the women are teeny. I had a 30 year-old lady who came up just past my waist (I'm only 5'4"). She had 3 children and my co-workers were wondering where her mom was because she looked like she was 12. Granted the child in the pic is still way too young to be bearing children of her own, but it could be common in rural parts of Central America in the early 20th century.

My best nursing home patient...she was sent in at 7:30 PM to have her PICC line replaced after it was pulled out by accident at 10 AM! I called them and told the NH that the PICC department was open from 8-4 and they needed to call back during regular business hours to make an appt. I also asked how they managed to give the 2 PM dose of IV antibiotic (which was signed off on the MAR they sent) when she had no IV access. There was dead silence then the nurse told me "Well, I don't know. That happened on the previous shift". I also wanted to know why no one thought to address this problem earlier in the day, such as shortly after it happened! Still, no good answer. I placed a teeny tiny 22 in her hand and sent her back so they could give her meds. Duh!

It's possible that Lina Medina, the Peruvian girl who gave birth at age 5, had a birth certificate. Even if she didn't, I would imagine that they could have used wrist x-rays or looked at her teeth to at least estimate her age.

I don't have a link handy, but she had extremely precocious puberty and started menstruating at age 8 months. :eek: Her parents took her to a hospital because they actually thought she had cancer, and an x-ray revealed otherwise. Her father was questioned about this; he denied that he had raped her, and paternity testing available at the time could exclude a man as the father, and this is what happened. She has steadfastly denied that her father ever molested her in any way, and she does not remember who raped her.

The children were raised as brother and sister, although they did find out the truth while still children themselves, and her son died at the age of 40. She had one other child by a man she married as an adult; I do not know if her husband or other child are still living, but last I heard, she is.

Specializes in Oncology/Haemetology/HIV.
Our NH is famous for sending them over "unresponsive". Funny, they almost always wake up as the EMS crew is moving them to the cot. Half the time thier hearing aids aren't in, or turned on. Then they come in wondering why they are there and we send them back. I wouldn't want to pay THAT bill.

You, and all of us, probably do pay the bill. Medicare, medicaid, increases in insurance premiums, or the hospital having to write it off, as it will not be reimbursed....it all comes back to us.

"i ate too much watermelon and now my stomach hurts"

i kid you not. happened this week

Specializes in ER.
I also asked how they managed to give the 2 PM dose of IV antibiotic (which was signed off on the MAR they sent) when she had no IV access. There was dead silence then the nurse told me "Well, I don't know. That happened on the previous shift".

I've seen this so often. The patient comes in at 1400, and all the 1500 meds are signed off. If you actually call they say they weren't given- so why are they signed off? I made an incident report the first time, but how many of the same incident can you report on during a shift. My manager said to stop because they had no power over the nursing homes....then why do we hop to when THEY complain about us?

Specializes in LTC.
I almost went to the ER today. My family is laughing at me so y'all may as well too.

Some background: I had major back surgery in April. Due to some post op complications (near bowel obstruction then an adverse reaction to Wellbutrin) I vomited for 5 weeks (I lost 30 lbs) which landed me in the ER twice for dehydration. Needless to say I am just a little freaked out at the prospect of vomiting (tho I am very good at it now :rolleyes: ).

Anyway, today I have a "little" migraine, doing OK keeping it tolerable with Excedrin & lots of water. It is a sunny day and I have to run a couple of errands that can not be put off because of the Holiday.

I am 10 minutes from home when my stomach revolts. I pull into a parking lot far from the street and any other cars and get the door open just in time to blow chow. There is a copious amount of bright red clumps. I am freaking, my heart is pounding and I am dizzy. I am sure I have blown an esophageal vessel. I debate it...should I continue home, should I go to the ER? I am in tears, I don't know what to do, I call my husband at work on my cell. Just as he answers the phone it dawns on me...

I ate a handfull of Hot Tamales (bright red cinnamon candy) just before I left the house an hour earlier.

Not to hijack this thread or anything...but it was my first day of clinicals. I drank a red tea from starbucks. I had diarrhea and it was the color of a deep wine. I though hmm maybe it's just from the tea. This continued and the next morning resulted from me fainting (from the blood loss). I had a GI bleed and ended up hanging out at the hospital that weekend and part of the next week.

Had one come in by ambulance the other day. His complaint was. He passed out while he was sleeping. LOL!

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