Female catheter oop's that hurts me! And I am not female!

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This one will hurt if you are a sympathetic person,

I observed an Student Nursing Assitant do this! We were swampped and short staffed one night on second shift and being the super nurse I am I volunteered to pass all PO and scheduled meds (No PRN's), do all the TX's, and answer call lights. Leaving the Charge Nurse and 1 RN, to do the IV's and documentation for 30 pt's. The charge suggested if I fely comfortable doing it, that I could precept the aid after he observed me do 2 catheter insertions.

I thought that we would do a male first he did it with no problem then later that shift he could with me assisting (luckly in sterile gloves) do a female. I had choosen a quad. in a halo for him to do after observing me do another female just prior telling him to note the ureatha as it looks back at you (ha, ha). Soooooooo when we went to do the female pt he was to do, he did everything up to the piont of insertion correctly, I had to stop him though because he was rather forcfully trying to insert the catheter into the privy parts. I did not tell him till after we left the room what he did wrong but thank God! I had choosen a person who is in a halo and unable to feel what he was doing!

(The AID) was in the third year of a BSN program and he could not tell the difference between the two anatomical landmarks? I must of had a moment of real insight thinking back at that incident!

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Tell him not to feel too bad. One night I was obtaining a sterile catch specimen from a red robin cath. The lady had delivered an infant a few hours before and was very swollen. I had probably placed about 50 catheters in women but never one with vag lacerations and high swelling. I inserted the catheter into what seemed the urethra. It went in about 1/2 - 1 inch then stopped. I pulled it out rechecked for a urethra found only the same opening and tried again without luck. I called in someone else, they inserted into the same hole. No luck. We were evidently attempting to insert into a laceration! The poor woman was in agony. We gave up and left her alone telling the doc the urine will be a clean catch.

Jared

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Specializes in mental health + aged care.

Well, given that he's male and could deal with the male anatomy no problem, but not the female... Either he's very innocent :saint: or of the other persuasion... ;)

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Specializes in LTC.

I feel bad for his girlfriend, if he has one.

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Specializes in New PACU RN.

I made that same mistake in my second year and I'm a woman! The lady was in her 80s and things have shifted down, inverted, and englarged. My instructor actually put the catheter in where her lady parts was supposed to be. The urethra was there.

Needless to say, I was mortified.

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Specializes in PeriOperative.

I have seen many 3rd year (and 4th year) med students do worse.

At the suggestion of the chief resident, one opened the foley kit on a table 3 feet away from the patient, donned sterile gloves, and then placed one hand inside the labia. Hadn't given one thought as to how he was going to prep the patient or get the catheter in there using aseptic technique. Nor did he think he needed any help. This is where I come in, see this mess, and just say stop. The attending in the room says, "listen to her, she knows what she's doing."

We place the foley.

Then the med student proceeds to stand in the middle of the room (in everyone's way) and text on his cell phone.

I can forgive an honest mistake. Heck, I'm a female, and I've had trouble with it. There are still times I insert and just pray for urine!

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Specializes in Cardiology, Oncology, Hospice,IV Therapy.

I had a lady recently that I was trying to put a foley in and after a lot of searching, it turned out her urethra was below her lady parts, off to the side. I had never seen anything like that!!

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A friend of mine evidently has a hard to locate urethra. When she was preparing to deliver her daughter, the nurse attempted to insert the foley. And attempted. And attempted. Eventually, the nurse was actually completely on the bed with my friend, with her face about an inch from her perineal area, muttering "I know its here somewhere. It has to be here!" It was hilarious, to say the least.

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A friend of mine evidently has a hard to locate urethra. When she was preparing to deliver her daughter, the nurse attempted to insert the foley. And attempted. And attempted. Eventually, the nurse was actually completely on the bed with my friend, with her face about an inch from her perineal area, muttering "I know its here somewhere. It has to be here!" It was hilarious, to say the least.

Crazy as it sounds, SOME MEN will find that sexy! and apparently a turn on. lol.

I guess it's easier to find males' urethras then? :D Females are harder, someone told me that, of course he was a DUDE and I think he was a little gay? He couldn't find a female's G-spot, even with YAHOO maps!

Hmm, kidding aside, he was a good guy. I think he went to cardiovascular nursing, that's the last time I heard.

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Specializes in Post Anesthesia.

I have always believed that men should be the primary cath inserters on female patients, and women on men. Reasoning: how many members of your same sex have you seen so up close and personal that you would be familliar with the anatomy in the smallest detail? (with some obvious exceptions). I'm not making sexual references about a patient, but the anatomy dosen't change for whatever reason you are "down there" and I would imagine most of the less clinically experienced staff have more familliarity with the opposite sexes anatomy than thier own. After a year- it's an open season- If you can't place a foley on anyone after a year in practice, you haven't been trying.

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Specializes in Med/Surg.

There was once a male patient we had with hypospadias. Multiple nurses tried to advance a catheter several times through the opening on the tip of his member only to meet resistance and were unable to advance after about an inch. The urologist was called and was able to locate the actual urethra on the underside of the member about half way down. When this was mentioned to the pt he responded "I know, but no one asked." LOL poor guy, you would have thought he would have wanted to save himself the pain. Now I always ask if theres anything I should know anatomically before attempting insertion,

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Perhaps he was just enjoying the attention.

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