I am starting nursing this fall, and while thinking about the process something just caught my attention.. I am ok with all of the blood, and other aspects of the job, but one thing.. Catheters..
If I'm not comfortable inserting catheters, or doing catheters is nursing the right career for me? Or, would it be ok if I passed on that duty/responsibility to another coworker?
Also, if I were in clinicals and we had to insert catheters and I didn't feel comfortable doing it, could they fail me?
What I'm pretty much saying is, I don't like catheters!
Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
My first foley was during OB in school..it was on a 15 year old pregnant Mexican girl in labor with her mom holding her hand saying "see...this is what you get for doing what you did"
HAHA, probably what I would tell my daughter, although I was that girl. Except I was 16 and I wasn't cathed but I did do it without pain meds and I think my step mom told me the same thing in between me speaking in tongues.
I remember being really nervous my first cath and it was a very hard find. We had a few helpers and a flashlight and I didn't get it, and neither did my nurse, my instructor who was a surgical nurse said "sometimes you just have to go in and straight up when you have no visual." It worked. I feel really bad for the patients when all the reinforcement has to be called it, I imagine it's extremely embarrassing so I make sure to down play it all the time when they make comments.
Most awkward cath was on a Male in the ICU. Men are usually easy to cath (sometimes if prostate problems it can get harder). But he was having problems from his Heart Cath and a very big shot cardiologist was in holding pressure on the site. So his hands are right next to the mans genitalia and he is standing right there, he was a shorter man so he wasn't much taller then me (5'3"). He tells me to cath him, and so I had to do all this with him right here watching me and flinching as I went to insert and stuff. Very awkward. Funny, this guy could preform Open Heart surgeries and not bat an eyes, I watched him walk into the Cath lab to assist a doc that was having trouble, he walked up, did it, and walked out. But get a tube near a member and he was turning to jello.
Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
The stories are great, lol. I was really laughing at the one with the mother telling her daughter this is what you get.. LOL.
Thanks for the input everyone, I'm sure if I practice on the dummies and what not I will get the hang of it!
It will be completely different then the dummies. But it will mainly be the first one you need to get past, as with most things we do. I remember my first clinical day that was supposed to be just shadowing I had a nurse ask me if I wanted to give an injection. "No" I said. LOL but I gave the impression I did but I was obviously terrified. She smiled and said that means yes, I went and did it and now it's like nothing. I don't even think about it anymore and think "where is a student to delegate this too!" Give yourself room too that even if you have done 100, sometimes you won't get it. Some anatomy is just very difficult. Leave the cath in as a marker and do it again.
i get more nervous about finding the hole (in females), than hurting the person. hah
Yeh at least you know with men where to aim without feeling like you are mining for gold sometimes.
Seriously though I had a person weeping today because she got a heparin shot and had to get ACHS FSBS. There are far worse things to pts and like most things in nursing, it involves putting a tube into another tube expecting something to either go in or out.
Used to do Foleys as an ER Tech when I first started in EMS decades ago. They weren't as picky about the sterility back then; had to teach an old dog new tricks this time around...
Inserting a Foley isn't as scary or gross as you have it built up in your mind to be. For me, my big fear is the day I have to experience the aroma of a GI bleed. (However, I am hoping since I was able to overcome the scent of C Diff without retching, that I can eventually do the same thing there. LOL)
Frankly, I can't wait to get some practice inserting them on a real, live human being. I hope to get the opportunity several times prior to graduation. That's when we will always have someone we can call on for help. This is also the BEST time for us to overcome our fears.
I had a chance this week at clinicals to insert a straight cath for the first time ever. I was a nervous wreck but it went just great. It was a female, my instructor held a flashlight, it went right in with no problems. I'm glad I conquered that so its not hanging over my head anymore!! Also I got to repeat it 4 hours later, so I've done 2 caths now! YAY! My classmates who have not done one are soooo jealous.
Inserting a Foley isn't as scary or gross as you have it built up in your mind to be. For me, my big fear is the day I have to experience the aroma of a GI bleed. (However, I am hoping since I was able to overcome the scent of C Diff without retching, that I can eventually do the same thing there. LOL)
Frankly, I can't wait to get some practice inserting them on a real, live human being. I hope to get the opportunity several times prior to graduation. That's when we will always have someone we can call on for help. This is also the BEST time for us to overcome our fears.
You actually can develop a keen sense of smell for certain things. In EMS, us veterans could walk-in and immediately smell a lower GI bleed from the front door. You can also develop a keen sense of hearing for certain things like audible rales--fulminating pulmonary edema.
Recently, we were at the Vet's with one of our critters having some minor issue. A fluffy white dog was brought in struggling to breathe. I recognized the pulmonary edema immediately. The Vet and Vet techs did not! I thought to myself that the dog needed Lasix right away. They did a poor assessment and actually sent them home! A half an hour later they came back with a dead dog.
I know that when I hear that sound that aggressive patient assessment and treatement is in order. In critical situations you have to be able to recognize it immediately and shift into high gear and get things done quickly.
Specializes in Hospice & Palliative Care, Oncology, M/S.
I wanted to add my two cents from someone who has been on the receiving end of a catheter. It's not pleasant. It's a sensitive area and feels bizarre and uncomfortable, but it didn't hurt.
I've seen patients beg for catheters because their bladder is so full and they just can't urinate on their own. The look of relief on their face is what makes it all worthwhile.
It's a bit scary putting one in for the first time, but tough to mess up. The more you do it, the faster it goes and it becomes just another procedure.
I am a new LPN grad and just inserted my first male straight cath and honestly it was awesome!! There are specific reasons for doing this procedure. I went in without a nursing instructor watching me. I knew how to do the procedure and had confidence in my skills. Practice your skill there are many reasons why instructors do what they do, trust in them and you and you will do fine.
I had catheters two times for when I was induced twice. I guess my nurses were awesome because I didn't feel it going in or coming out. I was afraid of it at first when the mentioned they had to do it, but it ended up working out just fine.
I young woman with no kids who has attended the labor/deliveries of some of her family members asked me about the catheters. She was afraid because she had a cousin who screamed her head off when the catheter was put in. Her cousin said it was the worse part of the labor. I told her that I can't doubt that wasn't her cousin's experience, but it wasn't mine at all. Before I told her that, she thought all catheters made people scream like that.
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Give yourself room too that even if you have done 100, sometimes you won't get it. Some anatomy is just very difficult. Leave the cath in as a marker and do it again.
~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN
5,259 Posts
HAHA, probably what I would tell my daughter, although I was that girl. Except I was 16 and I wasn't cathed but I did do it without pain meds and I think my step mom told me the same thing in between me speaking in tongues.
I remember being really nervous my first cath and it was a very hard find. We had a few helpers and a flashlight and I didn't get it, and neither did my nurse, my instructor who was a surgical nurse said "sometimes you just have to go in and straight up when you have no visual." It worked. I feel really bad for the patients when all the reinforcement has to be called it, I imagine it's extremely embarrassing so I make sure to down play it all the time when they make comments.
Most awkward cath was on a Male in the ICU. Men are usually easy to cath (sometimes if prostate problems it can get harder). But he was having problems from his Heart Cath and a very big shot cardiologist was in holding pressure on the site. So his hands are right next to the mans genitalia and he is standing right there, he was a shorter man so he wasn't much taller then me (5'3"). He tells me to cath him, and so I had to do all this with him right here watching me and flinching as I went to insert and stuff. Very awkward. Funny, this guy could preform Open Heart surgeries and not bat an eyes, I watched him walk into the Cath lab to assist a doc that was having trouble, he walked up, did it, and walked out. But get a tube near a member and he was turning to jello.