What is the freakiest thing you have ever seen at work?????

Nurses General Nursing

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Several years ago we had an elderly intubated woman admitted from the ER. She had resp. distress at home and ended up vented. They brought her up to us minus her post intubation film so x-ray came up and did one. After, they sent the film to us. As we stood there looking at it I said Ooops, guess whoever tubed her put her teeth on her chest. Into the patients room I go and pull back the top of her gown and whala, no teeth! Apparently her resp. distress was caused by swallowing her uppers! Poor thing needed surgery to remove them, the bronch was unsuccessful.

Had orders to Foley an elderly gent. But we couldn't get it, and after several phone calls, the urologist decided to come in to figure it out.

Turned out the Pt. had a "blind passage, " and that's why our efforts were futile.

We --nurses, Pt, and student--watched in fascination and horror as the Doc, with obvious glee, picked up this thing that looked like a wire coat hangar, took aim, quipped, "Now, don't try this at home, folks," :coollook: and in one sweeping motion, threaded the Foley in using the "coat hanger " as a guide. :eek: :eek: :eek:

Pt. insisted he felt no pain, but I cringe whenever I think about the poor fella--and I'm a girl.... :chair:

It had to be the tape worm.

Years ago, as a student in clinicals, I was changing a man's foot dressing, and his black, gangrenous toe fell off onto the floor!!

Today, of course, I wouldn't bay an eye....but as a student?? Darned near fainted right there!

Twenty years ago, I was giving a pt. an enema in a lonely dark room at about 3:00 am. When I lifted her gown up to pull her panties down, I just about doodied in my pants. She was wearing men's briefs. Well, back then, people weren't coming out of the closet so freely. I can't remember if I did that enema or not, come to think of it!

But we have had a few patients who had worms embedded in their backs after foreign travel, it was so strange to open what looked like a boil and have a fat worm crawl out. the patients thought it was too freaky too.

Specializes in Med/Surg, ER, L&D, ICU, OR, Educator.

Pt having a bowel resection for perforated bowel.....bowel segment inspected....patient had swallowed a wooden toothpick!

I recommend floss!

I worked in a prison medical setting, and on the night shift I got

called over to the unit. An inmate had a padlock on his member (he

evidently was a little off?) and needless to say could not remember the combination! Not sure where his brains are really

located! Made for an interesting nite! Was he afraid of losing it?

a dead member laid out on the table before multiple representative sections were made of it. : ) Sliced open down its middle, flattened and wide open. Interesting.

I'm also happy to say... today I do not experience an aversion to member.

:eek:

Surgeon presented my patient with a flat, smooth pebble he found in patients appendix. It was actually bigger than a dime but smaller than a nickle, about the width of eraser. It was one of those light colored ones we used to call lucky stones when I was a kid. It was not a lucky stone for this guy unfortunately. He also had a screaming case of peritonitis with his appendicitis.

Oh, the thing that freaked my fellow nurses out the most but did not bother me much was the guy that kept the poisoness snake that bit him in a jar by his bed. It was a copperhead if I remember correctly.

When I was a student.

A guy about 40 with Fx pelvis after a fall on the ice, drunk and high on heroin. None of the student were allowed into the room for any reason. We all wanted to know why so the nurse manager and our instructor pulled up the films of his pelvis....

all needles, over 300 broken off inthe thighs, groin, member and scrotum. They proceeded to tell us his arms, hands, feet, anywhere with viens had the same little problem.

even a bed bath was a needle stick nightmare....

really freaked me out.

peter

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