Healthcare Facilities running out of medications + supplies

[calivianya]

We ran out of Fentanyl drips in the entire hospital a couple of days ago. With 24 patients in my unit alone on Fentanyl drips, mostly for vent sedation, I heard more vent alarms going off at once than I ever have because all of the patients were waking up simultaneously and feeling very uncomfortable. It was ridiculous. I now have to pose this question to the crowd...

What is the dumbest thing your unit has ever run out of? Did you cry, laugh hysterically, or both?

[blondy2061h, MSN, RN]

Our water pitchers come in a package with 10 pitchers with 10 lids. People drop their lid all the time, so someone goes to grab a new lid. But then central doesn't restock them because they come up and see 8 pitchers there still. Then we get an admit and see to give them a pitcher with no lid.

We also ran out of saline. Our pharmacy compounded it for awhile.

[CelticGoddess, BSN, RN]

PAPR hoods, at a time when we had 3 TB patients, linens, and IV fluids (NS, LR and D5 1/2NS)

At the nursing home we ran out of : Tylenol, colace, prilosec, benadryl and mepilex (and a whole lot of other wound care supplies). Linens were also a problem and as they were washed on site, there was NO excuse for that.

[Cobweb]

We ran out of beds once. We had open rooms, just no beds to put in them. I had one electric bed shoved out in the hall and the unnamed management person was yelling at me, "Why don't you use that one?" "Because it caught on fire when the patient raised it up!" (It shot sparks out of the motor underneath the bed.) She said, swear to God, "Well can't you just take off the controller so they can't raise or lower it?" Even though we were missing three beds, they kept admitting people to the rooms.

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

We currently don't have 3L CBI bags. There is an outage nationwide. We have to figure out around that and do CBI with 1L bags. It's a pain.

Sheesh...you could have one nurse for the CBI alone if you're using 1L bags!!

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

All to save a few bucks....most of the time there isn't a "National shortage" it is a ....no you may not order extra.

[ICURN3020]

Mitts and Restraints

Bring on the duct tape! Haha

What do they expect us to do, sit on top of the patient our whole shift?!?

[ICURN3020]

We ran out of beds once. We had open rooms, just no beds to put in them. I had one electric bed shoved out in the hall and the unnamed management person was yelling at me, "Why don't you use that one?" "Because it caught on fire when the patient raised it up!" (It shot sparks out of the motor underneath the bed.) She said, swear to God, "Well can't you just take off the controller so they can't raise or lower it?" Even though we were missing three beds, they kept admitting people to the rooms.

Wow.....just wow

And if the patient is sitting upright and codes?!? Are you supposed to drag them to the floor to do CPR? Or have half their limp body hanging off the bed while trying to do compressions?

Please tell me they didn't end up putting someone in that fire-breathing bed?

[Cobweb]

No, I flatly refused the patient, as they would have had an unsafe environment, and casually reminded them that state was coming pretty soon and did they want patients to be telling stuff like that to the inspectors?

[sissiesmama, ASN, RN]

We were out of IM Thorazine for several weeks in a psychiatric hospital!

OH noooo!!!

[sissiesmama, ASN, RN]

We ran out of propofol. We had some miserable patients until we could get some sedation!

Admin asked "well do u really need it that bad??*

Anne, RNC

[chiromed0]

Ran out of masks during a flu outbreak. That was nice...reused the masks...taped them to the wall outside the rooms. And I'm supposed to believe we are ready for Ebola!

[SmilingBluEyes]

Vancomycin in a dialysis unit....and it was region-wide not just our unit.