Humor in Nursing...

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Feb 16, 2007

I work at a nursing home. One of my residents would continually push her call light for silly things. Here are her usual requests:

1. "I want a taco!"

2. "Coffee, please!"

3. "My blanket is wrinkled!"

On the first floor of the nursing home, there's another resident whose family members are accusing the facility of assault. The family claims that the resident was assaulted and battered by the nursing home staff, and they even called the police to come to the facility. My question is, "Why is your mother still at the nursing home if you really fear for her safety? If I really thought my elderly mom was being abused by nursing home staff, I would have immediately taken her home or to another facility!"

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Feb 16, 2007

This site also has a Humor in Nursing forum, located over in the General Discussion forums. It appears to be completely dedicated to the humorous antics that occasionally occur in nursing. Happy reading! :)

https://allnurses.com/forums/f58/

leesespieces · Feb 16, 2007

about a year ago when i was working as a cna i was having a co-worker help me transport a body to the morgue. wouldn't you know that we got stuck in the elevator halfway between the 6th and 7th floor and my co-worker was freaking out and screaming for help. i calmly called security and tried to prevent her from passing out. eventually the doors were pried open but no one could get the elevator to move up level with the 7th floor and we had to get the body out. we had to get another cart and place it head-to-head with the cart in the elevator and drag the body out. it was quite comical after everyone got out safely.

postmortem_cowboy · Feb 16, 2007

Thanks guys! I love threads like this, you get to hear so many different stories, ok here's one of mine.

Came on shift one night doing an ER shift, and about 30 minutes before shift change this guy drove his GF in for treatment, seems she wasn't breathing, lips were blue, and after 20-30 minutes of trying to find an ER voila, he shows up at our doorstep, day shift drug her out of the motorhome, yes, he drove a motorhome like 20 miles trying to find an ER and passed 3 along the way, but ended up with us.

So anyhow, she's bagged and ready to go to the morgue (unsuccessful code). about an hour or so into our shift all the paperwork is done, scopci's been called they don't want to harvest etc etc etc. The security guard and I are going down the hall , he's at the foot pulling, i'm at the head pushing. Down this really long hall. All of a sudden the body sits straight up inside the bag. I let go of the gurney and my mouth falls open, the head of the gurney slides sideways and clunks into the wall, and the guard turns around to see Mrs. so and so sitting straight up and about jumps out of his shorts. He's let go of the gurney as well and it's come to rest against the wall and both of us are looking at one another like, ok now what. I've never felt so stupid in my life, and i know sometimes people code, and they call the patient, and then 20 minutes later or whatever they wake back up inside the body bag, so now i'm talking to the body. "m'am, are you okay, do you need assistance?" We call the supervisor, she comes down laughing her butt off at the two of us, and she tells us we'll just have to wait till she goes back limp to get her into the drawer in the morgue, just wheel her down and leave her out. So we had to pad the gurney and all, left her there in the morgue on the gurney. Scared the livin' daylights out of me. Had never had that happen. I found humor in the situation afterwards, but while it was going on seemed like a bad case of "friday the 13th" movies.

Wayne.

pagandeva2000, LPN · Feb 16, 2007

Oh, boy, Wayne, that was a trip! I would have needed a diaper.

I give Depo-testosterone to patients in the Endocrine clinic for people suffering from impotence and hypogonadism. This is an IM shot in the butt, basically, so, you don't see anything else. One time, after I gave the injection, the man said to me; "When will it GROW??" He turned around, and...well...let's just say that a woman can aim herself in the male bathroom moreso than he can. I had to literally bite my cheeks to keep from laughing. But, I felt so sorry for him that I took him to a room, and did a great deal of on line searching for him and I didn't find a definitive answer to his problem. The physicians for Endocrine were not present at this time for me to ask them, and I told the gentleman that he should speak to his provider about his expectations. Never found out the outcome for this guy because I was transferred two weeks later, and he gets monthly injections.

postmortem_cowboy · Feb 17, 2007

yeah I've had a few humorous experiences as a VN... lol... I just like hearing everyone elses stories.

Like I had a patient one night in ICU, cardiac patient, had a CVA, kept moaning. She was hemiplegia couldn't talk all the norms for a CVA. This kept on, checked on her pain meds, weren't due yet, figured okay maybe she needs to be changed, went in, checked her diaper, nothing. When pain meds were due, she got her dose. Well before they were due again she starts back up... i'm thinking ok check the diaper again. Nothing. Paid meds due again, given and she quiets back down. An hour later she's back at it again. This time i'm figuring, ok there's something more to this and i'm not catching it. So I rolled her over completely and visualized her orifice, and there the brick was right there. Got a 4'10" filippino RN to hold while I ran my digital disimpaction. :| I'm trying to be nice, use only one finger and chip away at it slowly tons of KY and got as far in as my index finger would go. So my filippino RN says oh your hands are too big, change me places. Let's just say my mouth dropped open when this cardiac patient had this little filippino RN's had up to her forearm retrieving.... I kept thinking, please don't code... please don't code... not now... not like this... I don't want to have to tell the doctor that his patient coded because of this... please don't code...

I also got a good laugh out of a few ER RN's one night. We had this 21 year old patient (this was before I got ACLS certed) come in with chest discomfort, put her on the monitor and she needed cardioversion. So the RN's pushed the meds and the doc was going to shock. I was the notekeeper for this proceedure, mark down what time for this med was pushed, that med, what time this shock happend etc etc... so I'm watching as this well endowed female patient is about to get shocked by the doc, look down at the clipboard and my watch, "clunk" ok time noted shock, look back up and her nipples were standing at full attention. I was like oh my GAWD... when did that happen??? I looked down for like two seconds and then back up and now this. The RN's must have seen me turn BEAT RED and I got asked what was wrong there after the cardioversion was done. I was mostly embarrased that i'd even noticed it in the first place... but what was even worse was that my 2 RN buddies had noticed that I'd noticed and obviously hadn't seen that happen before. Big time embarrassing.

And OI to your less than well endowed patient lol... I guess he wouldn't enjoy the old joke about two guys who are standing in the restroom next to one another peeing. One looks at the other and says, god the water's cold in this urinal. The other turns and says, yeah but it's deep as well.

Wayne.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Feb 19, 2007

I work at a nursing home. One of my residents would continually push her call light for silly things. Here are her usual requests:
1. "I want a taco!"
2. "Coffee, please!"
3. "My blanket is wrinkled!"

I worked a 16-hour shift at the nursing home yesterday, and this same resident requested a martini. :chuckle

postmortem_cowboy · Feb 19, 2007

Shaken not stirred? 1 or 2 olives? damn we're out of luck I forgot my shaker today :chuckle

Anyone else with a humorous story?

Wayne.