Lvn Have To Deal W/ Maggots????

[prenurstudent]

Do LVN's have to clean patients w/ maggots, & how often do they have to deal with them. I am an LVN student and I don't think I'll be able to clean a patient w maggots, I am so afraid of any kind of worms, that's my worst phobia.

Please let me know because If have to deal w/ maggots I prefer to look for another career.

[missjennmb]

We did have a few cases in the ER of elderly brought in infested with ants d/t neglect.

oh my gosh!! that just breaks my heart All I can think of is how I found an abandoned kitten infested with ants last summer, and how close to death she was. How could someone do that to another human being???

sigh

so much evil and sadness in this world

[flightnurse2b, LPN]

the ER has quite of few patients stroll in with their share of bugs.

ive seen many patients with maggots in between their toes, in abdominal folds and yes.. even in a trach stoma. cockroaches, mosquitos and dragonflies like the ear canal. and some people get worms from their pets or playing outside and you have to fish through their stool to get a sample.

but thats in the ER. so the answer is no, ive never seen maggot therapy on a decub in a nursing home. dont let maggots discourage you from nursing!

[Snickers&DtCoke]

I think this is VERY RARE... so so very rare incident. If magots are the only thing that grosses you out.... You'll be a FINE nurse!

I am quite certain you could probably live your entire nursing carreer and never see one.... wherever you go. (unless like victoriam, your trash gets missed for a week.)

I have to admit, this post makes me laugh. Which is why I keep replying to it.

as I said...

Be strong!

snickers

[Thornbird]

I have never seen a nursing home patient with maggots. With new treatments and knowledge there are far fewer really gross bedsores in nursing homes than in the old days and even then I never saw maggots. Therapy with sterile maggots is a specialized field that I don't think LVN's can even work in. ER nurses see a fair share of disgusting things that are cleaned out before the patient is admitted.

[mystic66]

I've worked in plenty of nursing homes that housed many patients with "bedsores," and I've personally never seen any maggots.

I worked LTC in a nursing home for over 30 years and never saw one maggot in all those years. Don,t worry about it.

[lpnflorida, LPN]

I was asking because I was told to avoid nursing homes and ER if I don't want to see maggots. I really don't know anything about nursing homes, I am just starting my lvn program.

Thank you all

I think someone is aware of your phobia of worms, and said what they did just to get you going...........

not refering to magots now, but you will discover in your future career many things which on first thought you think " oh no I could never do that" but you will,,, Mine is trachs ( sputum) I do not know why it bothers me, but to this day it still does. However I am still able to do trach care and deal with sputum. It just isn't my favorite thing to do.

[bigdreams08]

I am a newly licensed LPN, but I can contribute to this....

My very first day of nursing clinical.... my very first patient.... Maggot therapy... I thought I was going to die!! Luckily, the CNA suffocated the maggots, because she put the plastic backed bed pad under the patient. That in turn suffocated them. The physical therapist was pi$$ed when she came to check on her *babies*....

Also, at another point in my clinical experience... I was doing rounds with Hospice at various LTC facilities and one had some visitors from the state... After a little investigating, it came out that they were there because a patient had a massive neighborhood of fly babies living in their heel wound.

Nothing important, just adding my stories...

Have a great day!

[4x4country]

never learned about it or evem heard of maggot therapy. interested in reading about it. Going to have to goggle it. LOL Never seen one on a patient/resident in a nursng home on any wound. Seen major wounds, deep tunnels, etc. NO maggots. It would be interesting to see.