NG tube placement

[DolphinRN84]

I was just wondering how many nurses here have had the opportunity to place an NG tube on a patient? At my hospital, usually the interns/residents insert NG tubes. I did ask my manager awhile back that if nurses were allowed to insert NG tubes at this facility and she stated that yes, it was within our scope of practice but that we were definitely not obligated to. So...I was just wondering..how many have placed NG tubes? Thanks! :)

ETA: Sorry forgot to mention that I do work at a teaching hospital, so haven't had the opportunity to place an NG tube but we can start IV's even though we have an IV team. Need to clarify again that this is not the norm on my floor being vascular and all...mentioned that in another post here...

[neneRN, BSN, RN]

Docs never do them here...not a teaching hospital. I like doing them too.

[ldh, BSN, RN]

It is done every day in our NICU.....I would be surprised to see a physician inserting an NG tube.

[rn/writer, RN]

Yes, many many times. I hate doing it because it's so uncomfortable for the patient.

My ten-year-old grandson has spina bifida and has had too many hospitalizations to count. Any time he is post-op, he usually has to deal with a sluggish bowel/ileus, and that often means an NG tube. He has also reached a point of "treatment fatigue" where he has just about had it with being poked and probed and stuck and all the rest.

This last time, when he was told he needed the NG, he was NOT happy. Finally, he was able to express that he didn't mind the tube so much once it was in, but he didn't like having it inserted. A very creative nurse asked if he wanted to put it in himself and he jumped at the chance. She, of course, stood by and watched every second of the procedure and did all the proper checks afterward, but he did the insertion and advancement himself. This gave him a bit of control over his life and saved him the huge amount of stress and energy that it would have cost him to resist.

I was dumbfounded when I heard about it, but this is a kid who can cath himself. I'm grateful that the nurse saw what he really needed and was able to give it to him. My daughter was thrilled that the tube went in so easily. And my grandson was proud of himself instead of being traumatized once again.

Obviously, this is not something that would be appropriate very often, but in this situation, it was a great example of treating the whole patient.

[Ortho_RN]

We drop them all the time....I love dropping a NGT probably my "favorite" skill.

Nice to know I'm not the only one.. People at work think I'm crazy... I would much rather drop a NG tube than start a foley any day... Most of my co-workers are quite happy to trade out :)

[TazziRN, RN]

I'm good at dropping NGs but I hate doing it....mostly because I would hate having it done to me. I would rather insert foleys.

[nursemelani]

When I was in school I never volunteered when the opportunity came up to drop an NG. I was always so afraid of making the patient gag, or just doing something wrong with the instructor watching. Fortunately in home health, my patients usually have a g-tube with a mickey button. Much easier to re-insert or change when needed.

[carol72]

I inserted my first one a few weeks ago - it was a salem sump & it was my first time.

[meandragonbrett]

Nice to know I'm not the only one.. People at work think I'm crazy... I would much rather drop a NG tube than start a foley any day... Most of my co-workers are quite happy to trade out :)

There is just something about it that I love doing. Everybody i work with hates dropping them and they always find me to do it because they know I will drop it and not think twice about it.

[Rach101]

I practiced inserting NG tubes on my fellow nursing student buddies and they practiced on me. Wasnt the most pleasant experience but not as scary as doing it first time on a patient. And now, whenever i have to do one in the hospital i can empathise with the pt cos ive had it done to me!

[vamedic4, EMT-P]

Scatty, the OP works at a teaching hospital, and interns and residents do things at teaching hospitals that nurses usually do everywhere else. I've seen interns drawing blood and starting IVs, something you would never find anywhere else.

...I work at a teaching hospital also...and I've NEVER seen an intern or resident drop an NG tube, or start an IV. It's usually delegated to the nurse or a tech like myself.

Oh, and I'm a foley hater myself. I hateto do foley's or I/O caths after having had one after my last surgery. And those baby girls hide their urethras all too well!

[Hoozdo, ADN]

I insert them all the time and like it. Even more challenging is a duotube which I do even more often. It is fairly obvious when you have inserted an NG tube correctly. You never know with the duotube until the KUB comes back!

I enjoy this task 100% more than inserting a foley in a woman :uhoh21:

[nursemary9, BSN, RN]

Hi

At my previous Hospital--a teaching Hosp I might add, we dropped N/G tubes all the time. I think I've done hundreds over the years. It is my LEAST favorite job of all time, mainly cause pt's seem to have such a difficult time.

When my hospital closed, we all moved to another Hospital run by the same organization--this is also a teaching hospital--only residents pass N/G's.

Well, I can't say that I'm sorry about that, actually, but it is kind of strange. Most of them are actually pretty good at it, if I must say so.