Night shift nurses! Have you ever been SO SLEEPY that....

[NurseCard, ADN]

you found youself charting something about a patient that made ABSOLUTELY no sense whatsoever??

As in... it's 2:30 in the morning, you are sitting there trying to chart... and you find yourself kinda... drifting off... AS your hand continues to write or type?

As much as it PAINS me to admit that I was actually this sleepy... last night I was sitting there charting on the computer about a patient... I was typing a patient note... and I kinda felt myself drifting off to parts unknown, yet I continued to type... then I managed to kinda jerk myself awake, looked at the screen, and found that I had typed something about this patient that looked kinda like this:

"Patient able to open eyes, is somewhat alert, follows commands, and is somehow able to create his own video game"

I'm glad I actually did wake myself up before hitting "save". =)

[Lorie P.]

Been there done that! I once wrote this " awake,alert & oriented, snoring loudly and does & doesn't follow commands" Caught it before I went any further in my charting. Got up, got some coffee and walked around for about 10 minutes then went back to charting.

Oh the life of a night shift nurse!! is what I feel like at 2 am!

[nrsang97, BSN, RN]

I have caught myself doing the same thing. I proof read it before I hit save and close. You aren't alone.

[jessiern, BSN, RN]

How about this...

"Pt voices no distress or shows signs of complaints"

Charted on a rehab patient we had, found on my nurses notes by the physical therapist...my husband :imbar

....but, I am a dayshifter, so I guess it don't count

[flightnurse2b, LPN]

i worked with a nurse who was sitting the in hallway sitting with her patient and she was charting on a COW, she dozed off and fell to the side....she fell on out of the chair, on the floor, and fractured her wrist! she switched to days after that.

[kmn360]

Hi,

I know I don't quite count only in NS, but I work nights! And they have changed me to days, hello that's my nap time! I'm having the worst time adjusting back to days. Always been a little backwards! )

[CaLLaCoDe, BSN, RN]

Nights are brutal!

I require 1 cup of coffee q hour! No kidding, absolutely nuts!

This week I am doing four 12ves and it really doesn't allow for any time to one's self for liesure time. Two day's off. First day I was awake till four...so I hadn't slept for 20 odd hours. Tonight being my last night off, I'm going to go to bed late and sleep a lot of the day prior to returning to work tomorrow night. Pure madness!

Regarding nursing notes: Patient sleeping soundly. Nurse made rounds. Observed patient sleeping soundly. Soundly nurse sleeping patient rounds............:sfxpld:

I never sleep for fear of my having others try and wake me!

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

it was worse before computerized charting. i woke up when i hit the floor one time, and found that i had charted "patient in no distress, awaiting the tree surgeon to evaluate the limb _________" at this point, my charting trailed off into a straight line that went off the page, across the desk and presumably ended when i fell out of my chair.

another time, i fell asleep standing up -- woke up when the nursing supervisor moved the code cart i was leaning on. fortunately, she thought it was so funny she didn't write me up! (it was my second code of the night.)

there was the night one of the male nurses fell asleep in the spare bed in his patient's room and the cna took his vital signs. without waking him.

one of our nurses took a break off the unit, fell asleep and didn't wake up until a security guard found her in the doctor's lounge, sound asleep, four hours later!

i worked with one nurse who was the night charge of our ccu. lottie (ok, moderators, that's not really her name) would fall asleep about three hours into our 12 hour night shift, and would wake up to eat lunch, then sleep the rest of the shift until morning conference call with staffing and the other two icus. the rest of us just worked around her. i remember we had a betting pool re: how long her string of drool would get before it would break, and we had a yard stick to measure it with. the nurse manager wanted to know why we needed the yard stick around, and we convinced her that we needed it to level transducers. once the string of drool got all the way to the floor before breaking -- one of the male nurses activated the code light just to see lottie jump up and splatter that drool all over!

[Tait, MSN, RN]

it was worse before computerized charting. i woke up when i hit the floor one time, and found that i had charted "patient in no distress, awaiting the tree surgeon to evaluate the limb _________" at this point, my charting trailed off into a straight line that went off the page, across the desk and presumably ended when i fell out of my chair.

another time, i fell asleep standing up -- woke up when the nursing supervisor moved the code cart i was leaning on. fortunately, she thought it was so funny she didn't write me up! (it was my second code of the night.)

there was the night one of the male nurses fell asleep in the spare bed in his patient's room and the cna took his vital signs. without waking him.

one of our nurses took a break off the unit, fell asleep and didn't wake up until a security guard found her in the doctor's lounge, sound asleep, four hours later!

i worked with one nurse who was the night charge of our ccu. lottie (ok, moderators, that's not really her name) would fall asleep about three hours into our 12 hour night shift, and would wake up to eat lunch, then sleep the rest of the shift until morning conference call with staffing and the other two icus. the rest of us just worked around her. i remember we had a betting pool re: how long her string of drool would get before it would break, and we had a yard stick to measure it with. the nurse manager wanted to know why we needed the yard stick around, and we convinced her that we needed it to level transducers. once the string of drool got all the way to the floor before breaking -- one of the male nurses activated the code light just to see lottie jump up and splatter that drool all over!

all i can say is

oh

my

gosh

that sleepy person getting his vitals taken cracked me up.

i have had a few sleepy sleepy nights, though i find i have less of them on the floor i am on now, working 12 hours. i guess i am generally just too busy.

but about 2 months into my first job i had a spell where i would drift off while charting, but i got over it. luckily i am very much a night owl.

a few weeks ago i had to take a 15 min snooze during my shift, i was terrified i was losing my edge, luckily once my cold cleared off it didn't happen again.

tait

[MikeyJ, RN]

I work graveyard weekends (Fri & Sat night) as a nurse apprentice. Fortunately, I am off this weekend, however, on Fridays I wake up at 4:00 a.m. to get ready for clinicals and do that until 3:30, come home, change, eat, and head back to the hospital for my NAP position. I am usually up for 30+ hours those days. I have never ever had a problem staying awake though. I am definitely tired and when I drive home I feel as if I am drunk. I barely get my head to the pillow before I fall asleep.

I work with two CNA's who take turns napping in a patients room. I work on the pediatrics floor and there is usually a room they can find and sit in a chair in the corner and nap. The other CNA usually plays "look-out" for the other.

[rn/writer, RN]

I work graveyard weekends (Fri & Sat night) as a nurse apprentice. Fortunately, I am off this weekend, however, on Fridays I wake up at 4:00 a.m. to get ready for clinicals and do that until 3:30, come home, change, eat, and head back to the hospital for my NAP position. I am usually up for 30+ hours those days. I have never ever had a problem staying awake though. I am definitely tired and when I drive home I feel as if I am drunk. I barely get my head to the pillow before I fall asleep.

I work with two CNA's who take turns napping in a patients room. I work on the pediatrics floor and there is usually a room they can find and sit in a chair in the corner and nap. The other CNA usually plays "look-out" for the other.

Doesn't sound like much of a "nap position" to me. My hat is off to you if you can handle 30+ hours awake. Just be careful when you drive. Exhausted driving is, more and more, being viewed with the as similar to driving under the influence, the idea being that if you know you are that tired and you still get behind the wheel, you should be held accountable. I know, I know, how are you supposed to get home.

I'm a veteran noc shifter. Even so, a couple of times, I have had to pull over and take a 20 minute catnap. Inconvenient, yes, but a lot less hassle than an accident or a ticket.

Do take care, fellow nocturnal ones.

[sheri_w]

Well I work evenings not nites but one nite I was charting(paper mars all in one book) I was really sleepy. couple days later when I was back in that unit I noticed I had initialed in places with no meds, and one mar I had circled my initials and noted "meds not available"