Nursing

[Joween]

When I was in nursing college I was taught that the middle finger was your index finger so when I was working as a nurse. I accidentally stuck that finger twice so it had to be documented and the supervisor documented it was the index finger so I wasn't the only one that learned it that way. So what is going on with everyone saying the first finger is the index finger. I and others learned the middle finger was the index finger!!!!

[psu_213, BSN, RN]

I have seen confusion over first digit (thumb) and first finger (I've heard both index finger and thumb on this one). I have never, ever heard the middle finger called the index finger. OP, are you not in the US?

[JKL33]

Yeah, digits and fingers mess people up, psu_213. I was taught that if you're using the term "digit," it's just 1-5, with the thumb being the first digit.

If you're talking "fingers" - it's thumb, then 1st finger (index), 2nd finger (middle), 3rd (ring), 4th (pinkie/little).

I always just stick with documenting things using the "digit" terminology to avoid confusion.

Funny, even the dictionary takes a stab at parsing this out.

[brownbook]

Good example of no stupid questions. As a nurse of 30 years I can't remember finger's names and don't feel stupid asking co-workers... just hope, assume, they are right.

I also have a mental block with areas of the spine.... I have to visualize the spine, close my eyes, and think...."cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral".

[nursel56]

I think I learned the index finger is the the first finger next to the thumb when I was in elementary school. My understanding is that medical terminology is a subset of many other categories where the term would be used. But I guess the confusion could be the basis for many funny jokes, if I had ever encountered confusion on the topic in my lifetime, which I haven't.

Being open-minded, though, perhaps it's a regional thing. I was close to 30 years old when I discovered that millions of people call carbonated beverages "pop" instead of "soda" and that a "tag sale" is actually a "garage sale". Interesting!

[Daisy Joyce]

Were you trained outside the US?

I've never heard the term "nursing college"

[Guest219794]

Nope.

[Wuzzie]

I'm beginning to wonder if this, and a few other recent threads, are just SDN members with too much time on their hands. They do enjoy riling us up.

[nehneh14]

I don't think OP is a native English speaker; the two posts aren't constructed with skill beyond English proficiency. I'm guessing this was/is a translation error. I've heard the index (1st finger) referred to as the "pointer" finger, but never the middle finger as the index finger.

[JKL33]

^ Perhaps [Wuzzie]!! I understand the need to use an anonymous forum for such, but I'd prefer IRL. So much more entertaining! Using this venue for such just makes it lame-o, as in, "Hey, do you have pop in a can?" hardy-har...

[/username, BSN, RN]

Thanks for the lolz after a stressful week. :)

[Leader25, ASN, BSN, RN]

Is the OP referring to apes? Never ever heard of index finger called anything else and it is always next to the thumb, like your brain is supposed to be between your ears.

[Guest219794]

I'm beginning to wonder if this, and a few other recent threads, are just SDN members with too much time on their hands. They do enjoy riling us up.

Ding, ding, ding....

I am often intrigued by some of these threads with common attributes:

Outlandish post.

First time poster.

Last time poster.

I suppose the OP could be real, but looked at objectively-

Possibility A- A nurse of X years thinks the middle finger is the index finger. Claims it was taught in school. Rather than a simple Google search, creates an account here and posts the question. Leaves the thread to re-examine her life thinking "If I have been wrong about something as basic as the index finger, what else about my life is flat out wrong?"

Possibility 2- Somebody created an account for this purpose. I think a bored/mischievous student/resident/doc is as good a guess as any. Probably was shocked that, as evidenced by this thread, we don't all know which finger is which.

It amazes me that I sometimes have trouble recalling this. Digit #3 is my favorite- it is #3 regardless of which side you start counting on. I also worry about fingers feeling devalued, being referred to by number, so I call them by their names- thumb, index, middle, ring, and pinky.