Post-Mortem care

[rehabhereIcome]

http://rn.modernmedicine.com/rnweb/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=375514&pageID=1&sk=&date=

After reading this...does anyone have any other post mortem tips to share.

[leslie :-D]

As in dead dead patients? Reminds me of an old horror movie....It would definitely freak me out...

it is a horror movie.

one time a doc was with me, and he grabbed onto me.:chuckle

neuromuscular contraction/relaxation sometimes goes nuts on the deceased, as it shuts down...even after death.

i've seen some pretty amazing stuff in over 12 yrs of doing this.

leslie

[nightmare, RN]

The thing I hate the most about someone dying is when the body purges.That is the only time I have had to leave a room because I just could not control gag reflex.It was awful! Never in 30 odd years had that happened before.

[leslie :-D]

The thing I hate the most about someone dying is when the body purges.That is the only time I have had to leave a room because I just could not control gag reflex.It was awful! Never in 30 odd years had that happened before.

how long had the person been dead for?

had putrefaction taken place?

i've seen purging as well, but they were r/t very unusual circumstances...

leslie

[nightmare, RN]

This was purging before they died ,Leslie.That's what made it worse,having to leave the room and leave them while they were dying.

[leslie :-D]

This was purging before they died ,Leslie.That's what made it worse,having to leave the room and leave them while they were dying.

ah....

sigh...

working in an inpt hospice facility, i see it all.

never occurred to me you were talking about before death-

i see that all the time.

actually, a few yrs ago, they finally supplied us with the yellow gowns to be worn on a daily basis.

the stuff we see with our pts, is often beyond words.

i've cut way back on my hrs these past few months.

if i hadn't, i'd be long term inpt at a psych facility.

leslie

[nightmare, RN]

I know what you mean Leslie. [[[[hugs]]]

[hardworkingwoman]

wow amazing stories, I have also done post mortem care. her eyes would not shut. One lady in the nursing home i work at, she died, and did not breath for like 5 minutes, the girls went in to clean her up and get her ready for the family to come back in. To scare them really bad when they rolled her on her side, she took a great big breath and she Lived! She was dead for a good 5-10 minutes, and came back to us, that was way scary!

[IamVickiRN]

I have had very good luck with getting the eyes to close by putting a quarter on each eye after moistening the lids with gauze. Usually about 10 minutes is all it takes and they stay. I was also told (never done this) to use a dab of KY jelly on the lower lid and close the eye, that it would help to "stick" them closed. Don't know how I feel about that, but I've heard it works.

Vicki