NurseAuntowl

We had a long-term pt. with an osotomy bag that required emptying every hour (or more) OR ELSE. It exploded on a regular basis - the first time it was noteworthy for a new nurse, but after that it just became routine. They ought to make those things with a one-way gas valve - 30 cc's of fluid, and it's exploding? (and I'm guessing you WOULDN'T be surprised how far 30cc's of fecal fluid can travel under pressure).

I work on a critical care step-down unit where we see all manner of wounds. The worst (so far - I'm still a new nurse) was a very unfortunate gentleman admitted with sepsis associated with gangranosum pyoderma, an autoimmune disorder that results in giant horrific stage IV and V wounds with tunneling that connected some of them ALL OVER HIS BODY - trunk, buttocks, groin, arms and legs. He'd been cared for at home by his wife and a home healthcare nurse for 6 months prior to admit, and they'd been dressing the wounds with wet packing and duoderm and leaving them covered for days at a time, so you can imagine what we found when we finally got all the dressings off him. Dear lord the SMELL. He required jet lavage debridement every other day and a full dressing change every day, a process that could take as long a three hours and had to be done in a couple of blocks so he could be medicated and we could stand to be in the room with him - and this went on for 5 weeks. By the time we finally got him DC'd to rehab, the whole unit smelled like rotting flesh.