Red Face Stories

When I first became a nursing assistant back in the 70's you didn't need any certification, only a strong back, strong stomach, and the endurance for the work. So needless to say, there wasn't any medical terminology or anything of the sort taught, you did personal care for the patient and that was it. The LTC facility I worked in was small, and required everyone to hear report at shift change. I worked dayshift, and during report the night nurse would say, "Mrs. So-and-So was SOB again last night, but was better toward morning." This became a common statement during the next several days during report, patient was "SOB". After about a week of this I mentioned to my charge nurse during a break that I couldn't believe what the night nurse was saying about Mrs. So-and_So, she was such a sweet and polite lady. The charge nurse got a big smile on her face and explained that the patient had breathing distress, the nurse wasn't calling her a bad name. Boy, was my face RED!!!