Ridiculous medical mistakes on TV

Nurses Humor

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We've all heard it: nurses can't watch medical shows without getting annoyed about how inaccurate they are. Lately, I'm finding that the most ridiculous medical mistakes happen on police procedural dramas (Law and Order, Criminal Minds, etc.); at least the medical shows have people with medical backgrounds advising them.

Anybody have some funny tv medical mistakes to share??

Last week I was watching a rerun of Criminal Minds. The victim had been drugged with haldol by her kidnapper. When the police rushed in to save her, the EMS gave her a bolus of narcan and she magically awoke. It was a flipping miracle!! ?

Specializes in Psych, Corrections, Med-Surg, Ambulatory.

Ooh, ooh, I remember one! Trapper John! One time their ER nurse was having boyfriend problems and not really attentive at work. So Trap and his sidekick decided they would transfer her to a medical floor where she wouldn't need her wits about her (!). Apparently there was no nursing administration in that hospital. Next scene: the ER nurse is rolling a med cart room to room with her head in the clouds.

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Specializes in critical care.

When people pass their flattened hands down a face and the eyes of the deceased magically close.

2
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"Well, George, we just need to make a little change in the location of that hose in your nose."

Yes! I knew it! How did you find this? Did you make it?

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Specializes in Hospice.
When people pass their flattened hands down a face and the eyes of the deceased magically close.

Which is why Hospice families are always horrified when you're doing post mortem care and their eyes won't stay closed all the way. *sigh*

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Specializes in critical care.
Which is why Hospice families are always horrified when you're doing post mortem care and their eyes won't stay closed all the way. *sigh*

Maybe if nurses were Jedi?

"Your eyes will close now."

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Specializes in Outpatient/Clinic, ClinDoc.

Every single intubated patient that is able to talk around their ET tube.. happens a lot in soaps.. :p

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Specializes in Urgent Care, Oncology.

Ha, yes!

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Specializes in PACU, pre/postoperative, ortho.
Every single intubated patient that is able to talk around their ET tube.. happens a lot in soaps.. :p

Saw that in a movie last night (although come to think of it, I don't remember the tubing actually going to anything).

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Specializes in Hospital medicine; NP precepting; staff education.
I was watching an episode of Seinfeld where George was in the hospital for chest pain (which they ruled out it was nothing I believe but he still was admitted to a room had to stay over night mind you) and maybe I couldn't see it right (or I could be remembering wrong) but I swear he had a Foley catheter coming out of his nose!!!!! Maybe it was supposed to be like a feeding tube? But again, he was in for possible chest pain. I just couldn't wrap my head around why they would do that!? I kept yelling at the tv about it bc it was one of the more ridiculous things I've seen and my husband couldn't understand why it was so crazy. Tell me someone else has seen this episode! It's "the heart attack" season 2 episode 11.

Also, in an episode of law and order: svu a detective was questioning an elderly serial murderer for where he hid the other bodies and he had oxygen on because he was sick or dying or something. The murderer wasn't giving it up so the detective grabbed the oxygen tubing and squeezed it off until the murderer couldn't breath at all and gave in! So funny! It was like he was squeezing his airway or something. It was very dramatic.

I just had to rewatch it I think you're right!

about the 1:30 mark.

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Specializes in Hospice.
I just had to rewatch it I think you're right!

about the 1:30 mark.

I know it's been awhile since I did MedSurg, but that looks like a Dobhoff tube.

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Specializes in critical care.
I just had to rewatch it I think you're right!

about the 1:30 mark.

I don't get it. What would be the purpose of a tube in the nose like that? (Obviously that's how it landed in this thread, but still!)

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Again, back to Seinfeld. George loses the Master of My Domain contest watching the behind the bed curtains silhouettes of the super hot nurse giving a super hot patient a bed bath.

Ain't nobody got time for that!

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