Share The Weirdest Reasons Patients Push The Call Light

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You guys always crack me up, so I came up with this question to hear more funny weird stories.

What were some funny, stupid, or weird reasons patients push the call light for?

Are you supposed to go to the room right away or how does it work? I will be an RN next year and interested in knowing more about the actual daily life w/ pt.

Here are some of the best...

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Specializes in NICU.

I thank god every shift that 24 weekers can't push call lights.

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Specializes in NICU, Infection Control.
I thank god every shift that 24 weekers can't push call lights.

Unless they're being benchmarked and can't decide between being blind or being stupid. That oxymeter alarm can and will drive you right over the edge....

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probably because many who are self pay feel entitled and want to get their mo:nurse: neys worth

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Specializes in NICU.
Unless they're being benchmarked and can't decide between being blind or being stupid. That oxymeter alarm can and will drive you right over the edge....

Oh GOD, the ox alarm. I freaked a mom right out the other day when I just walked over and turned it off. Had to explain that the kid's a feeder, the kid is fine, and we just have to keep the alarm on per policy.

Or the eight-bed room where two pulse oxes are going off, one kid's Art BP got kinked so that's going off, one monitor thinks the kid's dead bc a lead came loose, so that one's alarming on all the monitors, which pisses off another baby so he gets tachy, a vent is alarming, of course all the alarms sound different, and the phone's ringing. That actually happened to me the other day. I almost cried.

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Okay...my strangest call light experience happened many years ago when the call system could be heard out loud at the nurses station (unlike now when you have to pick up a phone to hear the patient). I was taking care of a very brittle diabetic. She was end-stage renal failure and her diabetes had robbed her of her sight and she was necrotic everywhere. The patient called on the bell and I answered "can I help you." She replied that "yes" she did need some help. I said sweetly, "what can I help you with." She replied just as sweetly, "I snagged my finger on my blanket and it FELL OFF." Indeed the tip of her necrotic finger had come off when she snagged it on the her blanket. And yes, everyone at the nurses station was laughing when the call came in (of course that was before we realized she was giving accurate information).

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Specializes in pediatric critical care.

last night my 6 year old heart patient rang the light for about the fiftieth time to tell me that chocolate milk comes from brown cows!:smackingf

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Ok, not yet a nurse, but.... have been a patient. Once I had back surgery and an overfilled hospital put me in a room with an elderly lady who was completely capable of walking (she was in for a galbladder thing).Was constantly calling in the nurses either to beg for a bedpan or to complain she couldn't pee in the bathroom. They refused bedpan because she could walk. Kept me awake all night after a long painful surgery!:angryfire Then was in hospital for migraines and felt like death. Also, with an elderly roommate who kept kicking her slippers under the bed and then calling in the nurse to find them. Simply so she knew where they were. Me in my death finally got sick of her bugging the busy nurses that as soon as I'd hear her page I'd go over and climb under her bed to get them about a million and a half times. Its no fun being a roommate either.

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One called me, more than once, to scratch her foot for her.

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Specializes in MS/Tele/Urgent Care.

have one tonite that keeps calling me because he can't find his member, he has a peg and keeps insisting his member fell inside his stomach and he needs to keep pulling on the peg so his member will come out!!:lol_hitti

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I am a nurse and also have been the patient. This is kind of a reverse spin on things. Had my gallbladder taken out and the gas they left in went under my diaphragm and pushed it up, so I couldn't get my breath. I'm sitting there gasping for air (yes I looked like a fish out of water) I turn my call light on, my husband runs out of the room and yells "she can't breathe" and the first thing the nurse says to me is "It's to early for your pain medicine" Well I couldn't get no sound out but I mouthed "f:angryfire :madface: :angryfire the painmeds" Her eyes got big:eek: and she said well it will be ok just take a few deep breathes. I really thought this nurse was going to stand there and let me die, I thinking in my head "get some O2, get a ambu bag, SOMETHING PLEASE." The gas finially shifted again and I got my breath back.

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Specializes in ER, telemetry.

Had a little 18 year old septic princess that pushed the call light to get someone to come in the room and move her glass of water closer for her to reach. Oh ya, the call light was farther away from her on the try than the water

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last night my 6 year old heart patient rang the light for about the fiftieth time to tell me that chocolate milk comes from brown cows!:smackingf

me not being a nurse i find that funny and cute but i can immagion it was annoying to you

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