Stories of the craziest patient you've ever had?

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Ok, so I am not an L/D nurse, I am a NICU nurse. Sorry for gate crashing! :wink2: I just love hearing stories. Some people have the funniest ideas about birthing and care of infants. Tell me some of the funniest/craziest/dumbest patients you've ever dealt with.

I'll go first. A baby needed to have a certain surgery, I won't go into details, but this kid had to have this surgery or was going to die. She was already seriously infected because of her condition and didn't have much longer to live. Parents had been to a couple of hospitals who all agreed with the same diagnosis and treatment that we wanted to do. Hospital hopping. Mind you, this kid was SERIOUSLY sick. But parents didn't want it because she "looked OK" and the Dad had done research on the internet into the condition and just knew she didn't need surgery. Like all other people who look something up on the internet and think they are experts... :banghead:

After the neonatologists made the executive decision (along with social services, the legal team, and a judge) to have the kid get the surgery, the parents didn't want any blood transfusions even though kiddo was bleeding out. No they were not Jehovah's witnesses. They were just concerned about what (actual quote) "goulies and demons are hanging out in the genetical cells of the donor". This kiddo was dying, and because they had done 'research' on WebMD and the like, they thought that they were MD's!!! Needless to say the kid got blood, and looked and felt much better for it. Oh, and post-operatively, the kid wasn't allowed to have pain killers because at one point Dad was addicted to narcotics (which certainly explained a lot). Umm, that isn't the kid's fault!!! She was hurting!!!

Not that I don't have respect for people who refuse certain treatments because of religious objections (and at my institution we will bend over backwards to accomodate them), but these people were INSANE!!!

BTW, the kid is doing great now.

Tell me your stories about people's funny ideas!!!

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Specializes in dialysis (mostly) some L&D, Rehab/LTC.

This might/is cold...but some people don't need to reproduce!

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Specializes in ob/gyn med /surg.

i had a pt 2 weeks ago that thought she was a cat .. she meowed and jumped up on the bed , swished her non existant tail... groomed her hands with her tounge.... she didn't clean her butt with her tounge though... maybe she couldn't reach it... i was waiting for her to clean her butt with her tounge...

i was looking for a litter box for her ... she was high on meth and coke.. and heroin ...

she was enjoyable to watch ... even if she was in 4 point hard restraints.. she meowed some cat words at me... good thing i don't understand cat langauge... she probably called me every name in the book....lol...

she was my favorite... gotta love her....

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Specializes in Tele, and now ICU !!.

i had a pt once tell me the voices in her head guided her as to how much synthroid and insulin to take everyday! can you guess why she was in the hospital???

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Specializes in Adult Cardiac surgical.

I work in a surgical cardiac ICU sometimes we have medical (non-cardiac) patients in our unit. So, I had this pt. that came to us had Resp. distress intubated for a while then extubated. I had her the night before she was to transfer, I come on to shift (she had schizophrenia) she was in four point restraint and yelling. She reported seeing things crawl on the wall.....all kinds of things. Then I start doing my assessment--listening to lung sounds/ heart sounds and she grabs my steth and scrub top--she managed to loosen her restraint (she was close to 400 lbs) she looks up at me while pulling on me and says "I'm a beat yoe A**" all I could think was God if this woman gets free I am a dead man.

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Specializes in Day Surgery, Agency, Cath Lab, LTC/Psych.

RNJayhawk, that story is scary!!! What is the matter with some parents?? :angryfire:angryfire:angryfire:angryfire:angryfire

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Specializes in ER, TRAUMA, MED-SURG.

Great topic!! But mine is not the craziest patient I took care of, I WAS the craziest patient that the other poor nurses had. And, of course, I was a patient on the floor where I worked.

I was 19 and a ward clerk working 3 to 11. I had bouts of pancreatitis and was a direct admit to the unit. The second day, my pain meds were not working. The charge nurse called the doc and got the Demerol changed to Nubain. I got a IVP of it, and dozed off. A few minutes after, I remember a rather large white nurse dressed in a hat and white dress came in and said I had been "a bad patient and the doc said I had to go home or find another MD." Of course, I had had a reaction to the Nubain and was hallucinating. But, when she left, I d/ced my 18 gauge IV and walked down 5 flights of fire stairs to the parking garage. Then, somehow, still barefoot and wearing boxer shorts and a tank top, I made it into the parking garage and found my car and drove it 3 blocks to the surgeons office, obviously under the influence!

So, I made it into the MD's office and demanded, rather rudely, where the MD was and why he wouldn't take care of me. They knew me from the hospital, and told me he was in OR and sent me back in my car to the hospital even though they realiozed that I was "tore up" and not makinmg sense.

So, I bust in through the sterile area doors in OR and again demanded to see my MD. By this time, I was beginning to remember most of this in a fog. The OR staff sent me back upstairs to my room. As I was walking back up the stairs to my room - I'm still not sure why I avoided the elevator?! - I could hear over the operator intercom " Anne _______, return to your room IMMEDIATELY!!!!! When I got there, I was confronted by my LPN, my chgarge RN, the house sup, and, of course the surgeon!!

He had a little trouble believing my excuse, but finally understood.

Then I got the psych consult. His dx, thank God, was that I was not "nuts", but was allergic to the Nubain. Talk about embarrassing!!!!!

I still see him from time to time, and I will never live that down!

Anne, RNC :chuckle:chuckle

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i had a pt once tell me the voices in her head guided her as to how much synthroid and insulin to take everyday! can you guess why she was in the hospital???

This was in a pharmacy magazine and wasn't one of my patients.

A pharmacist who was a certified diabetes educator once had a patient's wife come to her for consultation because her husband was exhibiting some very bizarre behavior; on more than one occasion, he had taken off all his clothes in the house and run down the street naked. The wife said these incidents only happened when he took insulin.

Some investigation was done, and long story made short: The man was not diabetic. For some reason, he thought he needed insulin and purchased Humulin, which is available OTC, and syringes, and took some when he thought he needed it.

:eek:

I once had a diabetic patient (Type I, to boot!) who had this idea that if he got the right kind of test strips, and read enough magazine articles about his disease, he would be cured. Doesn't work that way, dude!

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Specializes in NA, Stepdown, L&D, Trauma ICU, ER.

We had patient come in about a year ago demanding a c/s. The reason? She was pregnant with twins, one of them was a cat, and they were fighting in her belly. Pregnancy test was negative, so she didn't get the section. Did, however, end up with a psych hold

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Specializes in Day Surgery, Agency, Cath Lab, LTC/Psych.
We had patient come in about a year ago demanding a c/s. The reason? She was pregnant with twins, one of them was a cat, and they were fighting in her belly. Pregnancy test was negative, so she didn't get the section. Did, however, end up with a psych hold

I wonder why the doctor didn't order a CAT scan?

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Specializes in Critical Care.

Some investigation was done, and long story made short: The man was not diabetic. For some reason, he thought he needed insulin and purchased Humulin, which is available OTC, and syringes, and took some when he thought he needed it.

:eek:

I wasn't aware that Humulin was available OTC. Has this changed?

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Some investigation was done, and long story made short: The man was not diabetic. For some reason, he thought he needed insulin and purchased Humulin, which is available OTC, and syringes, and took some when he thought he needed it.

:eek:

I wasn't aware that Humulin was available OTC. Has this changed?

It always has been, at least in the United States. I do understand that insulin is a prescription item in Canada.

The newer, designer insulins like Humalog, Novolog, and Levemir are RX only, but yes, Humulin has always been OTC and the old insulins like Velosulin and Iletin were always OTC as well. The reason for this was so people could get them whenever they needed them.

You do need a prescription to get it covered by insurance. OTC syringe availability varies from state to state. In Iowa, they are all OTC, but like insulin, you need a prescription for insurance coverage. In Illinois, insulin and other small syringes require a prescription, but large bore needles do not and can be purchased off the shelf in farm supply stores, along with bulk antibiotics and vaccines for veterinary use.

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