Got to thinking about this one today, and was reminded of it when I read another thread on here...what's teh dumbest thing you've ever heard in nursing, as an explanation for a malady?
For example, the one that sticks out for me is one that I heard as a new nurse, many moons ago. I was doing an assessment on a patient, and a family member of said patient had her sone with her, who was profoundly mentally and physically handicapped. Of course, I would have never presumed to ask the nature of his complaint, but she was only too happy to volunteer it.
"When he was born, the nurse in the room had long fingernails and she scratched his head. That's why he's like this. It's all her fault. We tried to sue her, but the judge threw out the case."
I was stunned, to say the least, and didn't challenge it as hogwash outright, but I did ask,
"Did she puncture his scalp with her nails?"
"No, she just scratched him on the head. It didn't show, but she did it."
You can bet money I was VERY thorough with that assessment. Heaven forbid the lady get staph or some other dread condition because my hair or eyelashes were too long.
Anyone else ever heard a completely absurd reasoning for someone's ailments?
I was born in 1969 and I don't recall getting the smallpox vaccine, although other friends of mine have the scar and are a few months younger than me. I wonder...did I get it? lol My husand was born in 1967 and he doesn't have the scar either.
Dating myself here...I was born in '65 and I think I was in the last year or two that smallpox vaccine was routinely given.
Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.
Dating myself here...I was born in '65 and I think I was in the last year or two that smallpox vaccine was routinely given.
I was born in 1949 and I do remember lining up at school for all innoculations. We all tried so hard not to scratch that awful, big dome of a scab; we were instructed that it HAD to fall off "on its own", tho I'm not sure WHY.
I was vaccinated for small pox in 1965. I scratched it off onto my leg one night while sleeping. I have a slight scar were it stayed that night. My mother had a knipchon fit about it and called the doctor several rather interesting names. It is really a weird vaccine.
Specializes in med-surg, psych, ER, school nurse-CRNP.
I'm gonna really date myself here, but I didn't get that vaccine. Never stopped my mother from haveing a conniption, though. She connipted on a daily basis, lol.
I'm gonna really date myself here, but I didn't get that vaccine. Never stopped my mother from haveing a conniption, though. She connipted on a daily basis, lol.
Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.
I was vaccinated for small pox in 1965. I scratched it off onto my leg one night while sleeping. I have a slight scar were it stayed that night. My mother had a knipchon fit about it and called the doctor several rather interesting names. It is really a weird vaccine.
Fuzzy
I was sitting here trying to figure out what kind of dressing/bandage a 'knipchon' is!! !!LOL!! Then I figured it was a phonetic spelling of "conniption". ( You know you are a nurse when you think everything is related to medical terminology!)
I was sitting here trying to figure out what kind of dressing/bandage a 'knipchon' is!! !!LOL!! Then I figured it was a phonetic spelling of "conniption". ( You know you are a nurse when you think everything is related to medical terminology!)
Ever look at people in the grocery store line, and assess their veins?
I read a wonderful book not too long ago called 'The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down.' It was about a culture clash between Hmong immigrants and Western medicine. The Hmong family had a a daughter that suffered from epilepsy and ends up almost completely brain dead. The Hmong family believed that their daughters ills were caused by spirits who took her soul and naturally that didn't go over well with doctors and social workers at the hospital. It also delves pretty deep into their culture and though you start out reading the book thinking "God how could anyone be this stupid." by the end you almost sympathize with them and understand why the believed what they did.
Here is a link to the book on Amazon in case anyone wants to find out more. I really recommend reading it! http://tinyurl.com/4x4nhkh
Ever look at people in the grocery store line, and assess their veins?
I assess people's veins everywhere!!! My husband has some great big blue bouncy ones that I'm always poking. If all my patients had those suckers I'd throw away my tourniquet!
When patients would ask if I could get IVs in easily, I'd size them up and tell them I could throw the IV from the door and it would slip in, their veins were so good....some took that well- others looked traumatized...they all survived :)
When patients would ask if I could get IVs in easily, I'd size them up and tell them I could throw the IV from the door and it would slip in, their veins were so good....some took that well- others looked traumatized...they all survived :)
Hey! That's my line...I used to say "hand me a javelin, I can get it in from here...I won a gold medal at he Olympics!"...
Many years ago I was diagnosed with an ovarian cyst that needed to be surgically removed. My mother-in-law was so upset with me for consenting to the surgery because "that doctor doesn't know what he is doing and is just getting rich off of people like you". She said her friend had a tumor, then it went away right before she was supposed to have surgery because she started eating spicy food. So, if only I would eat more spicy food, I wouldn't need surgery.
Then, when I was pregnant with my first baby, she repeatedly told me to start drinking wine every night to "build up my blood". That's what she did during her pregnancy, because she was anemic. Again, when I told her that my doctor told me no wine, she said that he didn't know what he was talking about.
After the baby was born, she said to start putting cookies in his bottle to absorb with the milk so he would start sleeping through the night.
Needless to say, this woman, bless her heart, was never allowed to babysit!
kbrn2002, ADN, RN
3,967 Posts
Dating myself here...I was born in '65 and I think I was in the last year or two that smallpox vaccine was routinely given.