The most embarrasing thing you've done at work!

[ClaireMacl]

Ok, here's my story.

A couple of months ago, we changed from zip uniforms to poppers. So, last night I was with an intubated patient in CT and walked around the table, catching my uniform and giving everyone in the room a nice view of my bra :roll I'm still blushing thinking about it!

So what's the most embarrasing thing you've done?

[knockandhello]

This happened years ago when training at a small country hospital.Just new there and so was the other student nurse withme when we saw this old gentleman wandering, we thought aimlessly, around the front of the hospital.Not wanting another patient to wander off into the canefields as had happened recently, we took him firmly by his arms and insisted he return to the medical floor.The poor man tried to tell us he had just been there and was leaving and that he was Dr so and so.Demented we thought and said "of course you are.Just come back with us".So he did insisting he was dr so and so.Sat him in an easy chair and went off to find a staff member to inform them how we had rescued one of their wandering patients when we saw a senior RN go up to him and say "What are you doing DR?"By this time he was bellowing and we ran off never to admit to anyone what we had done

[Misty1]

This happened years ago when training at a small country hospital.Just new there and so was the other student nurse withme when we saw this old gentleman wandering, we thought aimlessly, around the front of the hospital.Not wanting another patient to wander off into the canefields as had happened recently, we took him firmly by his arms and insisted he return to the medical floor.The poor man tried to tell us he had just been there and was leaving and that he was Dr so and so.Demented we thought and said "of course you are.Just come back with us".So he did insisting he was dr so and so.Sat him in an easy chair and went off to find a staff member to inform them how we had rescued one of their wandering patients when we saw a senior RN go up to him and say "What are you doing DR?"By this time he was bellowing and we ran off never to admit to anyone what we had done

:) This is the best so far. Is this the first time you've told that story.

[knockandhello]

yes it is the first.Not something you like to admit to.

[NurseRoRo]

I got floated to a sister facility to work in the OR. I was already nervous and anxious (had never been there, never worked with the surgeon, etc). I went to PreOp and interviewed the patient, who was having breast augmentation.

Absent mindedly, I asked her which side we were going to be working on. She stared at me and said, "I thought we were doing both??" Dumbfounded and embarrassed, I said, "Yeah, that's a good idea."

Oops.

[MamaTheNurse, BSN, RN]

This is terrible! A few weeks ago I was assessing a confused pt and asked him what year it was. He responded that is was 1996. I looked at him and said "I'm sorry, it's 2004." pause, pause, pause. "Um, 2006...".

My goodness.

I had a patient tell me the correct date and I tried to correct him (it was after I had a big stretch off and lost track of the days.......) - oops!!

[troutfishinEMT]

My first term as a student, I had a 90 yo female pt with very limited mobility who needed help getting from the bed to the chair by the bedside. I helped facilitate this move by grabbing her gently but firmly above the hips, helping her to stand, and rotating her 90 degrees, to back into the chair... While doing this, I had to stand quite close to her, and I said "easy darling, just like we're slow dancing."

And, I guess I shouldn't have said that (or maybe it wouldn't have mattered) - but she started kissing me on the neck, in a distinctly un-grandmotherly like way. I'm face-to-face with this little old lady that looked like Happy Gilmore's grandmother, except with major dementia, and she's trying to make out with me!

I didn't really say anything to her - just tried to stay out of the reach of her lips, and eventually got her in the chair.

The most embarassing part of the story is - I walk out of her room, and four or five other students are in the hall, along with my instructor (all females), and they say pretty much in unison "What in THE HELL just happened to you? WHY do you have that appalled look on your face?"

And, of course, when I told them, they thought it was freaking hilarious. They STILL ask me how "my girlfriend" is doing.

God, I felt violated. Funny now, though.

[vamedic4, EMT-P]

I was giving a tour of our unit..showing someone the soiled utility room. It "used" to contain a toilet in one corner of the room but now only the flush handle and a little of the plumbing remained. So what does yours truly do?? I push the flush handle...truly not thinking that anything would happen. Boy, was I wrong...for the next 15 minutes...hundreds...probably thousands...of gallons of water were spewing forth from the handle...I was a little embarassed...you would have died...I had blankets all over the floor trying to soak up the water... trying to figure out how to get the water to stop...it leaked downstairs into another unit...luckily it was just offices..not a patient care area.:doh:

vamedic4

[sarahjos]

I was doing an agency shift in a high care nursing home. Whilst leaning over patient to turn her, she had dementia, she looked straight at my chest and said, "you have nice bazookas". I couldn't move, and had to wait until we had finished turning her before I could leave that room. I have never forgotten it, and it really makes me laugh when I think of an 88 year old women telling me I have nice bazookas!

[HU_nurse]

Sqeezed the Buretrol so hard that it busted wide open and sprayed all over my patient (who just happened to be a little 4 year old girl and was soundly sleeping)...

Try explaining to a sleeping parent why her child is suddenly screaming at the top of her lungs and soaked in Normal Saline!!!!!

[JeanettePNP, MSN, RN, NP]

I had been a LTC nurse only a year or two. Was sitting at the desk, when an elderly man walked by grasping onto the desk countertop to steady himself after lunch. Noticed his hands and around his mouth was a horribly cyanotic/dusky color - I mean like death!. Jumped up and grabbed a w/c, helped him to bed, took vitals(all ok), lung assessment (sounds fine), normal LOC, etc. He kept denying he was SOB - but still so dang blue, thought sure he would die within an hour. His Dr. was one of those who could be a jerk, but always seemed to like and trust me. Called Dr - explained my assessment. Dr. keeps saying "He LOOKS sick, but you can't find anything else wrong". Assured him that was best I could figure. Dr. orders labs for next am and keep watching - call back ASAP if he gets worse. Kept checking for several hours - even his legs were that nastry death color. At shift change, I'm reporting this at bedside with oncoming nurse. She is also appalled as to how close to death he looks despite good vitals, air exchange, etc. Was showing other nurse his legs and demonstrating pedal pulse so strong could even feel it thru his socks. She decides to take his socks off and low an behold his feet are a nice pretty pink color - even tho upper legs are blue. After the two of us debate awhile what could be up with this, patient finally pipes up and says "do you reckon I could be blue because of these new blue jeans I've got on today". (Fabric had rubbed off to his hands and he spread that all around his mouth at lunck I'm sure). Sure enough when we got him back out of bed, even the sheets were dusky blue/gray color. Called Dr. back to cancel labs and got laughed at - thank god he was in a good mood.

Oh my that happened to me once when I was around 10 years old. I realized while in school that my hands were blue - I panicked and called home thinking I had some dread disease. My mother was quite worried until she realized that I was wearing a new jean skirt that day....

[gdean1]

I had one of the greatest older guys one night with the most wonderful sense of humor. Working with an agency aid, he turned on the call light and she went in to see what he needed, she can't back out with a puzzled look on her face and said he told her to tell me he was full of s**t. She had no idea he was asking for a bedpan. I took one in, placed it with her help and she screamed. I thought he had gotten pinched but when he calmed down, he said it was cold. We laughed and i told him I had it in the warmer for him for 10 minutes and he said go back and put it in the warmer for 10 more.

In between barbs, he revealed that he had taken care of his wife of 72 years for the last 6 years before losing her. This gentleman was 96!!

[KYRNBSN419]

I had worked in the ER as a CNA for several years, and then became an ER nurse. I had just helped the ER doc put on a total leg temporary cast (from ankle to hip), and was ready to d/c the pt home. I brought her crutches out, demonstrated the proper technique, the pt stated she understood, so I offered her a WC out to the car to go home. She stated she wanted to try the crutches, since she would be on them for awhile. I was like, sure, fine. So anyway, she gets up and stands w/ the crutches, everything is great, takes a few steps....then I see her start to sway and I'm like "Oh S**T, she's gonna fall" and all I could think about was her cast, and how long it had taken the doc and me to put it on, and how p*ssed he'd be if she fell and messed up her already messed up leg even more. So, I threw myself behind her, and as we both hit the floor, I was trying to hold her leg straight and keep it from not hitting the floor. As we hit the floor, I realized this probably had not been a smart move, as this woman was 6'1" and approx. 200 lbs, and I am 5'6", approx. 130ish....yeah, it hurt, and my bum was nice and black and blue for weeks. The pt. was like, OMG, are you okay???? and all my coworkers come to help her up off me, and then help me up - it was a nice show for all who saw it! But by God, that cast was in perfect shape!!!!