The things you never forget...

cherrybreeze, ADN, RN · Nov 15, 2008

These stories are incredible....and absolutely the reason we go through what can be *drudgery* day to day. Because, every once in a while, you KNOW you've made such an incredible impact on someone else's life.

As for the eyeball....egads. I don't know WHAT I would have done!

I have so many I can't separate them in my head right now. Just recently though, we had a patient come back to visit and say hi. He recognized me right away, for me it took a few minutes (he looked so much better than when I had seen him last!) before it ALL came back! He was a young guy, early 30's at best, who had had a traumatic pneumonectomy after an MVA years before. Was actually in a vent-assisted facility for a long time right after his accident. He came to us well after this, but with a large abcess in his chest cavity. He had to have an I&D, so he was left with a hole on the entire side of his chest...when we packed that wound, you could see his heartbeat. He was with us a LONG time, multiple surgeries, had an antibiotic flush going through it at one point; they weren't sure they were going to be able to heal him of it. Eventually we did though, and he and his mom came to visit...if it hadn't been for the way his shoulder dipped on that side, you'd NEVER have known by looking at him he'd gone through so much! Warmed my heart to see how well he was doing.

A few nights ago, I had a patient who'd had a complicated GYN surgery (a particular GYN oncologist does a lot of these here, TAH BSO's with bowel resections, sometimes ostomies, tumor debulkings, all at once). She'd had a very lethargic evening (I eventually stopped her continuous PCA to try to help this, she was 5-6 days post op). Very attentive daughter, but also kind of the type that you fear doing ANY thing they don't think is correct, KWIM? Anyway, I took extra care in repositioning her, she had a hard time moving. Towards the end of the night, she took my hand and said, "you are the best one at moving me, I haven't been this comfortable yet." And she smiled. She said it every time after that, "You are so good at this." It meant a lot to me that whatever it was that I did, made a difference (I didn't think it was anything "different," it's how I always reposition patients, but to her, it must have been different than what she'd experienced so far). That was also enough for her daughter to relax around me, too. Just that little bit made my night, and made my efforts feel REALLY worth it. I told her when I left that I was going to be off for a few days, but that it had absolutley been my pleasure to take care of her. She looked more peaceful than she had the whole 12 hours I was there. :heartbeat

truern · Nov 15, 2008

Sweet LOL from out of state with her hubby presented to ED with difficulty breathing....aspirated her chest and sent her to ICU over the weekend. When I got her she had a homemade dressing over her breast. She'd refused anyone who wanted to check under that dressing. We talked and we talked...boy, did we talk. Anyway, she finally "confessed" to me that she knew she had breast ca and that she hid it because she didn't want treatment. We discussed how she used tissue to cover the wound because she could flush the evidence. I finally convinced her to allow me to change the "dressing". Oh, my goodness

Long story short: I was her nurse for 3 days...she ended up on a morphine gtt for pain; family got involved and insisted on a biopsy and treatment; I advocated for her and she was allowed to die in peace. I stayed hours after my shift....holding her hand, quietly talking to her...and her family.

I'll never forget her.

ShayRN · Nov 15, 2008

There are quite a few in my career:

The inmate who faked a seizure. Looked at me while he was having his "seizure" then pushed himself away from the wall before he hit his head. Then there was the inmate who was really having one, the first grand mal I ever witnessed. Scared the bejeezes out of me.

The man who called me down from medical 4 times because he couldn't breath, only to find out he was in for arson.

The homeless man who took off his boots and there were at least 100 cockroaches that ran out of them.

The drug addict who put his money up his rectum, then wanted ME to get it out so he could post bond. "Uh, H*$% NO!"

From my time spent on a cardiac unit:

The lol who the doctor was SURE read up on the symptoms of MI's, until he did her cath and found 4 blockages.

The 92 year old man coded and I heard and felt his bones crack under my hands like chicken bones.

The woman who was in a car accident when she was 19 and her boyfriend died. She was unresponsive and a ward of the state. Her family stopped seeing her 35 years prior.

The 50'ish year old man I coded and saved, who then sued the hospital.

The 50 year old diabetic bilateral BKA who had been in an ECF for years and the idiot doc did open heart. Then the brain trust, I mean the doctor wrote orders to ambulate q1 hr.

Taking care of my beloved father in law after his open heart surgery.

Doing a lot of teaching with a man for his upcoming CABG, he had it done, did very well. Then came back to thank me months later, said it was easier getting through it since he knew what was coming next.

My Hospice memories:

The man who it took 2 nurses and a very large son to transport from bed to chair. He was dead weight. When I went to check on him 45 minutes later he was gone. Not dead, gone. Got up and walked out the door with his foley still intact. Found him out back by the dumpster about 50 feet from his room. Said his wife (who was deceased) had told him to follow her.

The 2 year post MVA who was completely contracted. Sat up and reached for the heavens for over a half hour the day he died.

The woman who was unresponsive in a coma for 3 days. When I put her in the whirlpool, she sat up so I could wash her hair and looked her sister straight in the eye and said "I love you."

The man who held on for 3 days until I gave him a taste of beer on a toothette, he died less than 30 minutes later.

The woman who saw her deceased toddler playing in the corner.

The woman who didn't want her family to know she was having "accidents" so she stole her grandson's diapers when she baby-sat and padded her underwear with them. By the time she came to me I could put both fists in her rectal cavity as the cancer had eaten away that much flesh.

The LOL who had breast cancer, but refused treatment. I swear, it looked like a brain was growing out of her chest and the smell......

OMG! I could go on and on and on.....

ShayRN · Nov 16, 2008

This is such a cool thread, I don't want it to get lost.

Morettia2, BSN, RN · Nov 22, 2008

There are quite a few in my career:
The inmate who faked a seizure. Looked at me while he was having his "seizure" then pushed himself away from the wall before he hit his head. Then there was the inmate who was really having one, the first grand mal I ever witnessed. Scared the bejeezes out of me.
The man who called me down from medical 4 times because he couldn't breath, only to find out he was in for arson.
The homeless man who took off his boots and there were at least 100 cockroaches that ran out of them.
The drug addict who put his money up his rectum, then wanted ME to get it out so he could post bond. "Uh, H*$% NO!"
From my time spent on a cardiac unit:
The lol who the doctor was SURE read up on the symptoms of MI's, until he did her cath and found 4 blockages.
The 92 year old man coded and I heard and felt his bones crack under my hands like chicken bones.
The woman who was in a car accident when she was 19 and her boyfriend died. She was unresponsive and a ward of the state. Her family stopped seeing her 35 years prior.
The 50'ish year old man I coded and saved, who then sued the hospital.
The 50 year old diabetic bilateral BKA who had been in an ECF for years and the idiot doc did open heart. Then the brain trust, I mean the doctor wrote orders to ambulate q1 hr.
Taking care of my beloved father in law after his open heart surgery.
Doing a lot of teaching with a man for his upcoming CABG, he had it done, did very well. Then came back to thank me months later, said it was easier getting through it since he knew what was coming next.
My Hospice memories:
The man who it took 2 nurses and a very large son to transport from bed to chair. He was dead weight. When I went to check on him 45 minutes later he was gone. Not dead, gone. Got up and walked out the door with his foley still intact. Found him out back by the dumpster about 50 feet from his room. Said his wife (who was deceased) had told him to follow her.
The 2 year post MVA who was completely contracted. Sat up and reached for the heavens for over a half hour the day he died.
The woman who was unresponsive in a coma for 3 days. When I put her in the whirlpool, she sat up so I could wash her hair and looked her sister straight in the eye and said "I love you."
The man who held on for 3 days until I gave him a taste of beer on a toothette, he died less than 30 minutes later.
The woman who saw her deceased toddler playing in the corner.
The woman who didn't want her family to know she was having "accidents" so she stole her grandson's diapers when she baby-sat and padded her underwear with them. By the time she came to me I could put both fists in her rectal cavity as the cancer had eaten away that much flesh.
The LOL who had breast cancer, but refused treatment. I swear, it looked like a brain was growing out of her chest and the smell......
OMG! I could go on and on and on.....

WOW wouldn't that be great to write a book about all the "THINGS" we have seen as nurses...I think I would have thrown up If I saw a pt. take off his shore and a ton of cockroaches crawled out. If you read my post I lost it over one cockroach...WOW:bowingpur:bowingpur:bowingpur

Nurseboy1 · Nov 24, 2008

I don't know that I'll ever forget seeing the tattoo on the forearm of a nazi concentration camp survivor. Gave me new appreciation for that person's struggles in life.