What Freaks You Out?

colleen10 · Jan 31, 2002

"But Chewing Tobacco grosses me out SOOOOOOOooo badly!!"

--- Dennie

Dennie,

If tobacco grosses you out get a load of this.

At my last job, in a very large corporation, I worked with a guy who would chew while in the office. And the worst part was that he would use a clear AquaFina water bottle as his spitoon. He would spit at his desk and he'd even walk around the office carrying his clear plastic bottle of spit. He was a sales person and would spit while he was on the phone talking to customers.

Made all of us gals in the office want to hurl, especially when he would come up to us and start talking with all that brown stuff in between his teeth and the whole time casually "swirling" around his bottle o' saliva.

RNKitty · Feb 1, 2002

At my last job, the gross story is not about a patient, but about a doctor. This doctor was a hefty 350 lbs and would wheeze around the unit. Once at a delivery (L&D) I watched her pick up the sterile ring forceps and CLEAN HER EAR! Right in front of the patient and her husband while the patient was resting between pushes. I can't believe people go to doctors like that!

It can't top the maggots and such, but I just don't see sick people in L&D.:)

KRVRN, BSN, RN · Feb 1, 2002

I keep asking myself why I keep coming back to read these...

nograd · Feb 1, 2002

GREAT THREAD!

I work OB and the worst thing I have ever experienced was a pt who was post dates and when the MD ruptured the bag, there was a copious amount of meconium filled fluid but THE SMELL WAS AWFUL!!!!! There is no term to describe the stentch:o We immediately sectioned the pt, and one of the MDs said the fluid was filled with puss and meconium! That was the FUNKIEST looking/smelling fluid I have ever seen!!!! One of the RNs who has been doing L&D for 20 years had to leave the OR because of the smell, NEO was dry heaving, Anesthesia had an emesis basin near for his own personal use! Masks and all, it was something awful!!!! I must have done a 10 minute surgical scrub AFTER the section. Someone mentioned pseudomonas (sp?), we cultered the uterus, placenta and of course baby, went to NICU and was cultered as well. Baby was clear, no infection but had prophylactic antibiotics. Mom had spiked a temp, but after a course of IV antibiotics was discharged with baby 5 days later. Still don't know what was growing in that sac, but the smell will never, ever leave me!!!! The LDR reaked, and had to be sanitized. The smell was soo bad that you could smell it all over the unit. I worked the next night and swore I could still smell it and had housekeeping come up and resanitize the room. YUCK!!!!

The other thing that gets to me is the tub after we do a water birth! Especially when the midwife delivers the placenta!! What I can't understand is that the few water births I have done, the mom actually did NOT get into the shower immediately after delivery!!!! THis water is up to their necks and is filled with amniotic fluid, poop from pushing, blood and God knows what else!!! The smell is not horrible, but not pleasent either, and I don't leave the room dry heaving...it just GROSSES ME OUT! I would want to sanitize my whole body the autoclave after bathing in something like that! I guess I am not the "natural delivery" type...delivering in a nice clean bed is fine by me!

mjamesRN · Feb 1, 2002

You gotta really feel dirty to want to jump in the autoclave....LMAO!!!

ds123 · Feb 1, 2002

VOMIT!!!!!! I can't stand vomit!!!!!!! I am in the pan next to them!!!!!! All my years on Oncology and I still can't stand vomit!!!!! The 20 something young lady who was brought in by EMS for running down the street on New Years eve in her Mickey Mouse underwear who had slammed 2 bottles of "Tickle me pink" Boone's Farm and promptly threw up on my NEW shoes. Ortho injuries are right up there. The ankle hanging and swaying off the leg!! Dislocations!!! You name it.

Maureen007 · Feb 2, 2002

Definitely maggots in a wound! I've seen a lot of vomit,mucous,feces,ugly rashes,terrible smells in my day-but ga gangrene and maggots beat all.

cbb1008 · Feb 2, 2002

Hello all,

I am new to the list and have been surfing through the posts. This one has been an eye-opener:eek: to say the least. I have been an RN for nine years, but due to my dh's job and our children, I have limited experience. Wow, the experiences you guys have had....I managed to read three out of the four pages.

For those of you that are eeeked out by a vomiting pt..I am right there with you. Being in OB-GYN, where you find none other than hyper-emesis pts..YUCK. We had one lady that was true hyper emesis. Yours truly took her assignment becuase the other nurse was pg (early) with prego stomach. It was difficult to get the woman's vitals....she heaved the whole time....NASTY.

I look forward to getting to know you all better!!!!!

Cindy

micro, RN · Feb 2, 2002

don't like vomit more than next person, but usually it doesn't bother me.......but what about.....

the patient with the true dry heaves.............like wish they could just vomit or something because you know they are miserable and by the ??# of dry heaving on their part, you gotta go do the real thing!!!!!

now gotta go cook that steak, hehehehehehe!!!!!

micro:p :p

mare-mare · Feb 3, 2002

At work we often discusse the grossest thing we have ever seen at work, well one nurse won hands down (even worse than the chicken feathers) She was taking care of a disoriented older man with many, many tubes from many, many places. Well he was NPO as you can imagine, but was very thirsty. He did alright for most of the day but while walking past his room someone noticed he has his back to the door and was kinda slumped over. Upon investigation, they found that he was sucking on his G-tube!! Of course you can imagine the freak-out form the staff, but all he said was "boy the water tastes weird here":eek:

Makes me sick just thining about it! Gotta say, I love this thread, I've e-mailed it to all my friends:D

Sundowner · Feb 4, 2002

I have no idea why I have spent the last hour of my time reading this thread......it is so gross!!! yet, I cant seem to stop reading or prevent myself from adding my two cents!!

Grossest thing I have ever seen....I worked in a dr. office, pt came in with a boil the size of a softball on his butt....we gowned up and lanced the sucker.....I nearly died and so did the doc......the crap shot all over the wall when the incistion was made.....and it was the foulest greenest thickest smellliest stuff I ever laid my eyes/nose on. I swear the process took an eternity, when we were done,, we went and sat in his office for a while and just starred at each other and shook our heads, He then said to me......(he was a funny guy)....thank god I am the boss, cause now I am gonna tell you to go and clean that shit off the wall.......we laughed,,,,and I silently cried. The room smelled for quite some time.

I also hate.......burning off moles and skin tags....the smell,,and putting them in little containers to be sent to the lab....yuck...

outbackannie · Feb 5, 2002

Wow! I can usually stomach most things, but sure hate bile and definitely ileostomy/colostomy care.

The smell of the burning bone when the drill is in use gets me!

But what really gives me the willies is patients with scabies! I

itch for days just thinking about it! :eek: