What is the grossest thing that's happened to you???

CelticGoddess, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2017

Had a long termer (who was dx with narcissistic personality disorder) who would get mad when we wouldn't give her her pain meds (BP too low). She would take off her colostomy bag and throw it at us. It hit the wall, not us, thankfully. We were so happy to get rid of her.

cyc0sys · Jun 10, 2017

First time I did a tube feeding, I pulled back the residual and the plunger came out of the syringe. The patient coughed before I could get it back in and showered himself and me with partially digested sour smelling stomach content.

Ruas61, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2017

Found a little old lady dead in her bed with her body was frozen with her sitting up with arms bent as if she was running and the hands half clenched. Her eyes and mouth were opened. I think she had a stroke or seizure half awake. Strangest and scary thing to see as a young nurse.

Also had a guy exsanguinate orally wile hanging on to the medicine cart- he didn't make it.

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Jun 10, 2017

I once had an elderly and very confused lady who vomited into her meal tray...and then she began to eat again. I almost yakked myself!

JoannieO · Jun 10, 2017

This is certainly a winner! What a disgusting, horrible Daddy-Boy.

JoannieO · Jun 10, 2017

This is certainly a winner! What a disgusting, horrible Daddy-Boy.

JoannieO · Jun 10, 2017

Back in about 1983, working nights on the IV team, around 3 am I was setting up a bag of blood to transfuse, and suddenly the blood bag broke! Blood went everywhere! This was prior to such PPEs that exist today and long before we had HIV patients on the East Coast yet. I excused myself from the patient, took a shower in the OB/GYN ward, and switched to their baggie scrub dresses (I was thin at the time)! That night I wasn't supposed to work the entire hospital alone. I suppose it was so dramatic that I still remember the event,, even today !!

amzyRN · Jun 10, 2017

I needed help to get a patient back to bed. He was very unsteady and I was going to need a second person. My nice nurse coworker comes in to help me and as the patient stood up his ileostomy bag fell off and opened up. The stinkiest Cdiff poo got all over her scrubs and shoes. I surprisingly came out untouched but had to clean the patient up after he was in bed. He had poo all over his lymph wraps for his legs and he needed a new gown. My coworker and I were both laughing because not only was it poop, but cdiff poop and miraculously I did not get any poo on me when the ileostomy fell off.

I guess technically it didn't "happen to me" but nevertheless I had to smell it and clean this patient. It was so gross. I have cleaned up lots of poop but this was the worst.

chiandre · Jun 10, 2017

Amniotic fluid went all over my uniform. Luckily, it did not go into my face. I took three hours shower in the hospital....Yuck!!

ThePsychWhisperer, BSN, MSN, APRN, NP · Jun 10, 2017

Back in about 1983, working nights on the IV team, around 3 am I was setting up a bag of blood to transfuse, and suddenly the blood bag broke! Blood went everywhere! This was prior to such PPEs that exist today and long before we had HIV patients on the East Coast yet. I excused myself from the patient, took a shower in the OB/GYN ward, and switched to their baggie scrub dresses (I was thin at the time)! That night I wasn't supposed to work the entire hospital alone. I suppose it was so dramatic that I still remember the event,, even today !!

Been there! Accidentally spiked through a bag of blood I was hanging and it ended up everywhere: all over my shoes, uniform, floor, IV pump...errywhere.

Another time, I was helping a fellow nurse put a Foley catheter in a very large woman. She turned around to say something to me after cleaning the urethral and swiped me in the face with yeast/iodine soaked cotton ball. Handled it rather gracefully, but about vomited.

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2017

My "weakness" is phlegm. It can make me gag quicker than poop, vomit, and blood all combined.

I had a patient with a new trach. He kept covering his mouth when he coughed, and I kept after him to cover the trach. He was nice, he just kept forgetting.

I was tucking in the sheet at the end of the bed when he coughed, and covered his MOUTH. An enormous blob of phlegm shot across the bed and landed on the corner of my mouth.

I'm still not over it, and that was probably 15 years ago.

OlivetheRN, ADN, BSN, RN · Jun 11, 2017

Pt had came in with complaints of constipation and abd pain. Had taken Epsom salts at home the night before and that morning. Wadled over to in room toilet with my assistance and had explosive diarrhea all over toilet and surrounding floor. Splattered up wall and up to my thighs. I had poo squishing between my toes....