I was working a night shift on a tele floor as a new Nurse.
We had this one poor old lady who was confused and was restrained as usual for her safety. She was our designated resident nightmare geri from hell, so she was placed near the Nurse's station.
So we are chilling out at the Nurse's station, chatting and trying to get through another night...
Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I see our lady in question standing in the dimly lit doorway of her room!
I instantly leap out and run to her. As I approach her, she appears to be falling towards me, so I meet her in a bear hug...my arms around her waste, and her arms around my shoulders.
As I catch the lady, I notice a very strong smell of feces, and I feel something warm on my hands, arms and shoulders...
My fellow heroes come in behind me, and as the lights are turned on, my worst fears are instantly realized.
Yes, I caught the poor old lady with a good old bear hung football catch, but I was also covered in the lady's feces.
As I look at her, she has feces smeared all over her arms and hands... (and even her face!)
i had a pt in the icu i work in who was a major pia. he was admitted for sepsis with a new nephrostomy, he had aids, a platelet count of 4, and could not get a foley. he was incredibly combative. the night i had him he spit at me, threw feces at me and would not use a bedpan or urinal. threw pills at me when i tried to give him meds, and said awful stuff everytime you walked in the room. a couple of nights after i had him[i wasn't there, just heard about it] he somehow got out of his restraints and walked naked with feces and urine on him out into the hall and pulled out his central line and blood poured out[ remember his platelets were 4]. this was during visiting hours i was told. took the whole staff to get him back into bed, he was trying to punch everyone.
a couple of weeks later[he was on our unit awhile] he had a complete turnaround, said he was blacked out while he was acting like that and personally apologized to all staff involved. he was all "yes ma'm, no ma'am". even stuck himself on the bedpan himself."didn't want to bother anyone"
i had a pt in the icu i work in who was a major pia. he was admitted for sepsis with a new nephrostomy, he had aids, a platelet count of 4, and could not get a foley. he was incredibly combative. the night i had him he spit at me, threw feces at me and would not use a bedpan or urinal. threw pills at me when i tried to give him meds, and said awful stuff everytime you walked in the room. a couple of nights after i had him[i wasn't there, just heard about it] he somehow got out of his restraints and walked naked with feces and urine on him out into the hall and pulled out his central line and blood poured out[ remember his platelets were 4]. this was during visiting hours i was told. took the whole staff to get him back into bed, he was trying to punch everyone.
a couple of weeks later[he was on our unit awhile] he had a complete turnaround, said he was blacked out while he was acting like that and personally apologized to all staff involved. he was all "yes ma'm, no ma'am". even stuck himself on the bedpan himself."didn't want to bother anyone"
never forget that guy.
Oh----how sad. I seem to remember that advanced AIDS patients can suffer from organic dementia, just as cancer patients with brain mets can (or, of course, Alzheimer's patients.) He probably had absolutely no control over his behavior---interesting that he remembered it.
I was curious about this, so I googled "AIDS" & "psychosis" together and came up with this:
"Dementia is a known complication of HIV infection. It tends to occur late in the course of HIV infection, and is usually associated with high viral loads and low CD4 counts seen in people who are not taking HAART (Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy) or who are on a failing HAART regimen."
we thought it might be some aids related dementia, but this guy wasn't end stage. i think he had been diagnosed 6 weeks or so before all this.
but it was very strange because he seemed genuinely horrified and mystified by his behavior, and his family said he never acted like that. i believe them, because he was a model pt after his turnaround.
I was reading an article today about the possible new strain of AIDS. The pt. has developed full blown AIDS in less than 3 months. It just blows my mind. :uhoh21:
:) Thanks. Whoa, that sucks. I heard about patients getting diarrhea after getting antibiotics, but I've never heard of Cdiff before. Thanks for the info.
I was new CNA, I had this assignment from hell, 60 patients , all on a skilled floor in a NH. But thats beside the point,. (shudder). Anyway, I had this lady with dementia, she had MRSA, HEP C, recently had a stroke,tube fed WITH JEVITY W/ FIBER, TB,on a clinitron bed, on full isolation ,and the worst of all, in my book, was, SHE HAD C DIFF. I had to fully gown up, mask, the whole thing. I went in there, the room had to be at least 95 degrees w/ the heat, plus the clinitron bed throws off heat. Well, I opened the door and before I could see the diarrhea running over the bed, and up to her neck, THE SMELL HIT ME. Mind you, this is one of my first experiences with this 'caring for people" thing.... well, I go about my business, cleaning her, the best as I could, thinking I would get used to the smell I DIDNT EVEN ASK FOR HELP, BECAUSE THERE WAS NOBODY TO HELP ME. Well, I didn't get used to the smell. I VOMITED IN MY MASK. I was relieved, THE SMELL OF MY VOMIT WAS BETTER THAN THE SMELL OF THE BM. I CONTEMPLATED LEAVING THAT MASK ON , keeping my face in the pool of vomit that the mask contained, because I knew I would have to just change up again, thus smelling the BM again!!!!! I cant begin to describe that smell. Now, I know somebody has to care for these people. Do I realize I am not one of them? Absolutely. I quit that job the next day, applied to nursing school, went the the NICU, never even GLANCED BACK. GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU WHO CAN DEAL WITH THESE KIND OF THINGS, ALL KIDDING AND HUMOR ASIDE.
OOOHHH!!!! That was so disgusting. I wouldn't have quit, but I'd try to avoid going to the patient's room again. Well, that's good that you've went to nursing school. Good luck in all that you do. You've dealt with a sh@t tidal wave! I remember cleaning up a patient with diarrhea and he was in a contact precautions room. (He had the flu.) So I had to put on the gown, mask, and gloves and his room was 100 degrees. It was so hot and sweaty. :uhoh21:
Had a guy in the ER, mentally slow, with an infected stasis ulcer to the back of his calf x 1 month. Picture this, large round area of black escar surounded by a "canal" of non-existant and barely there flesh. The the decaying flesh had been gnawed away by non the less magotts which were still in residence in large numbers in his leg. The smell was so nasty!!!!! Stank up the whole ER! Then........it gets better. He decides he has to pee and can only do this standing up! Gets out of bed bleeding and dropping magotts everywhere! Then surgery decides to debride the nasty leg IN THE ROOM! EEWWWW!!! Discovered that lidocaine makes magotts "dance".
Only last year I was working in the colorectal ward af a large West Aussie hospital. I was allocated to a four bed room in one of which was a patient with a small bowel obstruction. As many nursing treatments had no effect in unblocking the poor unfortunate soul, it was decided to insert an naso gastric.
While a CN and myself were in the process inserting this NG, the patient having the back of his throat irritated promptly began vomiting liquid faecies.
Within a few moments the whole room smelt like the insides of this mans bowels. All those who were able, left the room. while my colleagues and I just tried to hold our breath. Unfortunately eventually I did have to breath and took in a mouthful of this foul odour and promptly dry reached three times.
Eventually we did get the NG into place and I then had to clean up this poor patient. Just removing a bowl of foul vomitus, I once again dry reached. Further more even though none of it was spild on me, I stank for the rest of the shift.
Oh goodness, I work in a geriatric psychiatric unit, and there are so many strories to tell... id have to narrow it down to these 2.
We had one very demented lady who used to hoard things in her clothing, and hair, and was constantly mumbling nonsense. Well, it was shower time and I noticed something coming from in between her legs. I got out some napkins,and a pencap. When I noticed there was more, I had to get my charge nurse. Now, keep in mind this is a very large older woman who was screaming and yelling the entire time. It took 3 of us to get the rest out ( 2 to hold her down, 1 to dig) We got a p-nut butter and jelly sandwich out of her lady parts.Who knows how long it had been there, but it didnt smell pretty.
I had a resident who had been suffering from diarhea. Well I was working with a lazy CNA who wouldn't answer the call light. I was assisting this man to the BSC and he didn't quite make it. Thats right runny stools all down my leg.
I work in CCU, and one night we got in this 27 y/o GI bleed. He was a heavy ETOH user who had esophageal varices. Anyway, the guy was NPO, vomiting bright red blood, and complaining heartily about how thirsty he was. The GI doc walked into his room only to find him drinking his own bloody vomit. Pretty disgusting IMO. Unfortunately, this guy is a frequent flyer. =(
OMG, but I guess when your thirty, you wll do anything.
What's C-diff? I just wanted to know.
OOOHHH!!!! That was so disgusting. I wouldn't have quit, but I'd try to avoid going to the patient's room again. Well, that's good that you've went to nursing school. Good luck in all that you do. You've dealt with a sh@t tidal wave! I remember cleaning up a patient with diarrhea and he was in a contact precautions room. (He had the flu.) So I had to put on the gown, mask, and gloves and his room was 100 degrees. It was so hot and sweaty. :uhoh21:
OMG!!!!! 
icyounurse, BSN, RN
385 Posts
i had a pt in the icu i work in who was a major pia. he was admitted for sepsis with a new nephrostomy, he had aids, a platelet count of 4, and could not get a foley. he was incredibly combative. the night i had him he spit at me, threw feces at me and would not use a bedpan or urinal. threw pills at me when i tried to give him meds, and said awful stuff everytime you walked in the room. a couple of nights after i had him[i wasn't there, just heard about it] he somehow got out of his restraints and walked naked with feces and urine on him out into the hall and pulled out his central line and blood poured out[ remember his platelets were 4]. this was during visiting hours i was told. took the whole staff to get him back into bed, he was trying to punch everyone.
a couple of weeks later[he was on our unit awhile] he had a complete turnaround, said he was blacked out while he was acting like that and personally apologized to all staff involved. he was all "yes ma'm, no ma'am". even stuck himself on the bedpan himself."didn't want to bother anyone"
never forget that guy.