What was the MOST ridiculous thing a patient came to the ER for?

And did you have to treat them?

I am just curious. Your stories always seem to either crack me up or shake my head in amazement.

Thanks for sharing ?

A patient came in by Ambulance for belly button lint

Specializes in Telemetry.
OREDPA said:
A patient came in by Ambulance for belly button lint

OK...things like this really make me wonder how the 911 calls for stuff like this go.

Dispatcher: 911, what is your emergency?

Caller: I need an ambulance. I have some fuzzy stuff coming out of my belly button!

Dispatcher: ... ???

OREDPA said:
A patient came in by Ambulance for belly button lint

Stop it...

Specializes in Pediatrics/Developmental Pediatrics/Research/psych.

Today a patient came in for a splinter

One am shift, our er door blasted open and a guy came and shouted 'I need help. There's something wrong with my sister'. being an ER nurse, I have seen quite a lot of 'stuff' already. I remained calmed and told him bring the patient inside. and they did, him and another guy carry this woman, one holding the hands, the other guy on her feet. woman seems unconscious. I told them lay the patient in the stretcher while getting oxygen cannula, a pulse oxy and bp app. when I approached the patient, I noticed tears running from her eyes. immediately I asked, did you broke up with your bf? or if you're married did you had a fight. she opened her eyes, told me ' its been 2 years since we broke up. but it still brings memories'

Specializes in ED, School Nurse.

I had a cute LOL come in c/o UTI symptoms. She was kind enough to bring her own urine samples in for us. In an old plastic butter tub. And in an old perfume bottle. She was just trying to HELP!!!

We asked a young male- maybe early 20s?- for a urine sample. Can't remember his complaint, but he gave us a specimen cup full of soapy water as his sample. We sent it to the lab for kicks and giggles.

Specializes in Emergency/Trauma/Critical Care Nursing.
ceres24 said:

One am shift, our er door blasted open and a guy came and shouted 'I need help. There's something wrong with my sister'. Being an ER nurse, I have seen quite a lot of 'stuff' already. I remained calmed and told him bring the patient inside. and they did, him and another guy carry this woman, one holding the hands, the other guy on her feet. woman seems unconscious. I told them lay the patient in the stretcher while getting oxygen cannula, a pulse oxy and bp app. when I approached the patient, I noticed tears running from her eyes. immediately I asked, did you broke up with your bf? Or if you're married did you had a fight. she opened her eyes, told me ' its been 2 years since we broke up. but it still brings memories'

I've been around the ER block a few times so I get what your saying, but if someone comes in yelling help, someone outside isn't acting right, I sure as heck wouldn't tell THEM to bring the pt in, nor would my initial assumption be that she had a bad breakup. Maybe that's just me though... I'm glad you were right in this situation, but if I was "carried in" by my family and that was the first thing I was asked, I'd be royally ticked off.

Sorry to hijack the thread, please continue with your regularly scheduled program... ?

I've had to be one of 'those patients' against my will a few times throughout my training.

Halfway through my training I'd started getting dizzy/passing out and eventually got diagnosed with POTs. In a manual handling session that lasted 4 hours, no drink breaks with poor ventilation, I got a bit dizzy. About 15minutes before the end, I asked if I could take 5minutes in the corridor, with some fresh air.

The instructor decided to call the Head of year. The Head of year decided to call my tutor. My tutor decided to call the head of the School of Nursing. All 3 showed up, and after half an hour of trying to explain that "this is normal, I just need fresh air, water and rest." they decided to take me downstairs to A&E. On a wheelchair. In my nursing uniform. Through all the other students that were waiting to use the room next.

I spent the next 7hrs repeatedly explaining my condition, and that I didn't want to be admitted. I had tests run, ECGs, fluids given. Only one person believed that it might have anything to do with the POTs. As it was, my flat mates who could have made sure I was safe on the bus had now left, so I had no way home.

Eventually I got told "There's no sign of it, but we think you have an ear infection. Here's a prescription for antibiotics and your discharge letter."

I checked with 3 nurses, a doctor and the nurse in charge that there was nothing more they needed to do, and she assured me it was all taken care of, and that I should leave ASAP.

I took two steps before turning back and leaning over to grab some gauze, and a vomit bowl. There, in front of her, I took out the cannula they'd forgotten (I'd reminded them 6times at this point), dropped it in the vomit bowl and taped myself up with the tape on my lanyard. "I hope I didn't still need that." Then I went at sat in the hallway just outside for an hour before someone could pick me up.

Same thing happened again, after qualifying, though now my dizziness comes with chest pains occasionally. Night shift, last 2 hours. I've been feeling the chest pain for maybe 30minutes. Nurse in charge notices when a patient wakes up, looks at me and says "You should go home!" Full monitoring goes on, she calls the night doctor, makes a nurse sit with me.

I told her if it continued after the shift I'd go to my GP, but she wasn't having it.

I find myself again, being wheeled down to A&E in my uniform, with two nurses escorting me. 12hrs later, fluid, bloods, urine, chest X-ray, 2hrly ECGs (all done by nurses I graduated with) and "You're probably getting an ear infection."

Here's a good one. Few months back, someone comes in by EMS for dizzyness. When did it start? "Someone rang my doorbell at 10 p.m. and when I opened the door there was a brownie on the ground. I ate it and I've felt really weird since." Who the heck eats food randomly found food at their doorstep.

Imagine their luck, it was the special brownie.

Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.
gospa said:
Here's a good one. Few months back, someone comes in by EMS for dizzyness. When did it start? "Someone rang my doorbell at 10 p.m. and when I opened the door there was a brownie on the ground. I ate it and I've felt really weird since." Who the heck eats food randomly found food at their doorstep.

Imagine their luck, it was the special brownie.

This sounds like a cover story to be able to explain why they'd be positive for THC in a drug screen. We get people coming to the ER who want specific meds to cover themselves in case of the random drug screens of which the Army is so fond.

gospa said:
Here's a good one. Few months back, someone comes in by EMS for dizzyness. When did it start? "Someone rang my doorbell at 10 p.m. and when I opened the door there was a brownie on the ground. I ate it and I've felt really weird since." Who the heck eats food randomly found food at their doorstep.

Imagine their luck, it was the special brownie.

This is amazing haha. We got a lady in her 70s whose family made her some bacon in marijuana oil (who knew that was a thing) and she arrived feeling dizzy and hallucinating. Hahaha.

Specializes in ER.
Momma1RN said:
This is amazing haha. We got a lady in her 70s whose family made her some bacon in marijuana oil (who knew that was a thing) and she arrived feeling dizzy and hallucinating. Hahaha.

Reminds me of another of my favorite senior patients.

84 year old guy from an assisted living, likes to smoke weed and on one occasion it wasn't right, he thought it was cocaine instead and that his family had brought it by mistake.

His solution? Visit his neighbor and shoot up heroin to take away the nausea he had from the coke.

I think I need to move to another city, this one is just too weird for me : )

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