What have other nurses done that have freaked you out?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

What have other peers done intentional/unintentional to freak you out? Good or bad. Happy or sad.

On my FIRST day as an LVN, (LTC) a res was screaming in her room as I was walking out to leave. I went in to see what was going on. She was having an anxiety attack and severe pain (post stroke). I pulled the call light, and no one came. Uggg.

So I peeked out the door and saw my CNA walking down the hall, and told him to come sit with res. I went down to get her a Xanax and a pain pill, well relief nurse was in the restroom, and relief CNA (with call light still going off) was sitting behind nurses station reading a newspaper. I told CNA to tell the nurse to get a Xanax and pain pill for res. She said OK. I go to relieve my CNA. Said goodbye to him, and stayed with res. after 10 minutes, CNA COMES INTO ROOM WITH XANAX AND MORPHINE PILL. She is soooooo shocked to see me still there, she hands me the pills and RUNS to the relief nurse. I could NOT BELIEVE WHAT I JUST SAW!!!!

(I did immediately call DON and tell what happened. Luckily, my CNA was still checking on another res, and saw the whole thing.--------they got a slap on the wrist! that was it!!!):madface: :madface: :madface: :madface:

Specializes in ortho/neuro/general surgery.
I once worked with a nurse who read this doctor's order:

Replace urine output "cc for cc" .

In other words, for every 100 cc's of urine, the nurse was to adjust the IV fluid rate accordingly....

She withdrew the URINE FROM THE FOLEY BAG, AND INFUSED IT DIRECTLY INTO THE PATIENT'S CENTRAL LINE CATHETER....CC FOR CC.....

I have to go get another cup of tea now....ugh.

What was the pt's outcome after that? :uhoh21:

I once called the telemetry tech to check on a pt's rhythm who was being monitored on the surgical floor and he nonchalantly said "asystole"... my response was "ok...WHAT????" :uhoh3: then he started laughing and said what the rhythm really was, which was quite benign I think.

What is the point of this post?

Much less this one, derivative of the first?

She said,"I have had a glass eye for 25 years, And not one person has noticed before you!" She was right, she had had 5 nurses in acute neuro before me, they had all charted PEARLA in her neuro checks. I also read all the progress notes, the neurosurgeon hadn't caught it, either!:uhoh21:

Had a pt whose lungs had been repeatedly charted CLR, only prob was she had no lung sounds on one side (no lung) and her remaining lung was super junky.

Specializes in pure and simple psych.

Had seven, count 'em, seven hours of q15 min notes "Sleeping quietly" on a female who had come in c chest pain, only to find rigor had set in by shift change.

Quietly, very quietly......:smackingf

1 Votes
Had seven, count 'em, seven hours of q15 min notes "Sleeping quietly" on a female who had come in c chest pain, only to find rigor had set in by shift change.

Quietly, very quietly......:smackingf

Smells like a last-minute pencil-whipping. Didn't look in all night, didn't know when it happened, and--clever--hoped to be tagged brain dead rather than negligent. Would be interesting to know if q15 notes were the glaring exception for that nurse.

Specializes in Cardiac Stepdown and CVSICU.
much less this one, derivative of the first?

maybe i am confused, but i thought the point of the entire thread was to show some of the things that can be done incorrectly so that new nurses and students like myself can read it and learn not to do those things. i think as in any profession, there are great nurses, and poor nurses; and we need to know which ones not to follow. jmho

I agree with Luvelyone. No one here complaining about small mistakes or things that the nurse just didn't have time to get to or forgot but didn't compromise patient safety. EVERYONE makes mistakes. But this thread is about BAD nursing care. It's reasonable to discuss it.

But this thread is about BAD nursing care. It's reasonable to discuss it.

I don't know if it's reasonable, but it's fun! Everywhere we go, there are self-appointed "thread police," scolding for grammar, whether a thing is "on topic" (whereas the joy of any conversation lies in its fluidity), and otherwise trying to usurp moderation. They themselves could use some policing. We all get enough of that kind of action at school or work. I'm here 'cause it's fun, not always humor, sometimes it gives me food for deep thought, sometimes an opportunity to look at current issues, sometimes I just learn important stuff outright--but always for me, allnurses is about the encouragement of communication of all kinds, not the stifling of it.

Specializes in Addictions, Corrections, QA/Education.

This may not big a huge to some nurses... BUT for me it is.

Just yesterday I was at work (Im a correctional nurse and work in the infirmary) and the other nurse I was working with was administering a tube feeding. This guy has a SLOW digestive system. He always has a residual of >60 and we have orders to administer tube feeding regardless of the residual (I know, another issue. It goes against what I learned in school) She dumped his residual OUT AND POURED IT IN THE SINK... there goes valuable electrolytes.:o... And then she administered meds. Some meds clogged up the bottom of the piston syringe and instead of pouring water in the syringe and trying to gently unclog, she dumps the feeding out and injects a full syringe of air. Ok, not good. But she did it again. :nono:

I said... trying to be tactful "I dont believe I was taught to 1.) pour stomach contents out, that the patient needed them and 2.) inject that much air into the abdomen."

She said "I know, It will be ok... he will have a little gas.":uhoh3: Poor guy!

Specializes in Geriatrics.
What has other peers done intentional/unintentional to freak you out? Good or bad. Happy or sad.

I'm a Pool Nurse, I came on shift and got report from the 11-7 Nurse, she said "Mrs. Doe rested comfortably all night". I entered Mrs. Doe's room and found she had passed away at least 5 hrs before. Riger had already set in! When I went back to her (she was getting caught up on charting) and told her Mrs. Doe was dead, she said it must have just happened and I had to deal with the paper work. Imagine the time I had trying to explain to the family!:angryfire:o

Specializes in pure and simple psych.
Smells like a last-minute pencil-whipping. Didn't look in all night, didn't know when it happened, and--clever--hoped to be tagged brain dead rather than negligent. Would be interesting to know if q15 notes were the glaring exception for that nurse.

Nope. It was an acute phych intake unit and everybody was on q15s. Made it all the worse. Made me wonder how many others were only on paper.

It greatly helps to place one's self in the shoes of the CNA, especially a LTC CNA. I work at a nursing home, and each one of my CNAs is assigned 12 to 15 patients each. They simply do not have the time to sit with one patient for an extended period of time when there are other call lights that need to be answered in an expedient manner.

But there is time for them to sit at the desk and read a newspaper while ignoring call lights.

+ Add a Comment