What is your worst visitor story?

Ruby Vee, BSN · Jan 9, 2018

Were these all at hospitals that you were actually working at when they happened? Seriously Ruby, you have had the wildest career. Ever thread like this that you comment on just convinces me more.
...and how many years ago was it that the prostitute was charging only $2? I hope not recently because she isn't much of a businesswoman if shes undercharging by that much!

YUP. All hospitals that I was working at when I was working there.

The prostitute charging $2 was nearly 40 years ago, and was considered a bargain at the time. But my memory is somewhat fuzzy -- she might well have been charging $5. I'll never forget hearing what sounded like a patient in agony, whipping aside the bedside curtain and seeing the action!

Julius Seizure · Jan 10, 2018

YUP. All hospitals that I was working at when I was working there.
The prostitute charging $2 was nearly 40 years ago, and was considered a bargain at the time. But my memory is somewhat fuzzy -- she might well have been charging $5. I'll never forget hearing what sounded like a patient in agony, whipping aside the bedside curtain and seeing the action!

Oh, well FIVE dollars. In that case!

sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN · Jan 10, 2018

My worst visitors, was me,

Working CCU, GWU., wash DC, flew home when my father had a MI, in " SETexas small hospital"

The charge nurse was a year behind me in our diploma nursing program.... Was trying to sleep on visitor sofa, outside their ICU, In the middle of night chg.nurse, my friend and one year behind my graduation, brings me a rhythm strip, awaken me, stating she did not understand a rhythm strip she brought me.... "I don't understand it" she stated........ I had to tell her it was complete heart block, in a junction all brady rhythm..... I told her to call DR. And report same.... That my father needed at least a temporary pacemaker......

Anyways I had him safely transported to Tex. Heart Ctr..... He ended up with triple vascular cabs, and a pace maker....... I appreciate her seeking evaluation from me, but it was scairy award ward......

Of course after his CAB..... While Family was allowed in, my dad, had a run of V tach, and there was a bplus of lidocaine on bedside table, I'm sorry yes I pushed it, converted to sinus...then I told his nurse......... "Yes , I know"......

Ruby Vee, BSN · Jan 10, 2018

My worst visitors, was me,
Working CCU, GWU., wash DC, flew home when my father had a MI, in " SETexas small hospital"
The charge nurse was a year behind me in our diploma nursing program.... Was trying to sleep on visitor sofa, outside their ICU, In the middle of night chg.nurse, my friend and one year behind my graduation, brings me a rhythm strip, awaken me, stating she did not understand a rhythm strip she brought me.... "I don't understand it" she stated........ I had to tell her it was complete heart block, in a junction all brady rhythm..... I told her to call DR. And report same.... That my father needed at least a temporary pacemaker......
Anyways I had him safely transported to Tex. Heart Ctr..... He ended up with triple vascular cabs, and a pace maker....... I appreciate her seeking evaluation from me, but it was scairy award ward......
Of course after his CAB..... While Family was allowed in, my dad, had a run of V tach, and there was a bplus of lidocaine on bedside table, I'm sorry yes I pushed it, converted to sinus...then I told his nurse......... "Yes , I know"......

I suctioned my father a few times, when everyone else was busy and no one was responding to the vent alarm. And there was that one time I rolled my eyes . . .

Dad on ventilator with vecuronium drip and prn Benzo pushes. Every time anyone walked into the room, his systolic would soar upwards 100 points. I suggested to the nurse that perhaps he needed more sedation.

"Oh, no," she said confidently. "If he needed sedation, he'd be over breathing the ventilator."

I couldn't believe my ears at first. When I realized she was serious, I rolled my eyes and said "Do you think that might be the vecuronium drip, uh, you know, PARALYZING him?"

She had to go check with the physician about that one.

Maybe the all time WORST visitors were my mother (Alzheimer's) and sister (Gucci nurse). Dad was in V-tach and everyone was milling around the room trying to decide what to do . . . my sister starts pitching a fit and demanding a more comfortable place for my mother to sleep. My sister (who is very high up in management at a famous hospital) thinks she knows all there is about nursing, but apparently failed to recognize a life threatening dysrhythmia. The charge nurse and attending both looked at her as if she were terminally stupid or stupendously crazy.

"I'll have your JOBS if you don't find my mother a more comfortable place to sleep RIGHT NOW!"

"Let's deal with this code first," the charge nurse said diplomatically. "And then we'll see if you can get our jobs." (The charge nurse was a new grad on that very unit when my sister worked there a quarter of a century earlier.)

And my mother -- she was only trying to be helpful. She'd wander into the break room and "help out" by making a pot of coffee for the nurses. Only she'd forget to put water in, or she'd forget the coffee, and one memorable time she forgot to put the pot on the burner, and the coffee flooded the burner and then started a small river on the floor. After that, the staff quite wisely suggested that we the family needed to supervise her at all times. I was trying, but it's hard to get any sleep at all when you're responsible for an Alzheimer's patient. I kept taking her off to the RV to sleep, and putting her to bed. As soon as I got into bed she'd be streaking in the parking lot or rummaging through the food lockers throwing cans on the settee where I was trying to sleep. So, during the daytime when we were visiting Dad, I'd nod off from time to time, and as soon as I did, she'd make a beeline for the nurse's break room. I finally got a cousin to watch her for a few hours every other day so I could take a nap, but I was nearly psychotic by the time he transferred out of ICU and I had to go back to work. I was hallucinating as I drove myself to the airport.

NewRN'16, ADN, RN · Jan 17, 2018

Family members sneaking up behind my cow*. Trying to illegally record me . Yah I've had my share.

Leader25, ASN, BSN, RN · Jan 19, 2018

A husband and wife had been on our unit as visitors,not very nice or pleasant but strange , frumpy dirty clothes,taking supplies,etc., the patients were discharged after two months and one morning a staff brought in a newspaper with that couple on the front page for human trafficking,she was the ring master,he had a big law practice,two million in cash at home.

Leader25, ASN, BSN, RN · Jan 19, 2018

too numerous to mention.

0.5GPA, ADN, CNA · Jan 19, 2018

I've got too many stories to tell. A visitor claiming to be a med student and the patient's cousin, injected drugs into the patient's CVL causing arrest. We could not get her back.

YOU WIN

K9lover, ASN, RN · Jan 20, 2018

I am so happy to be in corrections, among other reasons patient has no visitors with them! When in home hospice years ago I frequently had plentiful narcotic supplies go 'missing' before getting to the house. Some family members made stealing the patient meds 1st order of business after the patient died.