What's the most dangerous thing that's happened to you while working?

ascRN · Apr 13, 2011

Drunk in the DTs came in to ED, punched an ED nurse in the face, had to tazed by the police before they could get close enough to him to restrain him and sedate.
When he came to the floor, he became agitated, and I have more ativan. As we were undressing him, a HUGE pocket knife with a curved, partially serrated blade fell out of his pants. Thank goodness he didn't have the frame of mind to remember he had that with him, or it could have gotten very ugly in the ED and upon admission.
Another time I was going through a suicidal, homeless man's belongings. I had on gloves, and I was holding the trashbag open and reaching into it. By pure luck, I grabbed the barrel of a syringe with an uncapped needle. When I asked him what that was for, he told me that he and all his friends use it to inject whatever they can. Holy crap. From now on, if I'm going through belongings, I dump them on the floor so that I have a better visual. I totally could have stuck myself on a dirty needle used by half of the homeless guys under the bridge.
I've been punched, kicked, threatened, sent to the ED for films from a kick to the head that made me see stars, but those instances weren't as scary for me as the two I mention above.

Yeah, I don't care who you are. You come in with any psych/substance abuse complaint and the very first thing that's happening is you're stripping down to nothing but a hospital gown and your belongings are going in the locker while psych evaluates you.

gentlegiver, ASN, LPN, RN · Apr 13, 2011

Patient sent to my unit in a local hospital, he was a full alcoholic, Dr didn't believe in treating for DT's. Patient picked me up and threw me out of his room, as I was sliding down the wall opposite his door, I could see security running onto the unit, patient was tackled and 4 pointed. I ended up with about 6 months of PT, and luckily no continueing pain.

ascRN · Apr 13, 2011

Dr didn't believe in treating for DT's

Great a physician who isn't concerned about the safety of his patient or the other staff/patients. CiWA protocols are wonderful things.

OleMissRN · Apr 13, 2011

Interns and Residents...for anyone at a "teaching" hospital, this is more than understood.

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Apr 13, 2011

Interns and Residents...for anyone at a "teaching" hospital, this is more than understood.[/quote]
:hhmth::hhmth:Now that is funny!!!!!!
At one very active inner city ED many years ago....I was arm robbed with a sawed-off shotgun for narcotics.... Now that was scary!!!!!

Angie O'Plasty · Apr 13, 2011

Well, I haven't had anything all that bad (just the occasional demented patient taking a swing) but here's something bizarre and potentially dangerous that happened a couple of weeks ago when I was covering a shift at a LTC facility. I went into one resident's room to give her her pills, and she showed me her TV remote with only one of the batteries in it, and it was partway out, and it was HOT--so hot it was melting the plastic of the remote!! She said she had tried to get it out but it was too hot (fortunately she didn't appear to have burned her fingers), and handed it to me. I grabbed a big wad of TP from the bathroom and used that to pull out the battery without burning my fingers; the battery was making some weird fizzing sounds which made me drop it on the floor. Then I thought, this sounds like it's going to explode, so I threw a towel on top of it to contain it if that happened but then realized that was probably a fire hazard given how hot the battery was. I ended up throwing the battery out the window into the gravel that was around the bushes--just wanted it out of the building if it was going to explode or catch fire!

ObtundedRN, BSN, RN · Apr 13, 2011

Been shot at a few times... Of course that was while working EMS, not as a nurse. But still it was healthcare, lol.

**canoehead, BSN, RN** · Apr 13, 2011

Yeah, I don't care who you are. You come in with any psych/substance abuse complaint and the very first thing that's happening is you're stripping down to nothing but a hospital gown and your belongings are going in the locker while psych evaluates you.

The stigma lives.

Being stripped and searched is the least therapeutic thing possible for someone with no self esteem, or who has been brutalized physically and emotionally. Do you strip the guys coming in with physical complaints wearing leather jackets and tattoos too? Do you hold off when the patient is cooperative and nonthreatening?

You may be easing your own mind while doing some serious damage to someone else. Could you rethink this one?

Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN · Apr 13, 2011

SARS. Lasted for weeks. We didn't know what we were dealing with, if we were protected, if we were treating it correctly. Weeks of working in full isolation gear.. I could go on but I'm having a flash back! :)

celticqueen · Apr 13, 2011

i was sexually assaulted by a patient a few years ago, not sure if that can be classified as dangerous?

LouisVRN, RN · Apr 13, 2011

Thankfully nothing too dangerous for me yet, thank goodness as my first instinct would probably be to hide under the desk. I've had things thrown at me and people try to hit me but most of them were in their 90s and posed no real threat. I did almost once have a 6'8 300lbs+ guy almost fall on me. Thankfully got him back to bed before it actually happened.

To the poster who posted about SARS before they knew anything about it, that is one of my biggest nightmares working in healthcare and one of the few things keeping me out of the ED.

Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN · Apr 13, 2011

To the poster who posted about SARS before they knew anything about it, that is one of my biggest nightmares working in healthcare and one of the few things keeping me out of the ED.

SARS was everywhere. We had to put on full isolation garb as we ENTERED the hospital. And keep it on the ENTIRE time we were there. Everyone had to garb up - clerical staff, receptioniests, payroll clerks. Etc. Anyone entering the hospital. No one was spared.