What's Your Best Nursing Ghost Story?

Nurses General Nursing Nursing Q/A

Nurses Month 2024 | Discounts & Freebies AORN Celebrates Nurses Month

Nursing is a profession that often involves long lonely night shifts in eerie hospital wards. It's a perfect breeding ground for ghost stories. These stories often involve sightings of apparitions, strange noises, and unexplained events that are said to have taken place in hospitals, hospices, and other healthcare settings. Some of these stories are believed to be based on true events, while others are purely fictional. Regardless, they continue to captivate and intrigue both nurses and non-nurses alike - providing a spooky glimpse into the world of healthcare after dark.

I know you have seen and heard freaky things. Share your nursing ghost stories...

a local MD traumatically. He had a nurse relative who worked on the unit adjoining mine. One night I thought I saw the MD walking down our hall and go into the stairwell. Later I found out that on the same night the nurse-relative had also "felt" his presence and another MD had seen him come OUT the stairwell on the bottom floor. All in the same time period. He was a sweetie and I miss him.

Specializes in pure and simple psych.

:sofahider :w00t: Love this thread.........

Specializes in Everything but L&D and OR.

OMG, I just finally caught up to where I had left off. This definitely deserves another bump!!!

One night I was caring for a dying male patient. He was scared and I spent quite some time with him, trying to calm and reassure him. Eventually he calmed and I left the bedside and went over to the nurses station which was about 15 feet away. As I sat down I glanced over to him and there was a black shape standing over the bed, looking down at the patient. I was terrified, and am sure it was something evil.

Wow I wonder why they call you "scarymary" ...

I could never GUESS why ... LOL

My hubby actually had a good one, not a ghost story per say, but a scary sight in a room one night long ago!

My hubby (who is a paramedic) was a Corpman in the Navy working in a old naval hospital in med surge. One night a very old demented man was just done with his shower and the orderly hadn't turned off the old heat lamp in the bathroom...so that night there was a red glow in the room with the gent.

Now the gent slept naked, and as my hubby passed by to check on him the patient was in his room upright in bed stretching his arms up and groaning. My hubby said it looked like satan rising from the bed! LOL!!!!!!! He grabbed the other corpmen to check it out and they felt the same way...and it all gave them the ebbie geebies despite knowing the reason for the scene! LOL!!!!!

I thought that was a cute one!

This is one of my favorites... LOL.. sorry too many of these stories seem "concocted" for their shock value.. I'm sure there's one or two that have some basis other than the overworked, impressionable brain here or there but not many.

no honking way!!!!!!!!

that is the second scariest one i have read!!!!!!!!!

originally posted by waques1984 viewpost.gif

i heard this story from a friend of mine, who is also a fellow nursing student but from another university. one night, while they were on a night shift, a 9-year-old female child unfortunately died in the pedia ward. my friend was the one assigned to perform post-mortem care to the said patient. so there he was, cleaning the patient's body and all. he placed a red bracelet in the patient's right hand, as it was the policy of the hospital to place a red tag on the right hand of all patients who are pronounced dead. after performing his tasks, he was on his way to the elevator when suddenly, the little girl came running after him! terrified, he quickly pushed the close button so that the elevator would close right away and bring him to safety down to the lower floor.

while inside the elevator, an old woman in hospital gown asked him why he closed the elevator door right away when a child wanted to board in. still overwhelmed with fear, he explained to the old lady "that was the child that i just performed post-mortem care a while ago. she is already dead. did you saw the red tag on her right arm? that is the mark for all dead patients here in this hospital..." the old woman raised her right arm and replied... "similar to this?"

my friend was found unconcious inside the elevator a few moments later. he never stepped inside the said hospital again. ever.

no honking way!!!!!!!!

now that's a good one..... you'll make quite an author some day

I find all these stories fascinating and can't stop reading them! I have story about my mom. She was in a coma for two weeks in the hospital following a respiratory arrest after a severe infection on top of asthma.

My family and I visited her again as we were doing each day. As I stood by her bed that morning (she had just had a tracheotomy performed that AM), I had the very keen impression she was going to die that day.

While we were by her beside, she began to choke and cough, her whole body going into convulsions. They all rushed in and tried to revive her, and called in the doctor who had performed the tracheotomy. They could do nothing. It turns out she had aspirated blood during the surgery and her lungs were filled with it.

They had to let her go. The whole experience left me with the feeling that I was in a deep dark tunnel -- the experience of death, my poor mom's suffering for two weeks, the great mystery and unknown associated with that and so forth.

The next evening I was sitting at home with my dad and brother and we were somewhat dazed talking about the events and my dear mom's sudden death.

As we were speaking, I began to wonder "where" my mother was and, as we believe in God, I thought "She has seen God -- I wonder what that experience is like and what she is doing and thinking now -- she must know me through and through now."

As we continued talking and these thoughts were running through my mind, I suddenly experienced what seemed like a light in the depths of my being. The light began to grow and glow and begin to warm my depths, which had been left with such a sad cold feeling after all this.

A few moments later, out of the corner of my eye, it seemed as though I could see my mother coming toward me, radiant in white and floating across the room toward me from the doorway leading into the family room where we were sitting and talking. At that moment, I completely lost track of my brother and father. They were conversing, but I was completely oblivious to them

My mother's spirit approached me and it seemed as if we were two clouds that just gently merged together into one, while still being distinctly two. At that moment, my whole being was filled with a love beyond all imagining -- a love that was like an ocean of unconditionality, of total acceptance and purity and tenderness beyone anything we know to be love in this life.

In my soul, I could see and feel my mother's smile, and she said to me "God has sent me to console you. I have seen Him, and I will teach you to know Him and to love Him." We continued this communion of love and exchange of understanding for about 5-10 minutes, and then she gently withdrew.

I was utterly and completely transformed, and from that moment on -- it has been impossible for me to think of my mother as dead. I experienced her as completely "alive" and filled with love. That was 18 years ago, and it is still as clear as the day it happened.

At the funeral home, everyone said I looked "radiant" -- it was because of this transforming experience that pulled me out of the depths of a great darkness.

Now, this might be chalked up to imagination by some -- but here is the "confirmation" that came later.

The experience was so intimate, I did not want to speak of it to anyone, not even my family. A few days later, my father said -- "Your mother came to visit me..." This immediately got my attention.

I said "Oh? What do you mean?"

He said, "I was sitting in the living room, and it was like she entered the room and came to me, and became one with me -- like she passed into me and we became one."

This was such an exact description of what had happened to me, and which I never shared, that I knew for sure we had both been visited by my mother.

I finally shared the story with a friend. Then, a few weeks or so later, while I was at Church, I was praying, and suddenly, it was as if my mother had come to me again. I suddenly felt her in me and loving me. The experience was briefer and not as intense as the first time, but it left no doubt in my mind that my mom had visited me again.

The next day, my friend said to me - "I prayed yesterday that your mother would come and visit you again like she did just after she died."

Startled, I exclaimed -- " She did! Just yesterday when I was at Mass! She answered that prayer!"

So that is my beautiful story about life after death.

originally posted by waques1984 viewpost.gif

i heard this story from a friend of mine, who is also a fellow nursing student but from another university. one night, while they were on a night shift, a 9-year-old female child unfortunately died in the pedia ward. my friend was the one assigned to perform post-mortem care to the said patient. so there he was, cleaning the patient's body and all. he placed a red bracelet in the patient's right hand, as it was the policy of the hospital to place a red tag on the right hand of all patients who are pronounced dead. after performing his tasks, he was on his way to the elevator when suddenly, the little girl came running after him! terrified, he quickly pushed the close button so that the elevator would close right away and bring him to safety down to the lower floor.

while inside the elevator, an old woman in hospital gown asked him why he closed the elevator door right away when a child wanted to board in. still overwhelmed with fear, he explained to the old lady "that was the child that i just performed post-mortem care a while ago. she is already dead. did you saw the red tag on her right arm? that is the mark for all dead patients here in this hospital..." the old woman raised her right arm and replied... "similar to this?"

my friend was found unconcious inside the elevator a few moments later. he never stepped inside the said hospital again. ever.

no honking way!!!!!!!!

now that's a good one..... you'll make quite an author some day

jeez lighten up:lol2:

you all have nothing to worry about, ghosts are entirely made up in the mind. think about it, it almost always happens at night or when you are by yourself, and it goes against every physics law we know. all the people who have seen ghosts, yet there is absolutley no proof, It makes for good entertainment though and i'm not trying to spoil that.... i love ghost stories myself, but some people are mentioning they are frightened while reading these posts, and there just isn't anything to worry about.

That may be your belief. Please allow us ours.

Now that's a GOOD one..... you'll make quite an author some day

Was that necessary?

My former FIL died a few weeks ago, on 3-12. One of the nicest men I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. He died at home with his wife by his side. The next morning she and her daughter, who stayed overnight, woke up and found the entire house smelling of roses, even though there were no flowers in the house until later that day. The aroma was particularly strong in the living room, where he had died in a hospital bed. We all believe he was sending his love.

Patients who are dying and hear children's voices or laughing is not oncommen. In fact, I have heard this many times from other nurses too, that a pt is in the last days of life and will hear children laughing. Noboday else hears it but the pt usually dies shortly after.

From my own experiences, we have a large concentration of Italian Americans in our community. They often claim to see all their deceased pets prior to passing on. Years ago my own grandmother, who was half Italian, went to the hospital but was expected to make a full recovery. About 3 days before she was supposed to come home she claimed (she was always lucid- never lost conc.) all her former dogs had been with her the night before. When we relayed this story to an Italian friend she told us in broken english "oh your agrandamotha- she a no live much longer" We laughed at this because Gram was fine and ready to go home. Next day she unexpectedly died. Now when I hear people who see there pets, I know what is coming. BUT the interesting thing is they are ALWAYS of Italian decent! My catholic friend tells me it may have something to do with Saint Francis being both a patron saint of animals and of Italy.

+ Add a Comment