When they're SO sure they're right...

Nurses General Nursing

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You've all seen them (sometimes on AN)- a person who believes with all their heart that a practice is correct while you and the rest of the civilized world know they're wrong.

What's the weirdest, most outlandish clinical or technical misconception that you've seen a co-worker espouse?

I worked in ICU and a resident was covering - patient's urine was low flow via catheter and I advised him - he told me "well, she's sleeping, you don't produce urine when you sleep!"

I must be having a blonde moment :facepalm: :yeah: What am I missing? While it isn't accurate to say that you don't produce urine (at all) during sleep, a smaller, more concentrated urine output is normal due to antidiuretic hormone (ADH) being released by the posterior pituitary during sleep. Isn't it possible that's what the resident meant?

Of course, I don't know exactly how "low flow" your patient's urine production was, so there may well have been cause for concern, but I guess I don't find the physician's comment laughable.

"Vaccines do more harm than good."

Its not just ridiculous its dangerous. People who believe this make my blood boil.

Me too. It's bad enough when a layperson says that, but when a nurse says it I find myself having to control the urge to rip their nursing licenses out of their hands, and shred it into a gazillion little confetti pieces :lol2: Just argghhh!!!

I hate to open Pandora's box, but nurses who say they aren't getting the flu vaccine, last time they got it they got the flu.

:banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :blackeye:

Is she the start of the urban legend of the nurse that gave two Vitamin B 6's since there was no B 12? At least I hope that is urban legend.

That is hilarious :roflmao:

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I must be having a blonde moment :facepalm: :yeah: What am I missing? While it isn't accurate to say that you don't produce urine (at all) during sleep, a smaller, more concentrated urine output is normal due to antidiuretic hormone (ADH) being released by the posterior pituitary during sleep. Isn't it possible that's what the resident meant?

Well, he didn't say they produce "less urine," he said they don't produce urine while they sleep. I don't know what he meant, only what he allegedly said, but if she is quoting him correctly, he was being an idiot. Anyone who has worked the night shift with a patient with a foley knows that patients continue to make urine while sleeping. Less urine than during the day, more concentrated, sure, but they do continue to make urine. Especially if they are receiving IVF.

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Well, he didn't say they produce "less urine," he said they don't produce urine while they sleep. I don't know what he meant, only what he allegedly said, but if she is quoting him correctly, he was being an idiot. Anyone who has worked the night shift with a patient with a foley knows that patients continue to make urine while sleeping. Less urine than during the day, more concentrated, sure, but they do continue to make urine. Especially if they are receiving IVF.

I understand what you're saying and I'm sure you realize from my post that I'm aware that we produce urine even during sleep. I don't see how anyone can make it through med school without realizing that, so while I guess it is possible that the physician fell out of the stupid tree and hit every branch on the way down, I do wonder if this wasn't just some type of misunderstanding/miscommunication between the nurse and resident. The post I quoted said "low flow" urine, not "no flow", which made me suspect that the resident considered it normal "nocturnal output" and saw no cause for alarm. But of course I don't know that and I don't know exactly how low the flow was. I wasn't there.

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Specializes in NICU.

A very annoying one which this person keeps repeating even after classes /lectures on the topic.

Telling new mothers of healthy full term infants:"You do not have enough breast milk so you have to give a bottle."

The baby is big so you have to give a bottle,or the baby is small so you have to give a bottle.

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[...]

"Can they come up and do that CT portable?"

[...]

Actually, they can, at least if it's a head CT. It's not as detailed as one done in a scanner, but if the patient is too unstable or unable to transport, it is an option.

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Specializes in Emergency, Telemetry, Transplant.
Actually, they can, at least if it's a head CT. It's not as detailed as one done in a scanner, but if the patient is too unstable or unable to transport, it is an option.

True, but this community hospital certainly did not have a portable scanner to bring up to the floor. FWIW, it was a lung CT with "high resolution cuts."

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True, but this community hospital certainly did not have a portable scanner to bring up to the floor. FWIW, it was a lung CT with "high resolution cuts."

Yes, that's quite the horse of a different color.

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Specializes in Public Health, TB.

Ask for patient on a dopamine infusion to start a beta blocker to suppress atrial fibrillation.

Umm, what do you think a beta blocker blocks?

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Specializes in Pediatric Critical Care.

Straight cathing a patient for urine culture, managed to get patient's urine all over me. Fellow helpfully says, "at least urine is sterile!"

No. Also if it was, then why do you want a culture of it?

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Specializes in Pediatric Critical Care.
I don't see how anyone can make it through med school without realizing that

That is exactly what I thought when I read that a significant number of med students and residents have some surprising beliefs about biological differences between different races.

(Follow this link for the source of the above table)

Racial bias in pain assessment and treatment recommendations, and false beliefs about biological differences between blacks and whites

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I once had a coworker call and report an IV that had blood backing up into it to the physician on call.

She refused to believe me that this was a normal occurrence. The line had been clamped, no fluids running.

I wish I could have been a fly on the wall at that doc's house at 2am.

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I worked an overnight shift in July. We had a patient have tele changes and the the RN called the resident and stated the patient tele was reading wandering atrial pacemaker. The doctor came up to assess and said she was wrong that the patient didn't have a pacemaker. í ¾í´¨

My biggest pet peeve is when nurses are convinced they need to keep their patients O2 at 98% on 5L when they are O2 dependent COPDers who live at 91%.

I also received a patient from another floor because the nurse called it SVT. The patient was paced at a rate of 100-110 but the tele monitor was counting the spikes.

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