I Love Nursey

Sometimes I feel like the Lucile Ball of nurses... a well meaning, clumsy and comical nurse who accidentally trips on an IV line and rips it out, who steps on a patient's broken foot, or pats someones back which happens to be covered in 3rd degree burns (all done lovingly, of course).

I can picture myself in one of those comedy sketches from the 50's where they're tripping all over some poor injured patient and he's screaming in pain every time they accidentally let his tractioned broken arm come crashing down on his chest full of broken ribs, or let him fall to the ground as they try to help him into a wheelchair. And all the while the patient is getting madder and madder, screaming, "WHY YOU LITTLE...!!"

Hands off the catheter, my friend

I had a patient remove his own foley catheter the other day and it was not a pretty site. It's unclear whether said extraction was intentional or not but the result was a positively bloody mess. As you'll see from the diagram below, the catheter is maintained in place in the bladder via an inflated balloon, so just imagine the damage that can be done when that balloon passes through the urethra and out of the penis without FIRST being deflated.

yowee!

I hear the secrets that you keep...

...when you're delirious and hospitalized.
When asked, "Do you know where you are right now?" of some of my less oriented patients I've heard: "a barn", "a birthday party", "a bus", "a sex lab", and "Serbia" to name a few incorrect responses.

One of the unique aspects of nursing is the intimate moments you sometimes share with your patients. I've heard admissions of hatred of family members, revelations of sexual exploits, and of course there's the usual cleaning of butts, weenies, and va-jay-jays... It's kind of like being the bartender at a pub your patrons never wanted to come to (and often times don't even know they're at).

Compassion Fatigue

"Compassion fatigue (also known as a secondary traumatic stress disorder) is a condition characterised by a gradual lessening of compassion over time. It is common among trauma victims and individuals that work directly with trauma victims. It was first diagnosed in nurses in the 1950s. Sufferers can exhibit several symptoms including hopelessness, a decrease in experiences of pleasure, constant stress and anxiety, and a pervasive negative attitude. This can have detrimental effects on individuals, both professionally and personally, including a decrease in productivity, the inability to focus, and the development of new feelings of incompetency and self doubt."

You hear a lot of talk about compassion fatigue in nursing and I feel like I've seen it. We had a patient from another country who was involved in a serious car accident while on vacation in the US in which a relative of the patient died. The patient was on our unit for several weeks and I would often hear nurses complain about how needy or whiny the patient was. I know I'm new (and I hope this doesn't explain my empathy) but imagine yourself in a hospital in a foreign country where you don't speak the language, you're in a pretty good amount of pain from your injuries, and you've just lost a loved one to boot. I think I'd be pretty needy too.
I wonder why with experience and exposure to patients with acute or chronic pain it seems we become detached from the moment and start to see the patient as a just a complainer. After watching a patient sobbing in pain with tears streaming down their face this week, asking themselves and me why God would do this to a person, it never crossed my mind that this patient was a whiner and I hope it never does.

Flying Solo

This was my first week at work without my mentor/preceptor. I've finally finished orientation and I'm on my own...!

There are so many steps and phases in this profession. First there were the prerequisites, then actual nursing school and clinicals, next graduation, and after that passing the NCLEX and actually becoming an Registered Nurse. I thought it would sort of end there but then there was the months-long orientation with a preceptor, learning the ropes, and finally independence!

I was/am nervous about being on my own but luckily I've had a good first week so far. It can get REALLY busy and I haven't quite mastered the art of being in four places at the same time...

Ever felt like...

... you might accidentally pull someones toes clean off their foot? Huh, no? Oh, must be this weird profession I've gotten myself into.

The other day I was cleaning this patient's foot which looked something like this picture but a lot blacker (accurate odor description though) and I really really thought that as I was removing the bandage I was going to pull the toes right off. It was like something from a horror movie. In my mind I think when I see weird/gross stuff like this I just figure that it can't be real (must be some special effects or something!). Funnier or weirder may be how we (nurses) will talk about disgusting wounds like the one I saw while we're eating lunch. HA! It's crazy what a human being can get used to.

Where'd you get those...?

There are some nurses on my floor that wear some seriously booty marking tight scrub pants.

Call me old fashioned but it seems a little weird and inappropriate. Not to mention that there is the potential you'll be kneeling into some shit, piss, vomit, blood, or worse in those sexy numbers... Patients probably like 'em though.