My own humorous nursing anecdotes:
Make up your mind!
"Mr. O'Connor* has pulled his n/g tube out again!"
"Oh, boy!" I replied. "Well, I'll have to call Dr. Lee* and let him know, but I'm sure he will have me to put it back down. Mr. O'Connor will just start throwing up again if we don't replace it."
How many times has he pulled his tube out over the past 2 days? I tried to count them. We had already contacted his physician several times over the past days to determine how best to handle his need for gastric suction and his confusion. We had tried instruction, soft wrist restraints, and close monitoring. But in spite of all our efforts, he had managed to get the tube out again. The physician's orders were to replace the tube.
I recruited some help and approached Mr. O'Connor with another naso-gastric tube. "Mr. O'Connor, we're going to have to put this tube through your nose into your stomach again," I explained.
"Again?" Mr. O'Connor questioned.
"I'm afraid so," I replied, and was about to explain that if he would try to remember to leave it down, he wouldn't have to go through the trauma of having it reinserted so often. But Mr. O'Connor interrupted me.
"Okay," he replied. "If you need to put it back, that's alright. But I just wish you girls would make up your minds!. Don't just keep taking it out and putting it back. If you want it in, that's ok, just please be sure you want to leave it in. If you put it back, please don't take it out again until you are sure you want to leave it out!"
*not the real name or room number
:: as told to me by Carol, a former co-worker
