This story was related to me by a friend at work, whom I'll call Tough as Nails Nurse (TNN).
TNN is a highly experienced staff nurse who often works with my students. She's very student friendly, so they all love working with her.
Recently, TNN was admitting a patient with a heart rate of 150. She had atrial fibrillation with a rapid ventricular response. In English, that means the atria (two smaller chambers of the heart) were quivering like jello instead of contracting, and the heart is beating twice as fast as it normally should.
This condition carries two problems. One, the heart does not fill normally, so blood does not circulate properly. Dizziness and falls are common problems.
Secondly, the blood in the atria kinda congeals. Clots form and flow to the brain, causing strokes.
So, as you might guess, this is a medical emergency. The patient was admitted and TNN was trying to get the cardiazem drip set up to treat it.
Problem is, the patient rooms in our hospital are very small. It's hard to maneuver. TNN hooks patient up to an Omni Cell, a machine that reads the heart rate, EKG, and cycles a blood pressure every 15 minutes. Plus she's trying to set up the IV pump with the medication.
Son comes in and pushes TNN away from the patient. "Gotta see the score," turning on the TV and changing the channel to the game.
Disgusted, TNN, starts trying to chart the vital signs, but the patient and other family members keep turning the Omni cell away from her. "Look, this is my heart beat." TNN tries to tell them she needs to see the screen to chart the results, but they continue to ignore her, and more family crowds into the room focused on the ball game.
As the blood pressure cuff cycles, the patient says, "enough of that," and pulls the cuff off. The family won't move to let TNN get to the IV pump to adjust the settings.
Finally, TNN says to the patient and family, "Look, I'm trying to take care of your heart problem here. When you decide you want to let me do that, you let me know." And she walks out.
I do not get people some times. You're in the fucking hospital. You know your heart is not right. Why the fuck wouldn't you let the health care people do their jobs?
TNN is a highly experienced staff nurse who often works with my students. She's very student friendly, so they all love working with her.
Recently, TNN was admitting a patient with a heart rate of 150. She had atrial fibrillation with a rapid ventricular response. In English, that means the atria (two smaller chambers of the heart) were quivering like jello instead of contracting, and the heart is beating twice as fast as it normally should.
This condition carries two problems. One, the heart does not fill normally, so blood does not circulate properly. Dizziness and falls are common problems.
Secondly, the blood in the atria kinda congeals. Clots form and flow to the brain, causing strokes.
So, as you might guess, this is a medical emergency. The patient was admitted and TNN was trying to get the cardiazem drip set up to treat it.
Problem is, the patient rooms in our hospital are very small. It's hard to maneuver. TNN hooks patient up to an Omni Cell, a machine that reads the heart rate, EKG, and cycles a blood pressure every 15 minutes. Plus she's trying to set up the IV pump with the medication.
Son comes in and pushes TNN away from the patient. "Gotta see the score," turning on the TV and changing the channel to the game.
Disgusted, TNN, starts trying to chart the vital signs, but the patient and other family members keep turning the Omni cell away from her. "Look, this is my heart beat." TNN tries to tell them she needs to see the screen to chart the results, but they continue to ignore her, and more family crowds into the room focused on the ball game.
As the blood pressure cuff cycles, the patient says, "enough of that," and pulls the cuff off. The family won't move to let TNN get to the IV pump to adjust the settings.
Finally, TNN says to the patient and family, "Look, I'm trying to take care of your heart problem here. When you decide you want to let me do that, you let me know." And she walks out.
I do not get people some times. You're in the fucking hospital. You know your heart is not right. Why the fuck wouldn't you let the health care people do their jobs?
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