What day will you never forget as being your worst day at work while being a nurse?

Mine was in 1990 while working on an orthopedic/neuro floor in SC.  I was working night shift as an LPN, our census was full (so I had 15 patients), and there were 3 other LPN's and an RN charge. I received the same patients I did the two previous nights of work, and I was surprised to see 2 of them still there due to their acuity (I was hoping they would have passed on earlier the day before). I had an end stage COPD'er in cheyne stokes, and an end stage HIV guy. Along with my "normal" patients, I had a post MVA who was so drunk (even in to the 2nd day) and bandaged up, plus he was passing through on a motorcycle from out of state without an ID....we only got a first name from him, he couldn't remember his last name.

It was about 4am, and my COPD pt died. While I was doing end of life care on him, my aide came and told me the AID's patient had just passed. Thankfully, both of these men were DNR's. I felt bad, since I knew he didn't have much time, and I wanted to be in there with him when he passed.....earlier in the evening, he kept calling for me to stay with him, but you know how much we want to, we don't have the time. The aid's patient never had any visitors, which made it harder. By the time I did end of life care on him, I was way behind. Didn't even have time to check on my other patients, let alone chart on anyone. 6am, med time. I started doing my last pass of meds and came to my motorcycle guy....he wasn't moving, breathing, and had his eyes open, staring at the ceiling. Had to call a code....by then, thought I was going to lose it. He never did survive, and it turns out he threw a clot which lodged in his heart. It took me until 10am (3 hours of overtime!) to do all the paperwork from the night before. I was exhausted (actually dozed off once on the way home for a second or two....scary!!!). Thank God I had off that night! The next time I worked, the other nurses started calling me "nurse death".....they would joke and look at the schedule to see who was the most acute patients so I could take them. It was all in fun, but embarassing at the same time. I just went along with it, but I was thankful that my husband got re-stationed out of state that October!!

So, what was your nightmare?

diane, after 33 years as an RN, I have many of them.  Right now I'm to tired to think of a single one without them all jumbling together.

Nothing to compare to Diane's day, but this was a night-mare week, and almost had me quit nursing.

I was a Nursing Student, and during the summers I worked either at a LTC facility or in an county hospital ER in Illinois. In the Summer of 1980, I was working at the ER, usually Tue-Sat Evenings, with additional shifts on Friday, Saturday and Sunday (doubles on Friday and Saturday, and then Sunday Evening again) - The only day I had off each week was Monday, and alwasy Sunday morning so I could go to worship. With supervision I had been doing the ambulatory Triage, basic healh history, preparing lab and radiology orders for signatures (according to what the initial assessment showed), etc., along with normal "Nurses Aid duties" for the ER. Our average summer census was 365/24 hours, with 30-40 in the Night shift, and about 170 in each of the first and second shifts.

That particular week there had been a major rock concert, and a lot of "recreational drug" ODs. On Tuesday, we had a 14 yo hispanic male, who had been given Haldol by a pusher. The good news was that the dosage was only enough to cause significant seizure activity. He was in the ER for observation for about 10 hours, then sent home with his parents.

On Thursday I came in and was immediately assigned to monitor a 7 yo black female who had also been given Haldol. She never regained conciousness the entire 8 hours I was with her. At the end of my shift she was admitted,, and I transported her up to the Peds. The next night I came in, and was there less than a half hour when I heard the code blue for her room. After the code team returned to the ER, I verified that it was the same little girl, and that she did not survive.

The final straw was Saturday when I came in to another OD, but this time a "Party Popper" who had been to a "pill party" before the rock concert. He was in his mid 20s, caucasion,  and very poor hygeine. He had been found face down in a mud puddle, his mouth, nose, ears, etc. packed with mud. Needless to say, what little clothing he had was also covered with the goo. When I arrived he was in a gown, and sleeping. After an hour he started coming around, and asking where his drugs, tickets and clothes were!  After almost 3 hours of listening to him moaning about wanting "to go to the connnceerrrrrtttt", and refusal of any assistance, he was discharged AMA, and given his muddy overalls (the only clothes he had on when admitted).

It was frustrating dealing with SIDS kids and their families, MVAs, industrial accident, and similar. But this person only wanted to get high, and destroy his body. And losing the little girl earlier to a pusher, probably thinking she was taking some candy, was the last straw. The next week my mother said something to me, and I just lost it, yelling at her, and being angry. I know my mother did not deserve it, and I apologized later.

Because of this, I have learned the importance of "de-stressing" after a bad day or bad week. Our families do not deserve this, and they really are trying to help. THey just do not know how!

Thanks for letting me get this off my chest.

God bless all, Paul