driftinginspace
46927
1170
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Patients often come in as drug seekers, hoping to get good narcotics.
Pain is subjective and in this case unless there's a medical reason we cannot give it, they can have it, even though they probably aren't a 10. To them i wish I souls say "GTFO and let someone have this bed who really needs it."
Oh man this one makes me so mad. A self care patient will ask me to hand them things that are easily within reach. I do it, because deep down I'm just nice, but I bitch about it later.
The pt was on isolation precautions and was pooping a lot because of a laxative the nurse gave to clean out ammonia. It smells awful and the poop managed to get into the bed frame. The nurse casually went to lunch seeing me gown up to go in. Enjoy!
Pt was combative, it took 7 people to hold her down. We managed to ninja some calming meds in. The husband said we were lucky she wasn't working out otherwise who knows how many people it would have taken.
I hope you enjoyed these stories. CNA is rewarding and I love my job, sometimes it's frustrating, but that's the game.
me0time
I'm also a CENA. Shit gets real sometimes.
Blue4Five
Downvote this kind of health care provider.
SeaCaakes
I agree with everything but the first one. If we distract with devices, who are you to say we're not truly in pain?
missmolly123456789
But on the other side the nurses that are angels thank you to the rest well you know where you can go.
Curadh
People never realize that it takes that many people so you DON'T hurt the patient/client/subject.
Imightaswell
Seems like many of the examples u showed were beyond your scope of practice. CNA can't assess pain, pass drugs, nor do fecal disinpaction.
lifeisapicnic
has to be a hard gig. thanks for your diligence.
LiveTestDummy
So....kind of personal but how much do you make on average as a CNA? I'm actually interested in being a nurse after the military.
crazycatlady14
On my unit, they make $10-11 an hour. But our unit is a telemetry/step down unit, so they might make a bit more than other units.
jun08
Thanks for sharing your awesome story.
SilhouetteXD
#2, Inches from hand but paralyzed from the neck down.
peachess2
Abscessed root canal in canine/up to sinus area. They refused to give me pain meds, asked for sedatives to sleep through it until antibiotic
peachess2
Worked. Nope. Can't take Lortab due to allergy. Got a shot in the butt eventually but they didn't believe me. Hole in tooth clearly infected
Kittynomnoms
#1 doesn't sound like an addict... It sounds like someone who believes you'll just shrug them off if they're realistic about it.
LordChapstick
What's pt?
Porkchop4u
Patient
driftinginspace
Patient
LordChapstick
Oh duh haha. Thanks!
Sheari
" let someone have this bed who really needs it" I got that glare from a lot of people when I refuse bloodwork because I'm intensely 1/2
Sheari
needle-phobic because to them 90% of the time its just "lol its only a needle" and its just like "my phobia is so bad that the fact that 2/3
Sheari
I have had vomiting and diarrhea for 10 hours straight has done nothing to lessen my fear. The fact that I came is already a miracle :|" 3/3
JasonAndHisARRGOhNutz
The 1-10 pain scale is fucking stupid
crazycatlady14
There are other scales to use, other than the numeric scale. But medical professionals need to be able to measure your pain somehow.
JasonAndHisARRGOhNutz
I've read that the only way to accurately judge the actual amount of pain that a person feels is to measure brain activity.
bntli
i could never do it
NoSleepTilBrooklyn
I don't blame nurses for being skeptical of people wanting pain meds, but isn't it better to err on the side of compassion?
crazycatlady14
Depends. If the person is a frequent flyer who comes in often for pain meds, then you have to be more skeptical. Especially because you 1
crazycatlady14
Don't know what they took beforehand. So you don't want to overdose them or give them something that will interact negatively with what 2
crazycatlady14
Is already in their system. But by all means, if the pt is there for some obvious trauma/painful medical condition, I won't be skeptical 3
NotRainman1344
This is like a dishwasher complaining that the chef won't help him wash the dishes EVEN THO HE SAID HE WULLLDD. Its your job to clean shit
itslikesomesortofneutronbomb
Um. No. the cnas are the to help the rns and most patients can't be changed with only one person. It's a team.
Exileddude
CNA is seriously just there for the labor part. My wife is a CNA she at least doesn't act entitled. It is like a 2 week course c'mon
driftinginspace
It's ultimately the nurses responsibility, there are lots of units that operate without CNAs. We are there to help.
RoflChoper
Eyo man, do you mind me asking where you're based and how it's been for you? asking as a student murse
driftinginspace
Gilbert, Arizona. I love it, but I'm not going into nursing. Too much politics and administration getting in the way.
stew1
it's exactly you're job to clean the poo up, the rn out ranks you. sounds like you should have done more schooling.
driftinginspace
I'm well aware of my position and where I rank, just don't tell me you will help and then not help me. That's just bad people skills.
TheDudeAbides55
If an RN refuses to help clean up someones poop simply bc theyre an RN then they shouldnt be a nurse.
TheDudeAbides55
Just like CNA's theyre job is patient care and cleaning up poop is part of that
wildkatrn
You don't give pain meds your an aide. You work in a hospital or where? Nurses never help clean shit...
GilderoyPopDropNLockart
Have you ever worked in a unit??
wildkatrn
Yes. And unless you are a med tech or a nurse, you don't fuckin give meds. Quit your bitching about pain levels you can't assess that either
wildkatrn
*legally
Flufferfloof
I've had pain where I was writhing around, unable to do anything but sob uncontrollably, and still wasn't given pain meds. >>
Flufferfloof
Doesn't seem to matter how much pain you're in or what you can do comfortably.
crazycatlady14
I'm sorry for your experience. I obviously don't know your exact situation. But I've had pts who are in terrible pain, and I'm unable to 1
crazycatlady14
Give them more pain meds, because if I did it could cause respiratory depression or could cause damage to their liver/kidneys. There might 2
crazycatlady14
Have been a reason why you couldn't have more. It's a terrible thing to watch someone in pain & not be able to help them. I would hope 3
crazycatlady14
Your nurse/doctor weren't doing it deliberately! Next time, ask specifically why you can't have more meds. Maybe there's a reason why. 4
crazycatlady14
You have to realize that a RN's job is much more complex and time consuming. And THAT is the reason why they're not always able to help you1
crazycatlady14
I'm a RN, and when I'm unable to help a CNA, it's not because I'm lazy/mean, it's because I truly can't. I have higher priority tasks to do2
crazycatlady14
Like giving meds or stabilizing a pt who is crashing. And instead of focusing on the times when a RN couldn't help you, maybe realize they 3
crazycatlady14
Help more than you know. Countless times I have done the CNA's work, because they're busy and I have a spare moment, or because I'm already4
crazycatlady14
In the pt's room, so I'm not going to call the CNA when I'm already there & able to help. I honestly don't mind doing that at all, but I 5
crazycatlady14
Wish CNA's would appreciate how much we try to help them. RN's help CNA's with their tasks, but not the other way around. It's unfair to 6
Neuroactive
as a gay I've always wondered, how many men are in the profession and of them how many are gay? just in your experience I guess.
STEVEH0LT
There were 6 guys in my nursing program of 48. None of them were gay as far as I knew.
crazycatlady14
I work with about 20 murses (male nurses) and 1 of them is gay.
wildkatrn
Out of the few men there are, I would guess that 1/50 is gay? That's about the ratio at my school I suppose
tomhark
that has got nothing to do with anything. fuck off
Neuroactive
hey now I'm just interested if its statistically similar to stuff like being a male hair stylist.
tomhark
jesus, way to stereotype people. are you some sort of nazi?
INSANITYisTEMPORARY
I work with 5 male nurses...... Zero gay......
UserSubImgurian
ER nurse with a willy here, can confirm, like pussy.
INSANITYisTEMPORARY
"Treat'em & Street'em". Thank you for working in a high-stress & low-appreciated position.
Neuroactive
thanks. (just curious cause I'd seen the profession more than several times on dating sites but its only one side of the stats)
INSANITYisTEMPORARY
I know several Male RNs personally. Most are married w kids. Some are straight & single. Nursing involves tons of teaching-they could 1/2
INSANITYisTEMPORARY
2/2 have easily become Teachers. Nursing is less "nurse-mate" and more "intensive" nowadays. Therefore more men choose it as a career.
Snobster
Gotta love it when AIN/CNAs bitch about their job and their supervising RN... being an RN comes with more responsibility than people realise
wildkatrn
Okay hey now, I agree this post is shit, but don't hate on the cnas nurses couldn't do it all without us.
Snobster
In the units where we get an AIN/CNA, you can be helpful. I haven't worked with an AIN in 4 years though. Maybe they're less common in Aus
impulsivepassion
Everyone bitches about their job. CNA's, RN's, MD's. and quite frankly, if they work hard, i don't blame them.
anothervillain
we are a strange people
IHaveASiriusCyberneticsCorporationGenuinePeoplePersonality
Alcohol withdrawal is a bitch. Having dealt with my wife, I'm thankful the nurses were easy on her. That said, I wish they were nicer the
IHaveASiriusCyberneticsCorporationGenuinePeoplePersonality
days after when she was actually trying...
wildkatrn
Op isn't a nurse she's an aide. Me too. Don't confuse them one requires 4+ years of college and the other you don't even need a GED
Imjustheretoupvotestuffandmaybefavorite
Nurse only requires 2 years and you need a certification to be an aide which is substitute for Diploma but yeah there's a mile between them
wildkatrn
Lpns need 2 years... And that certification that takes a month lol. source I am a CNA and I'm in an RN program. I hate cocky CNA's...
Imjustheretoupvotestuffandmaybefavorite
Yeah I'm a CNA too, certification is crap admittedly but you learn a lot on the job & no RN takes two years, it's similar to an associates
TayTay051
OP has a doodle too btw
Stubious
To be fair, the 1-10 pain scale is garbage, and if you've tried to decode it often enough, you just give a ten so they'll get to work.
proj3ctmayh3m
You should not do that. Mostly because you will get a bunch of test, you don't need. I agree the scale is not the best, but lying won't help
crazycatlady14
Health care professionals need to be able to measure your pain somehow. There are other scales to use if you don't like the numeric scale.
proj3ctmayh3m
A 10 means the worst pain you have ever had.
Blue4Five
Seriously, fuck your attitude. I went in with the most painful kidney stones I've ever had, and the staff were convinced I was a druggie.
krb14
Honestly, it's so easy to get jaded in this line of work but 99% of the time you can tell the fakers from the people who are genuine
Blue4Five
No, you cannot tell 99% of the time. You telling me that somehow I, as an educated guy who never uses drugs, was all of a sudden the 1% ?!
Phayzzer
Exact same thing happened to me. I was in agony for hours, I begged for them to help me. One threw the gown at me. It was humiliating.
crazycatlady14
This makes me so sad! I'm a nurse and I can't imagine treating my patients this way. I hope you reported that nurse or left a bad review.
pokefail
I had this same issue not even a week ago. Turns out I had a huge gallstone and my gallbladder was rotting. Worst pain I'd ever had.
Blue4Five
Sorry to hear that.
pokefail
-looks at date- ...It would seem I need to be a bit more attentive to what mode I'm viewing in but thanks man.
wildkatrn
This.
Blue4Five
I flew in to town for my sister's wedding, but ended up with stones. They even told my mother that I most likely had a drug problem -
wildkatrn
"Pain is whatever the pt. says it is." Every modern nursing textbook. Fuck nurses who don't care and fuck cnas who enable that shit
Blue4Five
before the CT scan of course.
BetelgeuseTheStar
Yeah, I've been plagued with them, 4 laser lithotripsies in the last two year and they still are skeptical about my pain when I come in
bannedtohellV3
What is this laser treatment that you speak of and what is it for?
BetelgeuseTheStar
They run a laser with a ureteroscope all up in there and blast the stone to bits and then you get to pass the chips. Used when one is stuck
Phayzzer
The last lithotripsie treatment I had, the nurse mocked me for crying from my last procedure.
crazycatlady14
That is terrible! You should have told her to fuck off. And asked for a different nurse.
bannedtohellV3
That nurse would have been spitting out teeth if they did that to me.
ratchet3789
I've been at about an 8 in pain (wanting to cut my leg off to stop the pain) and playing on my phone was the only thing that helped distract
copperhead
This. I have gallstones, and lots of ladies say gallstone attacks are worse than birth. Once, while waiting for my pain meds to kick in,...
copperhead
I was trying to distract myself - 2048 and porn got me through it until the drugs kicked in.
feeltheice
I was in hospital, broken shoulder blade and foot. About a 15 on pain scale. I was keeping calm voice and playing on my phone. :(
annibe11e
I watch (or listen) to TV when I have a migraine for the distraction.
ratchet3789
But Ive also seen what addicts will do to get their fix.
ButterfaceTaintClown
Work a steady job and buy it on the black market like everyone else.
Ant4N
I had a longboarding accident. At times it was a 9. I don't know if I'm weak or if that accident actually sucked.
cading
Agree, I live with chronic pain. My normal is what others would consider a 7. I do whatever I can to cope and distract when flaring.
Makoisnotashark
Yup, I had a kidney half die, felt like 5 stones at once and I told my mom "get the fucking car or im gonna cut it out you bitch" she 1/2
Makoisnotashark
2/2 knew it was serious cause I was not the kind of kid to talk to her like that. I still get shit for it to this day. :( best mom ever.
LtShed
See I think I would have rated that higher than 8, I said I was at 8 with kidney stones, or rather while waiting to find out I had stones
[deleted]
[deleted]
LtShed
I couldn't sit down. The crazy thing is it would just make me vomit. Like the pain would start and it's just throw up, it was the weirdest
[deleted]
[deleted]
LtShed
That was where mine started, but as soon as it radiated down from the back into the boys, that was game over for my stomach apparently
wolfshades
Same. Pain was through the roof. Weirdest thing though: I had a boner as well. Confused as fuck and the pain was *awful*. Easily an 8 or 9
ButterfaceTaintClown
My mother was a healthcare worker and when i broke my hip she told me to ask for pain medication long in advance of actually (1
ButterfaceTaintClown
Needing it because of sadistic bitches like this op (2
w4nder3r
That's when you talk to the doctor about getting schedule pain meds, and then prn for breakthrough pain.
w4nder3r
But at the same time, yes, don't let your pain get to an 8 or a 10 before asking for meds. We don't want you in pain either.
ButterfaceTaintClown
I was talking about trauma, rather than long term.
DreadCarcass
Yep last time i was in the hospital i had one nurse that gave them to me w/o asking and another that would wait for me to be near screaming
ICommentWhenImDepressedToMakeMyselfFeelBetter
I had to see a psychologist because my chronic pain was making me suicidal. Took almist a year for the v.a. to find the right drugs to help.
VodkaReindeer
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/601911/better-than-opioids-virtual-reality-could-be-your-next-painkiller/
ratchet3789
Virtual reality has been a pain bringer for me. Smacked into a shitton of walls with my Vive on
VodkaReindeer
You need a bigger room. I hit the wall only once and it barely hurt :)
ratchet3789
Playing Hover Junkers and I kind of dodge/dived out of the way and smashed the side of my head into the wall haha.
VodkaReindeer
Same with Holopoint.
konnichimade
10 is immobile though.
kediil2000
People come into my mother's pain clinic and say they're a 10. Geez, if so, go to the freaking hospital. Or at least writhe on ground a bit.
michello117
10 is worst pain you've felt in your life. So like OP said it's subjective to everyone.
cantconnect
Honestly I don't believe it's a 10 if they are still conscious
PandaNipples
Some people haven't experienced pain that extreme before so a 10 could be different for them then it would be for others. 10 is the (1/2)
Ezzybells
For me the worst pain of my life had me screaming and crying. So unless I'm doing that, it's not a 10.
imjustgonnatakethatcrabpuff
Okay. I'll be the one to ask it. What's the craziest thing you've had to remove from a patient's ass?
SamanthaThePanther
My mum's a nurse. A hairbrush. Bristles in.
ThatGuyWhoThinksEveryoneIsAPineapple
My mother worked as a nurse, she told me a few years ago that someone needed toilet brush pulled out. They claim they 'fell' on it.
wildkatrn
CNAs aren't allowed to actually insert or remove anything besides shit from anyone's ass.
DrFinesseMD
A vase containing his wife's ashes. I wish I could make this shit up.
UserSubImgurian
My first shift on my own as an RN, guy had a 10" dildo up his ass, hidden behind his spleen on xray about to enter transverse colon
proj3ctmayh3m
Umbrella
razmann
a doctor i work with kept a collection of XRays of things people stuck in their butt. he stopped after he came across a ship in a bottle
KomodoKill
1 month ago. A hammer. Up in the ass. Not a huge one, one of those used for hanging pictures at home and that stuff
KomodoKill
Not removed by me, I just saw it on the ×-ray
IAmTheBadW01f
Of course not, it's hard to reach around that far and pull
KomodoKill
Yeah ... I didn't get it by 2 inches
TayTay051
Not including things inserted during hospitalization
Starcatcher1986
But... That wouldn't be strange, now would it? That'd just be medicine as usual.
TayTay051
Is that what they called it?
driftinginspace
Poop. I scooped it out with my fingers. That's dedication people. I will say this, my poker face has improved 300%
InhaleMyBumHole
That kind of poop that's dry and impacted that could lead to death if not removed? Scary stuff.
PinkProzac
Been there. Had an impaction. Was not a fun time.
driftinginspace
I feel like I've helped birth something, besides catching two of my kids.
WhitePhoenix
You caught your own two kids? Damn, your firing strength must be damn good. Kegels?
driftinginspace
I'm a dad....
zoeisabunny
That's definitely not in a cna's scope of practice and you could lose your license for that
zoeisabunny
I'm not trying to be mean. Inserting your finger into a pts rectum is considered an invasive procedure and can also be very dangerous 1/2
zoeisabunny
the pt. I was a cna before I was a nurse, and as a cna I would not want that liability if something went wrong.The tissue in the rectum 2/3
zoeisabunny
delicate and tears easily, and accidental vagal nerve stimulation could be deadly for a pt who has cardiac problems. For your and your 3/4
Goddamnitoldman
I saw a nurse do that to my wife before, definitely not a pretty sight.
VodkaReindeer
Why did you watch? Whyyyy
Manieman
Something to jerk off to later
Goddamnitoldman
Exactly, probably the only time I'll see another woman with a finger in her. I'll take what I can get.
thehungryguy
"is that a camera?" "don't worry about it"