I haven't posted for a while...I know this. please excuse the tardiness.  I have been avoiding my blog for fear of sheer emotional vomit to ensue.

Since becoming a nurse, on my own I mean, I have been in an emotional roller coaster that leaves me faint, sick, drained, and for lack of better terminology a down right angry bitch. The ER has been the biggest wake up call I have ever received. It is difficult for me to explain this wake up call in the same way it was difficult for a reporter to explain what the aftermath from Katrina would be the day the storm hit. I'm still in it. I know it's going to be huge, and it's painful to experience up close and personal, and its really scary wondering what could possibly happen next. There is too much to explain to someone not in this world I now work in, but I will leave you with some of the quotes I still remember from today alone. Enjoy:


Dr. K to patient and family: " your mother has cirrhosis of the liver. Her white blood cell count is critically low, and she has pneumonia. She has a potentially life threatening situation.
Daughter of Pt: Well will she be able to come home then?
Dr. K: No! out of the question, I just said she has a potentially life threatening condition!
Daughter: what does that mean?


Pt: I haven't been able to sleep for 4 days.
Me: What's been going on at home?
Pt. My babies daddy got shot wednesday. My son and him were really close and now he is not himself. I am so worried about him. He got shot by someone I know and I don't feel safe anymore. My baby daddy was a drug dealer but he was a good man. He only did it to make us some money. He always took care of us and took my son to church every sunday. The funeral is wednesday and my son hasn't cried yet. Today was always their day of the week to spend time together. I'm so sad. do I have to be diagnosed with anxiety if I feel like this?
Me: ms. x, no. you have what we call situational anxiety. there are certain situations in life that are hard. I cannot imagine what you are going through right now. You will feel this anxiety for a time now, but time will go by and you will heal from this pain. You are strong and I know you are being strong for your boy. You can get though this. I can give you a lis of clinics for you and him to visit to give you someone to talk to.

Pt: I was in a car accident 3 days ago and my neck hurts real bad. Can I get a pain pill?
Me: really? have you taken anything for it at home? why did you wait three days to come see me? No, you can;t get any medicine until you are seen by the Doctor.
pt: man, why'd you come in here if you can't give me nothin, this is rediculous, I'm in pain and you don't even care!

while giving a patient who is impacted with stool an enema:
Pt: girl, you couldn't pay me a million dollars to do what you do!
while I'm cleaning up what she leaked all over the floor while transferring to the bedside commode:
Me: well, its all part of the job darlin, I would hope someone would help me when I needed help with something painful and difficult like this.
Pt: well, good for you, but you still couldn't pay me a million dollars!


Pt came in by ambulance
Pt: I need a prescription refill.
Me: who's your primary doctor? who gave you the prescriptions in the first place?
pt: you.
me: well you need a primary doctor to follow your chronic illnesses that these medications are for.
pt. well I always have to wait for an apt at the doctors office and yall are free. can I get some food? I'm hungry. and some socks. do yall give cab vouchers home?
me: no sir.
pt: then can I be admitted?
Me: no


Me: dr. V you ordered the wrong medications on bed 14.
Dr. V: no I didn't
Me: yes you did, look at it
v: well yall were distracting me, why didn't you tell me when I did it.
Me: I'm sorry i don't sit at your desk and stalk you.
2 min later
Dr. v: why haven't you given meds on 12?
me: cause you ordered them on 14 and haven't ordered them on 12 for me to get them out of the med machine.
v: well you should be able to override it, God yall are so slow.