Scariest moments in work....

tallaght01

Just talking about this to a mate yesterday.

What's everyone's scariest moment at work?

Mine was the first time I ever had to resuscitate a baby. I remember it well. I was a paeds SHO for about 2 days at the time, working in a neonatal unit.

We would often get calls from the labour ward. saying that a mum is in labour and that her baby might come out in a bit of trouble, so they would request our presence at the delivery, just in case. Most of the time, the baby is fine, and we leave shortly after the birth.

However, as a new SHO (senior house officer-relatively junior doc. THE most junior doc in most paeds departments) you're not supposed to go to these deliveries without bringing your registrar (senior doc), and until (s)he has guided you through a few real life resuscitations. After a couple of months supervised, you're allowed go to deliveries alone.

So, I had been to a few deliveries, but the babies had always been fine.

Then on this morning, we got 2 calls from the labour suite at exactly the same time, saying there could be 2 babies born in the next few minutes in trouble.

They were being born at different ends of the labour unit.

My registrar says "well, we're gonna have to go to one each I'm afraid. You're on your own. You go to room 1, because that doesn't sound like there will be anything wrong, and I'll go to room 20, as that sounds serious."

Nothing wrong me arse

My baby comes out white as a sheet, and flat as a pancake. No respiratory effort at all. Heart rate about 20.

"****, crash page the registrar NOW", says the panic stricken noob that is tallaght01.

We'd crash paged him and I started resuscitating this kid. I picked up the tiny bag and mask and gave rescue breaths. Heart rate improved, but still no resp effort. I carried on, wondering where the hell the reg was.

"please breath, kiddy, please breathe!! Go on, you know you want to"

Mum is in the room screaming "ohhhhh noooooo is my baby dead???". Me and the nurse are frantically trying to work out what is going on, while continuing with bag and mask ventilations"

"where's the reg???"

"I've paged him twice"

"****"

I have never been so relieved in my life when that kid decided to breath. I could have hugged him when he peed on me.

Next thing the reg strolls in at his leisure, looks at this crying, pink baby and says "ah, good, so no problems?".

His emergency pager hadn't been working. He'd literally just walked in to make sure things were all right.

He was wondering why i was sweating like a pig, though.

I've been at scenarios like that a million times since. It's pretty routine in neonates. I've been involved in much much more serious situations than that. But, I've never been more frightened in my career than I was then.

Definitely my scariest moment in medicine, but also my best day ever in medicine

Anyone else wanna volunteer theirs? Not even just the docs and nurses...I'm sure the students and the sciency ppl have had some scary times? Or any members of the public been stuck looking after someone very ill that terrified them?

John

Not quite the same thing, more freaky than scary and not life or death in the traditional sense. I was dissecting a rat to remove the brain for molecular analysis late one night. I was last in the department and on my own in the lab. There was an epic thunder storm outside.

Anyway, to remove a rat's brain you have to remove the head from the body first and then you can open the skull with relative ease. I had removed the head and had it in my left hand and was about to continue with the procedure when there was a large lightning flash outside. The rat's head actually twitched in my hand and I let out a girlish scream, images of a zombie rat's head briefly going through my mind. Last time I dissect during a thunder storm!

Traumadoc

The 130kg, 195 cm acute psychotic who attacked me with a chair, probably.

DrIndy

Traumadoc wrote: »

The 130kg, 195 cm acute psychotic who attacked me with a chair, probably.

LOL.... sorry.... but ROFL!!!!

I have had a few hairy moments at resuscitations too - they don't get any easier. I don't really remember which was the worst because I try to blot them out when not in work.

I'll think of one.....

Traumadoc

Actually no harm done, But it was the scariest.- Earned my beer tokens that night.

Chunky Monkey

Nothing as bad as anyone else here but when I was sixteen and on my first day working as a HCA I was giving a confused lady a shower. The nurse thought I was okay on my own so left me to it but she collapsed. Luckily I was behind her and was able to catch her but man that was scary. There was also a time when I was specialing a psychiatric patient who got very angry cos she thought the doc had put cotton wool in her food and she tried to leave. None of us knew what to do with her, even the nurses and security guards. She crushed my hand and thumped one of the students nurses when we trapped her in the lift but she calmed down eventually and started crying. Her story was very sad Not knowing what to do was the scary thing about that.

littlebug

John wrote: »

Anyway, to remove a rat's brain you have to remove the head from the body first and then you can open the skull with relative ease. I had removed the head and had it in my left hand and was about to continue with the procedure when there was a large lightning flash outside. The rat's head actually twitched in my hand and I let out a girlish scream, images of a zombie rat's head briefly going through my mind. Last time I dissect during a thunder storm!

ewwwww...

anyway...

realising that a group of about ten very unpredicable and potentially violent psychiatric patients (max security hosp) were in a circle around me and closing in. " This is Rose" said one. "She bites people". Rose did bite people. I'd seen her notes. She was a bad bad biter:eek:. The circle closed in and Rose came slowly closer and closer and closer. I looked over my shoulder wondering where the f*** was the guard that wasn't supposed to leave me on my own with even one patient and where the f*** were the nurses. Thinking to myself "ok don't panic, if I panic they'll panic and these are very dangerous people". Anyway there was nowhere to go... so I just stood there like an eejit half smiling trying not to look like I was panicking. Rose stood as close as she could to me and moved her face closer and closer and closer while visions of my ear being ripped to shreds ran though my mind not to mention what the others would do to me when the melee started. I could feel her breathe on my cheek as she leaned and I closed my eyes for some strange reason and she...... kissed my cheek!
The nurse came in just then and they all dispersed.
I wonder what would've happened if I'd panicked.....

Chunky Monkey

^^ haha are you a doc or a HCA? That must have been pretty scary alright

littlebug

Chunky Monkey wrote: »

^^ haha are you a doc or a HCA?

Neither This was happened many many:o years ago when I was a very young and very green psychology student.

eth0_

Chunky Monkey - when were you a HCA? I didn't realise you could do that job if you are <18?

Chunky Monkey

Ah I didn't realise you see patients when you're a psychology student. Better warn my friend he wants to start next year

Hey eth0_, ye I was sixteen when I started though it was in a private hospital. Perhaps it's only in publics you aren't allowed to start HCA work until you're eighteen. The work, although along the same lines, is a lot more heavy duty I've noticed.

eth0_

Chunky Monkey wrote: »

Ah I didn't realise you see patients when you're a psychology student. Better warn my friend he wants to start next year

You don't unless you're a post-grad student. It's really hard to get work experience as an undergrad, almost impossible

littlebug

eth0_ wrote: »

You don't unless you're a post-grad student. It's really hard to get work experience as an undergrad, almost impossible

you pick an undergrad course that has a work placement as part of the course

(sorry... way OT)

eth0_

littlebug wrote: »

you pick an undergrad course that has a work placement as part of the course

(sorry... way OT)

Oh! Where are you doing your degree? What sort of stuff did you do in the placement?

Hellm0

The time I accidentally wiped a very large clients billing database. I was expecting the death sentance.

Chunky Monkey

^ Oh lord that does sound scary:eek:

What would you do with psychology? Is it mainly research or do you do the lie down on the couch sessions as well? Or maybe I'm completely ignorant and I have the wrong idea altogether, sorry if I do

BanzaiBk

Being physically attacked by a drunk male on Stephen's night 06' because the "wait was too long". After he lashed out at me he stumbled over the chairs and landed on an elderly lady. I was more concerned for her than anything else, thankfully security handled it pretty well. What scared me was the posibility of it getting more out of hand then it was. That particular night the comp system collapsed and we were manually registering people and had to leave our contained office to do so.