Stupidest thing you've done . . .

Giobobo1

Giobobo1

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Lets hear it, whats the stupidest thing you've done in your entire career?
 
Spent one year too long at a shady, medicare/caid fraud, renal rodeo company in Los Angeles. I always shudder like Sideshow Bob when I think about it.
 
I tell psych holds to cheer up all the time.

The worse your attitude the worse everything seems.
 
forgot to release the tourniquet on a IV, 25 minutes later in the ED the patient stated that her arm hurts now. When they went to change her into a hospital gown they found the tourniquet I forgot about.
 
Kidquick said:
Trusted an automatic BP cuff...
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That's a pretty broad statement. Considering thousands of providers use NIBP multiple times a day with accurate measurements.
 
Decided to be a paramedic instead of a physician.

Transported to the wrong hospital, once. I certainly felt pretty stupid.
 
unleashedfury said:
forgot to release the tourniquet on a IV, 25 minutes later in the ED the patient stated that her arm hurts now. When they went to change her into a hospital gown they found the tourniquet I forgot about.
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I have done that. It makes you feel like a complete moron.
 
unleashedfury said:
forgot to release the tourniquet on a IV, 25 minutes later in the ED the patient stated that her arm hurts now. When they went to change her into a hospital gown they found the tourniquet I forgot about.
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I've done the same and wondered why the patient still managed to bleed so heavily even while I tamponaded. I didn't even catch on right away when the blood began to backflow into the tubing. I'll admit I even wondered if I had an arterial line for a moment or two. Fortunately the EMT in the back with me asked if it had anything to do with the bright purple tourniquet still on the patient's arm under his sleeve before I got too much further...

One of my more creatively stupid moments was attempting to add another albuterol treatment to a running neb set-up. I simply unscrewed the base with the O2 tubing still connected and running and watched in horror as the remainder of the DuoNeb misted over the ambulance at what seemed to be much more than 8 LPM. I seem to recall breathing quite easily for the rest of that transport.
 
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chaz90 said:
I've done the same and wondered why the patient still managed to bleed so heavily even while I tamponaded. I didn't even catch on right away when the blood began to backflow into the tubing. I'll admit I even wondered if I had an arterial line for a moment or two. Fortunately the EMT in the back with me asked if it had anything to do with the bright purple tourniquet still on the patient's arm under his sleeve before I got too much further...

One of my more creatively stupid moments was attempting to add another albuterol treatment to a running neb set-up. I simply unscrewed the base with the O2 tubing still connected and running and watched in horror as the remainder of the DuoNeb misted over the ambulance at what seemed to be much more than 8 LPM. I seem to recall breathing quite easily for the rest of that transport.
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Done that more than once.

Started a second line cause my all mighty self deemed the original started by a different agency was bad when it wouldn't flow no matter what I did. Checked every clamp multiple times...except the one closest to the hub...whoopsies.
 
Stupidest move was forgetting to ask about Viagra before giving nitro…

…Aaaaaand he's out! Scared the crap out of me. Thankfully he came around right about the time I remembered to ask that all-important question. Never made that mistake again.
 
I think the stupidest thing I ever did was allow myself to be introduced to this place known as "Starbucks"...
 
Helped deliver a baby at a home full of drunks and little kids, and left the scalpel behind.

As a civilian EMT, crawled through the back window of a scrunched-down, rolled-back-onto-its-wheels (maybe three rolls) VW Bug with gas on the ground and no charged hand line, to establish control of the drunken and awakening driver. Had to cut his CB radio antenna wire so he could take the CB with him to quiet him down. (Hey, it was 1981…)
 
Got involved in ems.

Returned to ems a second time.

Burned some bridges unintentionally.
 
During my training I was starting an IV on my patient, I informed my proctor and went for it. We arrived at the ER and the MD. was far from thrilled learning I had stuck and 18G IV in the patients Dialysis Fistula (Whoops!). You live and you learn...
 
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