Scrub-sessed w/ @ScrubLaddy
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Hey guys, welcome back to Friends and Enemas. My name's Lindsay, I'm your host, and who do I have with me? My name is Brock. Yeah. I go by Scrubladdy on TikTok and Instagram. Awesome. Yeah. Do you want to tell them a little bit about where you're from? Sure. If they can't catch it in your accent already. Okay. And then how'd you got into nursing? Sure. And when? Yeah. So I'm in Wisconsin. I work in the ER in Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin. And I'm a nurse.

I got into nursing originally because my mom actually, so I was like grew up and had no idea what I was going to do with my life. Like a lot of college kids do. I feel you. Yeah. You know, and then she was like, why don't you, why don't you look into nursing or whatever? And I was like, okay. Like, cause I went to school and had like some basic like health studies degree. Yeah. And like health studies, like you kind of like look around and people are like,

nobody's doing like anything in health studies you know what I mean? There's like no jobs like you're kind of like oh at the end of this road like it's gonna be like nothing you know what I mean? Yeah yeah. So anyway she's like why don't you look at the nursing man you know and then I had a friend also who's who he was like a bit older than me his wife was a nurse and she loved it she's like I love my schedule I can get a job all the time like it's not a bad gig so so I went into nursing. That's awesome. Yeah. And when did you graduate?

- Awesome, and it was up in Wisconsin? - I went to school in Illinois. - Oh, okay. - So Eastern Illinois University, go Panthers. - That's awesome. I mean, that's a good story because I feel like a lot of people, like you said, they have one reason maybe that they went into healthcare and then some people just kind of like,

maybe I could be a nurse or a doctor work in this field and they just try it for funsies. Yeah. I was not, I was not a healthcare person before. Like I know a lot of people are like, they have like family or something like that. Or they work as like a tech before or whatever. I was not one of those people. Like I grew up, I fixed a garage doors. Oh yeah. Like that was my job. I did a bunch of random jobs. Like I catered, which is also brutal.

Yeah. Oh, yeah. Food industry. Food industry is brutal. Oh, yeah. I also feel like, though, if you work in the food industry, you'll be fine in nursing. That's fair. Yeah. It's a lot of like people skills and it's a lot of like physical labor, which I feel like it's like this is also just health care. Right. And like multitasking and like having to have a million things going on in your brain. And you're like, oh, yeah, don't forget this. Don't forget this. Yeah. It's like very similar. Yeah.

So I always tell people like if you want to get into health care, but you're kind of scared, you should try food service and see if you can handle it because I feel like they're very similar. Yeah, that's a fact. Yes, they're very similar. And it's like stressful, you know? Yeah. Like, yeah, food's for real. So anyways, catered.

Which was fine. It was fun, but it was just catering's just not it. You know, you're not, I mean, I made like 11 bucks an hour. Oh yeah. You know, it's not going to pay the bills for long. No breaking, breaking your back every day, carrying like, cause you'd have to like carry these huge tubs of like, cause you cook all the food, you know? And then it's like, let's bring it all in or whatever, you know? And so you're carrying like these massive like coolers of like cheesy potatoes. They weigh like

70 pounds oh my god yeah it's hard did you like sneak any food while you're there all the time all the time we'd sneak food and drinks it was it was it was always a blast oh man yeah i worked at this really high-end restaurant in tulsa mahogany's if you know you know and i was just a water girl right i couldn't afford the actual meals there so when people would send their meals back um if they hadn't like touched like that ribeye i would so take it home and i was like i'm gonna eat

this. I was broke. It reminds me of Caddyshack when the dudes... All of us did that, though. We would literally take it to the back and like, this doesn't look touched. This was also pre-COVID. This doesn't look touched. This doesn't look touched. And I would just come home every single night with a box of food. Yeah. But those shifts, though, they were fun. Oh, yeah. They're always fun. They're always so fun. They're so memorable, too. I'm like, I'll never forget those times, but...

Don't want to go back. Because you're like in the grind with the co-workers. Oh, yeah. You're in the weeds at all times. Yes. Which is kind of like nursing. Oh, 100%. You kind of trauma bond together. Oh, for sure. Yeah. 100%. Yeah. I'm like so tight with my co-workers. I love them. Do all your co-workers have the accent you have? No. No, they're... No, we don't all got that accent. That was good. Okay. So why did you choose the ER? Okay.

Did you start there? No, I started my first gig ever was a night shift med-surg job. The trenches. The trenches. Yes. Yeah, the trenches. I have so much respect and just mad respect for ER nurses. Oh yeah, I can't do it. Or not ER, med-surg. Not ER nurses, no respect there. You guys are all messed up. No, med-surg is tough. It was really, really hard. To this day, so I worked on...

I did a really interesting rehab job at Mayo Clinic for a while. Med-surg was the hardest job I've had to date. - Wow, yeah. I mean, I'm with you there. That's why I can't do it. Honestly, if it was the only option, I wouldn't be a nurse. - You think so? - Oh, 100%. I would bounce out. - Why do you think it's so hard?

It's constant. Someone's constantly needing something from you and it doesn't end. And then every time for me, when I think I'm caught up and I'm ready to sit and chart, it starts over. It's like six patients average is what I've had. And as an ICU nurse being used to two patients.

where like you go deeper into their care versus like broad spectrum of care right like skipping a rock you're just like trying to like exactly fires the whole time exactly like someone's someone's calling you on the phone while you're in a room with a patient while a doctor needs something from you for another it's just something going on with every single patient yeah crap on the floor or something yeah shit on the floor on the walls maybe like and we still have to clean it up and i'm just like you know what this isn't for me it's not for the faint of heart

- No, it takes a strong nerve span for sure. - It does. - I was thinking about, well, I thought about this because I was thinking like, why is this so hard? I think it has to do with like acuity and like hospital, like how they grade acuity. So I thought about two scenarios. Let me give you one, ready? - Okay. - So you got some dude comes in the ER, his name's Rick, you know, his name's Rick. He's got chest pain, whatever, you know? And so he's got like some SC elevation. Maybe his trope is a little elevated. He's gonna have a cardiac cath tomorrow.

So they put him on cardiac. He's fine. He's chill, dude. He's like, whatever, you know, he's just there. Yeah. So that dude is going to get the same acuity score. He's going to go to cardiac, whatever. He's going to have the same acuity as like,

There's this now woman. She's going to come in. She's 400 pounds. She was found at home by EMS. She lives in like a hoarder's home. She was covered in urine. You know what I mean? And like she's I mean, her labs are all messed up. Yeah. You know, because she's just all out of whack. She's probably like super fluid overloaded, whatever. Yeah. She's going to go to med surge.

You know, and she's probably going to be there for weeks on end because we got to find like placement for it because she can't go back home. You know, those two people are going to have the exact same acuity from like top down. Isn't that crazy? It is crazy. And the nurse has to like deal with both of those along with four other patients that have...

they all have something different happening to them too. And you have to like keep it straight in your head so that when people ask questions, you're like, huh? I always have to look at my paper. I'm like, what, who, what are we talking about? Oh, I know. Yes. I'm so bad at that. I thought it was your patient. I'm like, it is, but I have no fucking clue what's going on. Exactly. It's too much. Yep. I'm like, ah, well, what's your name? I forget their names, man. I'd be walking in the room. Like what number?

what room number? Hey man. Hey man. Or I have like something like, how's it going dude or bro or guy? Yeah, exactly. Just like, Oh, it's always embarrassing when like they can tell you don't remember their name and you're trying to have a peek at their bracelet without them knowing. And you're like, yes, I do that too. I'm just like, Oh crap. They see me looking. Yeah, I know. And, but honestly, like, I hope they're not mad because this is part of it.

Like, do you remember your nurse's name? Probably not. You say nurse. Nurse. Right. That's a good point. Patient. I don't know. People remember my name. They don't really remember my name. I'm like, it's fine. Really? No, not typically. You don't update your whiteboard. I don't. I don't. I don't update my whiteboard. I'm telling you, I think I would thrive in the ER. There's little things that ICU is just so OCD about that just irks me. And I'm like, I don't think the ED would treat me this way.

- Dude, I love the ER. - Really? - I love it. - Tell us why. - Tell you why? - Yeah, tell us why. - Man, that's a good question. I think, I don't know, you just kind of like, well, there's so many options in nursing, right? You know, and so it's like, you start, like I said, I did med-surg, I did the rehab thing, I did like neurosurgery, whatever. You just kind of like keep moving around, try to find like, where do I fit? - Yeah. - You know, what do I like? What fits with me? I think the ER is like,

there's no there's no fluff you know i mean there's no fluff you're not i'm not like sitting there like on the phone like hey would you want to eat again you know a call in the kitchen like you want the roast beef okay do you guys have a side sorry you can't have that that's too much salt you know what i mean yeah like you don't have to do that and that's the stuff i hate you know what i mean it's like i want to just do like the stuff that matters for people and that's what it feels like down there and sure there's a lot of bs too you know because people come in but like at the end of the day it's like every shift you're gonna have somebody come in and it's like critical and it's like all right if we weren't here

they're not going to be okay. And that's a good feeling when you go home. That's a nice way to put it, actually, because I had a new grad on, Olivia, who just moved to the ER, and she said something similar. She feels like the ER is her actually getting, you get a problem and you get to solve it. Even if it's, I have a headache and they need a Tylenol, you still got to check that off your list, like problem solved. And I was like, damn, in the ICU,

Yes, problems get solved, but it like takes months sometimes. And also sometimes they don't get solved and a lot of people just they pass. And so it's like daunting, I guess. It's like, hmm.

It doesn't feel like I'm saving people a lot of times. But people do recover sometimes. They do. That probably feels good. That's the best. And especially if they come back, I'm like, oh, I remember that person. Room three. I don't remember the name, but room three. Right. But it's nice to see them come back for sure. That's cool. Yeah. I mean, that's how you know my work matters. I'm not just like...

You know, you're for no reason, you know. So you said you started in MedSearch. When did you get to switch to ER? I switched in April.

Oh, recently. Yeah. Very recent for me. It's been a new gig. Yeah. Okay. Are you still day or nights or days? I work evenings now. So I work a mixture of eights and twelves. So the whole, that's the other thing is like the schedule down there is just different. Yeah. I didn't know there could be eights down there. Yeah. There's eights and twelves down there. And so it's like, cause you're not just assigned rooms, uh, at least at our hospital, we're like, we're like 30 ish.

beds down there. We've got like three trauma rooms, you know, so we're like, I would say like we're midsize. We're not massive. Yeah. But we're not like a tiny little like critical access somewhere, you know, with four beds. Right. You know, it could be worse. Yeah. But so it's like you've got like these flex nurses, you've got room, you've got nurses that cover like rooms and you have like trauma nurses and triage nurse. There's a lot of different roles, you know, so the schedule is just kind of different because you got to fill these different spots. Okay. Yeah. That's cool. Yeah.

So my first time floated from the ICU to the ER, I was a travel nurse and I was excited because I was always interested in the ER. But the charge nurse came up to me and this term isn't the same everywhere, but this was the term there. She was like, OK, you'll be first nurse.

First nurse. I don't know what that is. I didn't know either. So I was like, okay, what's that? She's like, here, you'll just sit at this window. And when people come in, you'll mark what they are and you'll send them either to triage or you'll send them like you put, I was triaging. So you're like a pre triage. Pretty much. But I was like, I've never done that before. Like, I don't,

really know what I'm looking for. No one gave me any direction. So I was extremely nervous. I was like, so what are you supposed to be doing? I'm looking for like critical, critical heart attack strokes. That's what I'm like really looking for. And then COVID you go sit over here, you know, like kind of what I, what I imagine triaging is.

before you triage, I guess, pre-triage, like you said. - You're just there to be like, "Hey, this guy does not look okay." - Exactly, he doesn't look right, he needs to come back. So I was like, "Okay, I think I can do that." So the first patient that came in, I'm not lying, I'm not exaggerating, when she came in, she came up to the front window, and this is when I was like, "This is what all those ER TikToks are about." She said, "Miss, I need help." And I was like, "Okay, can I get your driver's license, your insurance, and what's your problem?" She said, "My vagina, someone gotta look at this right now." That's exactly, and I said,

Oh my God, this is the wild west on it. Like out loud in front of all the other patients sitting there. I was like, okay, what's wrong? Probably like 20 other people there. I was like, no shame. Props to her. That was the first encounter. The next one, because keep in mind, I'm looking for stroke. I'm looking for heart attack. The next one comes in. It's COVID. So there's a glass there. So all I can do is listen to him.

And look at him and he's slurring his words. He looks faint. He's red.

We take his blood pressure. It's through the roof. And I was like, stroke alert, immediate stroke alert. So I come back with him. And as he's talking to me, I start, I'm like, oh, now I can smell his breath. Sir, have you been drinking lately? He's like, yeah, I, you know, drink a handle a day. I'm like, oh, okay. Are you on any medications? Well, typically I take a blood pressure med, but you know, I haven't been taking it lately because it was, it was better.

So that's probably why your blood pressure is super high. You're drunk. That's why you're slurring your words. But they still sent him to CT. No stroke. He was just drunk. He was just hammered. I was like, this is awesome. It happens all the time. It's just like so much like an idiot. Yeah.

Yeah, for sure. Stuff like that happens all the time. Like you'll get people come in and it's just like, this is like textbook heart attack. They're like, my arm is killing me. My jaw hurts or whatever, you know? And you're just like, go, go, go. Like everyone's just like, go, go, go, go. And come to find out like they're just constipated. Right. It's just nothing. Exactly. And you're like, well, that was wild, man. Like, cause we all were just like ready. You're like excited waiting for that adrenaline. Yeah. Like you're like ready. Like let's help this person, you know? And it's just like, all right, sir, you just need to take a shit. Yeah. You need to go take a dump. You'll feel better.

Okay, so it's not just me because I was like... But the other side though is you do get those sometimes that come in. There's times where it's like the complete opposite where somebody comes in and they're just sort of like...

I don't really feel right or whatever. And they're just sort of like, you're just like, okay, like we're just going to do like basic labs, you know? And then you find out like their sodium is like critically low or something. You know what I mean? They're kind of like a little confused or like, I mean, you know, they're just, and you're just like, they're actually like super sick, you know, and they're going to go to the ICU and you're just like, we had no, we did not see this coming. Right. And then when you give us a report, we're like, yeah, sure. Sure. You didn't see it coming. Yeah. We got to talk about this.

Okay, well, what's your main beef with ICU nurses? I don't know. I feel like you guys are beefing with me. You're beefing with me. That's bullshit. You guys beef with us so hard. No, they do. I'm going to say they. It's not me. I don't treat people like that. But listening, overhearing, I'm like, why are you talking to someone else on the phone that way? That is so fucking rude. If I was on the other end, I would black out a little bit and lose my cool. Just because I'm like, why are you talking to people like that?

That's so rude. It's weird. I don't know. I think we're all on the same team. Let's just be friends. We can be on the same team. And I don't think it's everyone. There's always just a couple bad eggs. That's one of the things about my page. And you know them too. You're like, oh, not her. Exactly. There's always a bad egg somewhere. And I feel like it infects the waters of the unit. You know what I mean? Do you think... Well, maybe if you guys looked at their skin once...

We do. I always put them in a gown. So it's at least it's like you're kind of like. But you say they have it. Yeah. They got some skin on them. I don't I don't ask those questions anymore. But as a new grad, like, I guess I guess from my point of view, we're programmed to ask these certain questions. And so then we expect because you don't work on these other units, you think every nurse asks these questions. Right. So then I yeah.

I think it's just a misunderstanding of what each group is doing and kind of like the goal of your group. And there's times that ERs chill. Like, I'm not going to lie to you, like straight up, like every unit, like there's times where it's like, hey, that was not a bad shift. You know what I mean? But there's times it's not. And it's like your waiting room has like 20 people and it's like bursting at the seams. You got ambulances coming in. So it's like, we'll send some dude up. He peed himself. He's in his jeans. My bad. Sorry. Anyway, got to go. Yeah, exactly. Honestly, I don't mind the like people get real upset.

people, aka ICU nurses, get real upset about soiled patients. And I'm like, we literally have to clean them when they come on the unit. What is the problem? I really don't get it. Like, we have to wipe them down, look at their skin, do all of it anyway. Well, it's not fun. It's not fun, but I'm like, it's already going to happen. But also it just shows like...

A lot of people have not been floated to the ED and it shows. Yeah. Because I'm telling you the first time I was floated and I've been floated many times now. I get it. I'm like, oh, it's chaos down there. It's tough. Yeah. It's tough. I was going to tell you, can I tell you a short story here really quick? Yeah.

I brought a patient up to the ICU. You know what I mean? And like, so right before we went up, you know, he was like, I got to go to the bathroom really bad. I'm like, let's use the bedpan, man. Like, cause he's, he's on like eight liters of oxygen. He's hooked up to two IVs. He's got two antibiotics running. He was like, he was just not doing,

doing great. Yeah. And he can't move very well. And he's like, no, I got to get to the commode, whatever, you know? So it's like, I go grab this commode. I'm like in there with him. He starts trying to like get up. So he's like, he's like ripping his IV out. Cause he's like, now he starts to like, you know, crap himself. And like, we're trying to get to the commode. He's like, it's like this emergent, like he like throws his oxygen off. It was a mess. You know what I mean? He crapped on the floor. He crapped on his leg, on the bed, whatever. Yeah. It was, it was just not, it was like, okay. And the ICU is waiting for me to bring him up. So I'm like, all right,

Let's just figure this out. Let's clean your leg off. Let's get this done. And then we'll get you back in the bed and I'll take you up. I get up there. I take him up and I get up there and the nurse looks at me and she's like, we've been waiting for quite a while.

I'm just like, are you kidding me right now? Like every other time you bring somebody up here, it's like, well, too soon. We, we, we're not ready for him. We don't know who this guy is. Who's his nurse. Everyone's like panicking. And now it's like, now it's too late because I had to clean them up. Cause he crapped on the floor. Right.

Like, sorry, my bad. Exactly. My fucking bad. And that's where I'm just like, God, like, what is the deal? You cannot win. Exactly. You cannot win. That's a really upset him. I'm sorry. I'm getting, I'm getting heated here. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding.

no but it is it is stupid it's like why why are you upset it took so long honestly i'd be like awesome i can finish up my charting for my other patient until like what's the problem i don't know what the problem is man they just wanted a bitch i think so honestly i think so but like let's just like all agree for everyone that might potentially listen to this or watch this like let's just be friends yeah we can just be friends we can yes i like

the friendly banter you know like where I'm like oh right they shit in the elevator cute you know I just I like messing with them but like it's actually never it's never that deep yeah it's never that deep it's not that deep no yep well speaking of poop stories in the ER I have a couple to read to you let's hear them they're pretty short but I just I was like gonna bring this up but you started it so I was like great oh gosh I

Last time I was floated to the ER, I had, I posted about this on TikTok. So sorry if you already saw it or if you've listened to this, but for those who haven't, I got rapport, everything's going good. And the first thing I like to do is read progress notes. My favorite thing. It's like reading someone's diary. I'm like, okay, let's see what happened. The nurse before me did not tell me in person, but on the progress note, it said there was a family member from this patient that kept using the employee bathroom. And I was like, that's a weird place.

It's not about the patient. So why is it in the chart? But I thought it was like interesting. Okay, I'll keep an eye out. How did they even get in there? Well, this particular unit did not have a locked employee bathroom. So a lot of people are like, well, what about the code? Not all hospitals are built the same. And it was like right on the unit. And it could have been mistaken as a normal bathroom, honestly. I was like, okay, well, it's probably not that big of a deal. I don't know why she wrote that.

go about my day. I kind of forget about it. I see a few patient family members come in and out. And towards the end of my shift, I was like, oh, I actually need to pee real quick. So I'm going to run to the employee bathroom and open the door. Where you should go. Where I should go. Yeah. Shit everywhere. Oh, no. On the toilet, on the side of the toilet, literally dribbled all the way down over to the sink. And I was like,

what the fuck this is our only bathroom up here what the fuck so i had to close it run to a different unit come back and i was like okay i'm gonna go peek in my patient in my patient's room again there was a new family member in there and there was poop on the bottom of his pants on his pant and i was like oh no it's you you were the one pooping everywhere but why didn't you tell anyone why do we just like i'm just gonna crap on the floor and then just he was older and so i i felt bad for him i was

I'm sorry. No, I was just like, what am I supposed to do with this? Honestly, I didn't say anything to him because I felt embarrassed for him. Yeah, he's already kind of like... I'm sure he's embarrassed. Exactly. So you're just like, it's okay. But also I was like, what the fuck? That's the only bathroom we have.

And then when you call EVS, they're like, sorry, we don't clean up bodily fluids, you know? And I'm like, I'm not cleaning this shit up. What the hell? Anyway, I thought that was funny because everyone has a poop story in the ER. Oh yeah, for sure. And you just gave yours. Oh yeah. So I had someone write in and they said, I had a patient shit in his cup. I

I didn't know. And I was giving him medications and then tried to hand him his cup of water. Oh, like his cup of water? His cup of water. What? He must have been confused because how would you...

Not like I would be like, don't give me that. I don't know. He might have not been confused. Because some people aren't. Some people do stuff like that. That's what I'm saying. And like, I think the general public that watches our stuff and it's like, this isn't right. They don't realize so many people are alert and oriented times for and like chose to do these. Yeah. Chose these actions. Yes. And they don't get it. They're like, well, maybe they were confused. They weren't, though. That's the problem here.

Right. That's like the reason I made my page. Right. It's like, yes, you guys don't get it. We're not talking about people who can't help it. We're talking about the people who can. Yes. And it's weird. It is weird. That's literally that is the reason I made my page because I got like friends in college or whatever. They're like accountants. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like, how was work today? And they're like, well, I sent some emails. I worked on a spreadsheet or some crap like that, you know? And so if I tell you about it, I'm like, hey, this is what I did at work. It's indescribable. Right. You know what I mean? I cannot get you to understand. Mm hmm.

What's going on? Unless you've been through it. Unless you've been through it. That's another thing too. It's just like, so I have a rule to myself. Like when people on the internet argue with me, I'm just like, I'm not, I'm not going to go there because I'm done trying to like, try to get these people to understand this. Yeah, you shouldn't. Right. So I make the videos about it. Yeah. And the people are always like, man, that's wild. Like, is that real? I'm like, yes, that's real. And that's why people like it because they watch it and they're like, dude, that happened

to me. You know what I mean? Like this crazy scenario that you would never think would be possible happened to me. And it's like, no, that stuff happens. And that's why I make the videos. Exactly. It's more like a PSA for the general public. It's like...

you probably didn't know this, but it happens all the time. It's undis... Oh my gosh, it's indescribable. It is. It is. It's just like, sometimes I'm at work. I was at work like two days ago and I was like sitting in like this and I was like talking to this other guy named Jake. He's the man, by the way. Jake, you're the man. Shout out to Jake, dude. Anyways, we're like sitting back there and we were just like, I can't believe this is our job.

You know what I mean? He was an engineer and then he like switched to healthcare. Why? Because he didn't like doing like the desk work. Okay, fair. You know, and he was like doing spreadsheets all the time and you talk to your manager and they don't, you know, like it's just...

Fluff. Yeah. Honestly, that is one huge reason I decided to go into nursing is because I didn't want a desk job. And I'm on my feet more than I would like, but I'd rather that than be sitting behind a desk personally. Me too. And that's why I think a lot of...

Like these soft nursing positions, which are great for most people. I don't think I'd fit in with them. Right. I need to be like moving. Do you ever feel like addicted to your job? Oh, oh, yes. I'm addicted. I'm addicted. I'm an addict.

You like the chaos. Yeah, it's weird. It's like the adrenaline and you're there and you're kind of like, but then you start, you're not there and you miss it. You're like, oh man, something's wrong with me. I got to go back. I got to go back. I got to go back to the gates of hell. That's what I always call my hospital. I'm always like, this is gates of hell.

Is there a story you can think of that's like your, I only ask you like as a nurse, like we typically don't care, but people that are not healthcare workers are interested in like, what's the craziest thing you've seen or interesting, something unexpected that you can think of? I usually just tell people like critical stuff. So my sister, she's not a nurse at all. She lives like really close to me. We're really tight. Okay.

Anyways, I always like to tell her stuff because she's always just like, how's it going in the ER? You know, she has like a desk job. Yeah, she's like she's the best. But she's like has like a desk job. And like I just tell her like stories like, hey, this guy came in like he's unconscious in his car. EMS brought him in. He did way too much cocaine or like, you know, just like stuff like that, you know, and like and then she's just like sitting there like she's just like, I cannot believe that this is your job. I mean, I'm just like, oh, yeah, you know, that's like.

- It's like a normal day. - That's like a normal day. - Yeah. - Like some dude comes in and he just did way too much cocaine and now he's like unconscious and like, you don't like, oh, that's the other thing too, sorry. - No, don't be sorry. - I was talking about like the ICU, the ER, you know what I mean? Like here's the, this is something that just drives me nuts is when I get crap from ICU nurses. - Yeah. - Which I don't get all the time, but sometimes we do. 'Cause it's like, we get some dude, he comes in, we know nothing.

I'm digging through his pants to get his wallet so I can get his name. Oh, yeah. And so then we work them up. We intubate and we got labs, all the stuff. Now we have answers, you know, and that's when he's going to go upstairs. Yeah. You know what I mean? And so it's just kind of like the different like dynamic of like, hey, you have the privilege now.

of all this lab work and you know, he's actually breathing with this vent now, thanks to us, you know? And that was us. Yeah. And that was us. And that's why he's still breathing. Right. You know, but you have like the luxury of like, now we can look at his demographics because you guys found his wallet and his jeans. True. You know what I mean? True. It's just like different, you know? So it's like when they ask you questions, they're mad that you did something. It's just like,

like, just put yourself in my shoes. Yeah, absolutely. You know what I mean? Well, and like you said, you're like, what if you don't have that information? Because ICU nurses love information. Like they want to know as much as possible, but it makes sense that you're not always going to have all the information right away. Right. Clearly, you don't even know. You don't even have his history. And sometimes it's like he's never been to this hospital before. So you're just like, and there's nobody there to tell you about him. Right. He's by himself. And so you're just like, I don't know. Exactly. This is what's happening at the moment.

moment. This is what's happening in the moment. He's not breathing. Yeah. He's coming to you. Exactly. Yeah. No, that's interesting. I didn't think of it like that either. I feel like, um,

Now I really do want to kind of pick up a shift in the ER. You should, man. Come down there. I probably will. It's a good time. I probably will because it is up my alley a little bit. Just a little bit. Oh, yeah. And just back on the poop. And this is the last poop. But patient family shat in a bucket and left it in the closet. Ew. Ew. Gross. Why'd you do that? At least make it to the employee bathroom. Why would you go poop in a bucket? Why would you do that?

But why like I'm telling you the craziest stuff happens in the ER and again like I know a lot of people need help but a lot of people are I don't know I'm like what went through your mind I think that was a great idea why didn't you take the bucket with you? Did you just find like a closet this is the spot for me? No it's you you were the last one in here. That's insane. It's just strange. Yeah. It's strange. You have nice veins by the way.

Yes. A lot of people notice and I'm like, it's not a big deal. Look at that. That's a good one. Yeah. Also people, you see that hole there? Yeah. I have one on this side too. I had a nurse ask me if I was an IV drug user and I was like, okay, no, I'm not an IV drug user. Number one, that's from plasma.

oh what'd you get plasma okay well i used to be a poor college student and we would get money for donating plasma so i just go donate but i was like what a strange no no just because you see a little hole doesn't mean someone's not being checking right usually it's a lot more torn up than that and usually around this long usually they don't have like all your teeth you know what i'm saying there's a couple other factors first of all what are you trying to say yeah what are you trying to say speaking of um drug users how can i put this

I think that the general public also doesn't have a lot of information about drug use and what it can actually look like. I came across a story on Reddit that was talking about this young woman in her 20s. And I'm only bringing this up because in the ICU I work in, I work in the MICU, which is medical. We get a lot of withdrawals. And of course, society knows drugs are bad and drugs can kill you. But I don't think they know that drugs can do worse than kill you. Right.

To me, the worst thing is not death. For instance, this young woman came into the ER after shooting up some type of something and ended up getting emboli everywhere. Okay. Long story short, because it was a long ass post, she ended up having to have every single limb removed.

amputated. That sounds like a horror movie. It is. Yeah. 20 years old. And you were just doing some drugs at home. You know what I mean? Like, I'm like, and you don't think that that can happen to you and you leave with a head and a torso. And I just like, I kind of wanted to put it out of PSA because I bet you see something, some things like that. Maybe I've never seen that. You're like, hold on. That's quite terrifying. Yeah, it is terrifying. Yeah. Well, we just see some people come in. Yeah. Drugs. Yeah. Yeah. And I think the other message I wanted to say is like,

We really don't judge them coming in on drugs. Like, I literally don't care. I just want to know because of these other medications that we might be mixing with whatever you've just had. And I think a lot of times they're scared that like we're going to tell the cops or we're going to we legally can't.

it's not our job yeah oh no we can't i tell them that all the time i'm like hey man do you take anything yeah and i just tell them like because they're always a little bit like i don't really want to tell you yeah like that was apprehensive they don't want to tell you and i just tell them straight up i'm like hey listen man like i don't tell the police anything and i i can't yeah like legally unless they have a warrant yeah i cannot tell them anything about what you took i'm just here for you dog yeah like i'm here for you man like we gotta help you yeah yeah but yeah drugs are nasty

We get a lot of people that come in on drugs. It's just, I mean, it's a sad cycle. It is a sad cycle. You know what I mean? And like, as I think at one, well, I don't want to just PSA to everyone here, but at one point in my life, you know, I struggled with alcohol for a minute there because I went through like some serious depression, you know, and it's like when you're in it, it's just hard to get out of it. Yeah. You know, and like people with harder drugs, that's even more like I couldn't even imagine. You know what I mean? Like alcohol is hard, but it's not like it ain't heroin. Right. You know what I mean? And the people that are in that, you just...

I don't know. The mind space that they're in is sad. Oh, it's so sad. And I feel for them so hard. Cause like you said, like everyone has advice from when they're at their lowest and that's all it is at the end of the day. And so I'm just like, we're not here to judge you, but I want you to know that

worst things can happen than death in my opinion with with long-term usage and it's like yeah it's not all fun and games yeah yeah okay well that was somber but okay so speaking of other interesting stories i thought of one um that happened to my husband's didn't happen to me but um have you had any anyone come in with ancestry dna stories

No. No? No. Okay. So my husband got a patient that came in from, unfortunately, a suicide attempt. But the story was for Christmas, his daughter was gifted an ancestry DNA test. And she took it and found out she had other siblings. My gosh. That were his kids that he had cheated on his wife 20 years ago. Okay. And so he tried to commit suicide and it failed and it was

so much drama on the unit. And I just remember that. And I think like now I'm like, don't don't gift people those unless you know exactly what's happening, because that was not only the first, but I've heard that similar story two or three times. And I was curious if you had ever seen it. No, I've never seen that. But that's hilarious. Like, it's not funny.

funny that you try to commit suicide. It's just this situation, you're like, damn. Yes, exactly. Like, hey, I'm your brother, by the way. You know, we never met each other, but your dad banged my mom like 20 years ago, you know, like that's wild. Oh, yeah. And it's also why I don't want to take an ancestry DNA test. Why not? Oh, I definitely probably have some...

other siblings out there. Oh, I have like 10 siblings already from different parents. Oh wow. Yeah. And so like, I'm like, you know what? I don't need to meet anyone else in my life. Yeah. No more. That's a lot of kids. That's a lot of kids. Yeah. That's a lot of kids. Um,

I was going to read you this other story that was saying about DNA tests from a listener. She said, this might be a long story, so I will try to keep it brief as possible. But growing up, I never knew who my father was. I don't even have anybody listed as my father on my birth certificate. My mother thought it would be a great idea to not tell me until I turned 16. My dad started coming into my life at that age or so I thought he was my dad. I'm 36 years old now. And for the past 20 years, my dad has stepped up for holidays, sports events and whatnot. He's been a great dad.

proving to be a good dad. I knew he had an ancestry DNA test and I wanted to confirm that I was his once and for all because I had no other proof. So I also took an ancestry DNA test in May without him knowing. And on Mother's Day, I found out that my dad is actually related to me. He is not my real dad. On the website, I clicked to see the percentage and we had matched at 24%.

This meant that he's either my uncle or my half brother. I confessed to my mom about this and asked if she knew anything about it. Him being my uncle or my grandpa's daughter. She was pissed and said that I would be the cause of a ripple effect that because I couldn't stop digging. What? I'm kind of like lost in the hole. Like, how does this work? Right. Okay. So mom would have had to have sex with.

A family member, right? I would think so. I'm still trying to put this together. I can't quite figure it out. A brother. A brother of her... A brother or an uncle. Oh, gosh. Okay. And she just said... And the mom was like, just drop it. Just drop it. We don't need to talk about it. Let's not worry about this. Yeah, let's do it. Okay, so ancestry DNA. Stay away from... Don't do it. Don't do it. Because I'm telling you, there's crazy stories that come out of it. Gosh, that's wild. That's not good. That's not good. No. Nope. Okay, so...

Okay, let's pivot. Big Pharma. Big Pharma. You used to work in it? I did. Tell us more. Which is a big deal. It is a big deal. People, I tell people I had this job. Okay, so have you heard of like nursing research? Yeah. So after I did the med surge gig, I did the rehab, the spinal rehab at Mayo Clinic gig, you know, and I was like, I want to do something different. You know what I mean? I'm going to go into nursing research or whatever. I don't know how I did this, man. I got so, it's super lucky. I landed a job at Sorrento Therapeutics

Because like basically like they were trying, it was really cool science. Like science is cool. And pharma is like good and bad. I got so much to say on this. Pharma is like good and bad. Agreed. There's like evil pharma out there who are in this just like, we just want money. Like we don't, you know what I mean? Let's just get as much. They come in with that voice too. Yeah. We just want money.

We're here for the money. Exactly. Yeah. And then there's a good farmer where there's actually like these really amazing scientists and they're like working on things and they're so impressive. You're just like, this is incredible. Like what you're working on, you know, unfortunately it's all those like really good scientists. They don't get like the funding that they deserve. You know what I mean? And so they're obviously a lot of times they're underfunded essentially. But anyways, yeah.

They were trying to inject people's lymph nodes. And I signed an NDA as well, so I can't like go into this too much. Oh, damn. Yeah, it was pretty real. But they were trying to inject people's lymph nodes with biologics for cancer. Oh. Yes. So basically like that's where your T-cells are. Yeah. And they're trying, you know, biologics like act on your T-cells. That's like a really basic view of the science. Yeah. So let's just like target the area with all the T-cells.

That's the idea. Anyways, I was like helping. They contracted me to do it. And they were like, hey, we need somebody because it was at Mayo. They're like, we need somebody to teach these nurses how to do this, how the doctors do it. I was just like, I responded on LinkedIn. I was like, I'll do it.

I'm your guy. Oh my God. So then they flew me out to Georgia and then like trained me how to do this thing, which was pretty, it's like freaking complicated. Yeah. And I was like, I can't believe I'm doing this. So then I would go back to Mayo Clinic and I would just randomly like go in for these injections. I'd be there with the nursing staff, whatever. That turned into a full-time job with the pharma company. Yeah. And so-

It's wild. I like, like Henry G was his name. He owned Sorrento Therapeutics. Like this dude is like a, like a massive multimillionaire. He called me on the phone for an interview and I'm just like, I, I was like at work. I'm like, Hey Henry, man, I'm sorry. I gotta go. I gotta go do my job. You know, it's really a pleasure to meet you, but you know, please hire me by, you know what I mean? Yeah. Anyways, it was cool. Um,

I don't know where I'm going with this, but it was cool. I think the thing I took away is just the disconnect between people that work in a hospital every day and the people that make decisions for hospitals like pharma companies and how it's like they don't understand what's going on inside those doors. And I was kind of like bridging the gap, you know, like trying to help them because like the dudes that were above me never, never worked in a hospital. You know what I mean? Yeah. And so they're like,

we want to run this injection. We want them to do this and take this picture. And like, we want these vital signs at this time point, all these things, because that's how research works, because you have to have like all this data that you can present to the FDA and say, this is safe or whatever, blah, blah, blah, you know? And basically I would just tell them like, this is completely irrational. The nursing staff here cannot do this. Like we can't do this the way you want it to be done just because it's impossible. But anyways, it's just interesting. But did they listen to you? Sometimes. Sometimes.

That's what's frustrating because I've always wondered, you know, who's working in admin or these other companies that help with health care or harm admin. But a lot of times, like it's these people who have never worked bedside, like you said. Yes. And so it's like you don't know how the culture works.

But yet you're trying to make like rules in it. And it's like, exactly. You don't. Do you go here? You don't. You don't know. Right. You don't know the culture works. You're making all these decisions and you're deciding the whole like gritting thing. This is how many nurses we need for this unit at this time. Right. Like, really? How do you know? Right. Exactly. So it's like, how do these rules come into place in the first place? They should have someone from bedside working there. Like that should be.

a soft nursing job, I would say, like away from bedside that you have to have a nurse so that you understand the culture. But they only listen to you sometimes. What do you think about CNOs?

I feel like I don't like them. No, of course we don't like them. I mean, because once again, I think I have, I've only met a few of them in person, but every time they're in a suit and tie, right? They're walking around like, and they're nice. It's always a man. That's who it is. They're always walking around. It's always a dude. That's what I've seen. That's not what I've seen. Really? Yeah. Women. Yeah.

One. Yeah. They're in their boss lady outfits. They're in their boss outfits. Yeah. They walk around the unit and they're like kind of pointing out things that need to be done when they've never fucking stepped foot on a unit before. I'm like, absolutely not. Get the fuck out. Like also like Jayco, who made the rule that we can't have water at our desk? It's ridiculous. Fuck off.

off right it's stupid yeah i just watched that video by that one guy he was talking about jaco it's like presso or whatever yeah you know him anyways talking about jaco and i totally agree it's like why like who are they for one for one and then b why do we care what they think you know what i mean is it funding like do you know for sure i think it's funding okay i think that

I think everything in the hospital boils back down to funding. Jayco, things like that. So if they tick things off that this unit isn't performing here, then maybe they don't get a bonus.

That's the same. Who's the bonus going to? It ain't going to me. It ain't going to us. Exactly. Where's the bonus go? And managers will get mad at me for this because this doesn't happen everywhere. Just say it. But it can happen. At one of the last contracts I worked, I worked on this tele unit, right? The manager was awful. Absolutely hated her guts. Could not stand her. One of the new grads came to me and told me a story that a patient had thrown his tele box at her head, at the nurse's head, right? Broke the tele box. She was like, what?

She presented it to her manager. I was like, hey, this is broken. So sorry. The manager said it was going to come out of her paycheck for the next X amount of times. Because the patient broke it? Because the patient broke it. By being aggressive? By being aggressive. Oh, my gosh. By physically assaulting the nurse. And she was like, well, that costs $10,000. Where do you think it's going to come from? It's going to come from the bonus on the unit. So you're not going to get a bonus. It's what it boils down to is coming out of that manager's paycheck. Oh.

- Oh. - Or like bonus at the end of the year. - That is so sketchy. - It is sketchy. - A couple things to say about that. One, that's sketchy and that sucks. Secondly, why is hospital equipment so freaking expensive? - Exactly. - Like our phones in the ER, they're like the most basic, like little Nokias or whatever, you know? - Oh yeah. - Our manager's like, "Yeah, those cost like five grand."

I'm just like, what? Exactly. It's a scam. How does this cost five grand? This thing is like the most basic piece of crap phone ever. Like the batteries are falling out. My iPhone doesn't cost five grand. How does that cost five grand? Exactly. And the iPhone is like a hundred times more complicated. Yeah. But that's kind of like, that's pharma too. Because that's biotech. Or not, that's technically has to be FDA regulated. Right. You know what I mean? Yeah, to be fair.

At least I believe so. I don't know if the phones, but obviously like all your vents and stuff like that. As soon as it has to be FDA regulated like that, the price just skyrockets. I told you like we just talked to a company named Firefly and I don't know if this is for everything, but with his medical device, it does have to go through so many testing and rounds of whatnot. I wonder if the phones do because like they could be an infection risk. So like I'm sure that they have to go through certain things like who...

But who cares? Why is it $5,000? It's just a phone. It's so stupid. It is. They might have to be. I don't know. I mean, I don't know who's testing. Our phones are beat to shit. They're like cracks all over them. You know what I mean? Oh, yeah. Some of the screens are just destroyed. Oh, yeah. I don't really know. How is this? Who's regulating these here? For sure. Does anybody care? I want to see who is the... What are the people called that do...

like business finances as a cpa or like a oh like a bookkeeper yeah i want to see that shit because like i do too i don't believe it to see that i think that all the time yeah i want to see like the books i want to see how much money we're making i want to see where it's going i want to see who's like you got to be stealing money i feel like because there's just no way a stupid nokia i know what phones you're talking about would be 5k

Just like I think the first time I realized hospitals were businesses over helping people like profit over patient was I was a new grad and a patient presented me with their itemized bill. I like like I had anything to do with it.

But the main thing I saw was the Carmex from the pharmacy that we ordered for them. Carmex was $75. Oh my gosh. And I was like, why? Why? Exactly. Why? Exactly. Like who's doing that? I think like the phone thing. It's like, I think some dude out there basically, like basically they like pitch their story. It's kind of like this. Here's the phones. Nobody cares about this. And guy comes along. He's like,

you know these phones because this could be a detriment to patients or whatever like we need to regulate this or something you know yeah now we have to like beef this up so now this dude's like now in charge of it or whatever and he's gonna make a ton of money because now it's like this big deal and it shouldn't have never been a big deal like the car max right but now it is you know because like right yeah

it's it is it's bs it's bs cno's one more thing about cno's right i just think i think they're the people that they get up there and they like kick the ladder down you know what i mean like they started down there with us like yeah you were one of us you know you're supposed to get up there and represent us like come on you know and they look back and they just go it yeah like push the ladder down like yeah i'm up here now oh yeah yeah well

It's just unfortunate. I think also earlier, I need to clarify something. When you said CNO, my brain thought CEO. I was thinking chief nursing officer. Yeah, I know. Now I'm like, no, they're all women. They are. They are. You're correct. I knew a dude one, but yeah. I knew one dude. So you like them.

I don't necessarily like them because they walk around in their heels on the unit. Like I said, they still do the same things I was speaking of. They walk around the unit like they know what's happening, but they don't. Most of the time. I'm not saying they're all like this, but...

They're just, they're just a business side of healthcare, you know? Yeah. And I don't like that. I don't either. I think anybody that's like on that business world, I just, I'm automatically just like. On the defense. I'm on defense. I'm jaded towards you. Like, I'm just like. What are you doing here? Exactly. You're not one of us. Exactly. Put some gloves on, dog. Put some gloves. Get in here.

Oh, man. So being a male nurse, do you like the term nurse? I think I'm pretty impartial to it. Okay, it doesn't bother you. It's just like, whatever. Yeah, it's just a name. Is your role different compared to your female co-workers, do you think? I think...

This is kind of a dicey topic because I don't want to say something like offends people. I don't think you will. Okay. I don't know you very well, though, so maybe you will. I don't think I will either. I just, I don't know. But like, I think like just like there's like some common sense thing. Sure. That's like if there's a guy that's kind of creepy.

Sure. Or he's aggressive, like male, I'll take him. Yeah. And I will deal with that guy. You know, it's not because like the women are in a unit can't. Right. You know, I think it just, it just works better that way. I prefer that. Yeah. Like, please. Yeah. So we'll take those people. I think...

being a male i mean i lift a lot of people out of cars yeah i do that a lot guy so people come and get you right yeah they're like hey man this guy like we get it we got to get him out of this car can you break your back please i don't want to break mine yes yeah there's the amount of people that just get dead lifted in the er is insane it's insane you know and i'm telling you like i just don't know this life we don't have we don't have like ceiling lifts we have like a room and it's like this is the ceiling lift room or whatever you know but it's like

There's one. Yeah. You know, there's one, there's like no Hoyer around. So it's just like, so it'll just be like, hey, this guy's coming in. He's in a wheelchair. He's 400 pounds. He's got two bilateral BKs. You know what I mean? Now we gotta put him in a bed. He's not gonna be able to help you at all. Yeah, exactly. So it's just like, Chris, you know, Ben, hey man, we're gonna go in there and we're just gonna lift this guy up into his chair. And that's what we do, man. I did that just the other day. It was just like...

Twice. Twice. The last shift I worked, I did that twice with two different people. That sucks. That's like being immersed, I guess. It's like people just go, hey, get in there, man. Can you help me pull a patient up? Can you turn? Yeah. But I don't know. It doesn't bother me. It's kind of fun. Yeah. No, I ask because my husband's a nurse too. And I've asked him these questions before too. And he always has like, he's like, oh, it's not that I mind. I don't mind helping. But it's interesting how it's always me that they're coming to do like the heavy lifting. Oh, okay.

- That's it, sorry, that's the other, the doctor thing. Like people think I'm the doctor when I walk in the room all the time. And I'm like, you don't realize how sexist this is. I'll walk in with the PA and the PA, you know, she's a gal, whatever her name, we're like working together. And they'll just be like talking to me and I'll just be like pointing like, "Stop over there. You wanna talk to her, not me."

You know, because A, you shouldn't be talking to me. Yeah. Right. You need to talk to her. And B, I don't want her to get like pissed off. Right. Because she's annoyed. Right. She's just like, God damn it. She's like, another day. Yeah. Happening again. Exactly. Yep. Yeah. It's like a normal thing for them. What was the other thing I was going to ask you? Oh, well, you already answered that. But you do help your female co-workers when there's like a nasty dude on the unit. Oh, yeah. For sure. Those just piss me off. Yeah. Like, what's your fucking problem? I don't get like why...

I, as a, as a male nurse, I don't get why nursing is like this kind of like weird, like sexualized thing. And it is, you know what I mean? And it's like, whenever I see like those girls on Halloween with like their outfits, I'm always just like, God damn it. Can we stop wearing this? It's not cute. Yeah. That thing about it is sexy.

Right. Can we just like get away from that? You know what I mean? Cause you're like a healthcare professional. Why is it like this thing? And dudes come in and they just sort of like, I remember a guy one time was like, he needed, this is back in the med search days. So it was like just stereotypical med search. He wanted to like walk around the unit, you know? Yeah. And he was creeping everybody out. So they're like, Brock, go walk this guy. I'm like, all right. So I walk in there and he literally was just like, yeah, I don't want to walk with you, man. I just, you know, he's like, I just want to walk with one of the chicks. I was just like,

That's what you get. That's what you get. You either walk with me or you ain't walking, man. Absolutely. You know what he chose? Not walking. Not walking. No, he ain't walking. That annoys.

It annoys me. It's like, what is your problem? Or like the men, alert and oriented 50 something year old men that come in and they're like, can you hold my urinal for me? Like, do you hold, who holds your urinal for you at home? People lose the ability to do normal things. Oh yeah. The phones. That's the other thing. When they order their meals, I'm just blown. They're like, I don't know how this phone works. I'm like, this phone has fucking existed for 50 years. You have one in your pocket.

pocket yes all you do is dial these four numbers and you tell this lady what you want yes like you can do this i know but they're like i can't i know it happens a lot in the icu too which some people like their hands aren't working because i've been like you know in a coma for 40 years i understand that yeah that's fair obviously obviously that's fair but like these everyday people like just stop losing even like brushing teeth like these normal tasks that we do every day and i'm like do you just are you lonely

Like, why do you need someone else to do it for you? I'm concerned slightly besides like the urinal shit. Cause I'm like, absolutely not figure it out. Cause that's gross. But like the other daily tasks, I'm like, why are you choosing this? Why? I don't get it. I don't either. I think it's just something happens to their brains when they go through those doors and it just turns into like, now I can not do this for myself. You need to do it for me. I don't know what it is. No, it's strange. It is.

My other question about being a male in the ER is, do you know the four P's of nursing?

The four Ps of nursing? Yeah. And mostly in the ER. Four Ps. Police. Oh. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Of course. Is it real? Like, what part's real? Can you be more specific? You're like, wait, I need help. Yeah, I do. Okay. So the four Ps of nursing, if you don't know, are physicians, police, paramedics, and firefighters. Right. Put a P in front of it. Also, some people say security as well. Okay. So do the nurses have...

on any of the four or five Ps. Oh, that's definitely a thing. It's always a thing. You kidding me? Well, I'm not down there. I just hear about it. I'm like, oh, interesting. You know, we don't see them. We're at the ICU. It's a thing for sure. It's a thing. Do they have like, you're like, oh, so-and-so's coming in. Hey, your guy's here. Not,

- Not quite to that point, it's a little bit more secretive than that, you know? But it's more so like, I mean, I just know a lot of the female nurses I work with down there at some point dated a paramedic or a firefighter or something. They've all like dated at some point. And like, I don't really know, those relationships don't ever seem to work out. - It's weird though, you'd think they would work out because-- - They don't.

It's like I'm telling you right now. They don't work out. Yeah. And like, I don't know what it is. I just think I think it's the type of people, you know, and I'm not gonna lie to you, man. Like, I know some paramedics and I know some chicks have dated them. And it turns out like, hey, man, the paramedic guy was actually banging like eight people, you know. And so it's just like, that's kind of that's the that's the culture there. Yeah. And it's not just that one dude. Like, that's like the culture. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, paramedics and firefighters out there. But you ratten you.

You all got somebody in your whatever shop or whatever that's doing that. Yeah. Yeah. That's kind of fucked up though. Well, only if they're in a relationship because the ones I know of have spouses at home and I'm like, what the fuck are you doing? You know something? I know too. And they're like hitting on you? Not me. I'm in the ICU. It's stories that I hear from the ER nurses that I know. And like they have, they're going bold with their wedding ring on and like they have a wife at home and you're like, wow. But sometimes it's the culture.

Yeah, I just think it's the culture down there. I mean, the security thing is true, too. Like the other day, like, you know, there's like this one I'm not going to name drop or anything, but we're like in like this critical situation, you know, we're trying to get stuff done. I look over and she's just like talking to the security guy. I'm just like, girl, what are you doing? Like, get in here. We need you. Yeah, exactly. You know, you can look at people and you can tell they're like, they're talking. You know what I mean? They're kind of like, haha.

Yeah, exactly. And you're just like, girl, get in here. Like, cut that out. Like, we have shit to do. Do you think that health care workers should date other health care workers or any of the four P's? No, 100 percent. They need to date each other. Yeah. They need to date each other. Yes. Yes. Like I'm married. Yeah. My wife is a nurse. Yeah. And like, I cannot imagine dating a not nurse. Right.

Like my friends, I tell you about when they're like accountants, like, oh man, work was so hard this week. You know, I had to send like six emails or whatever. Right. You know, and it's just like, they just don't get it. No, they don't. And so it's like when I come home and I'm just like, you know, I'll be honest, like sometimes it's sad. Yeah. And like you come home and you're like, oh man, this dude died. Like I just like, I'm sad. Yeah. You know what I mean? And I'm probably not going to be okay for like a day and a half. Yeah. And like she gets it. Yeah, she does. Yeah. She gets it.

I think that I brought it up because there's like this, this was a year or two ago, but I remember this post went viral from someone saying like, I'm a nurse and I don't think that nurses should date other healthcare workers. And I was like, I mean, I'm married to also a nurse. And so I was like, how would you-

conversations go at home though because you're right like my friends that don't work in healthcare they don't have a clue what I'm speaking about no and they're like and they never will what and we need to just stop trying we just need to stop trying because they don't get it and so it's like or they're like but you only work three days a week it's not that hard and I'm like okay I'm gonna first I'm gonna punch you yeah but

Yeah. Well, with the three day a week thing drives me nuts too. Cause like, I'll talk to my, like my friends at work and it's like, what do you do for your three days? And they just do nothing. Cause they're so exhausted. Yeah, absolutely. They're like recovering. Yeah. I just, I'm so exhausted. I just like do nothing. And then I go back to work. Yeah. You know? So it's like something about this shift is unreal. You, you saw something on Reddit about that. Like,

Some nurse guy was, no, some dude was like complaining about how much nurses complain. Yeah. That resident. Yeah. Yeah. A resident. It was a resident. I was like, sit down. Right. That's so rude. It is so rude. Like I don't shit on residents cause I know that their life's hard. Yeah. Oh, it's hard. I know it's hard. I know they get paid shit. I know they work way too many hours, but it doesn't mean our life is not hard in a different way. Right. So I'm like, shut up.

Yeah. Being a nurse is super hard. Yeah. It's a very hard. That's the first thing I learned when I was, you know, after the catering and the garage doors, you go in to be a nurse. You're like, this is incredibly difficult. Right. You know, and it's not just the physical side. There's like this mental side to it. That's like,

There's so much going on and there's so much stuff in your head all the time. It's hard to explain. Yeah. It's so fast. You know what I mean? Oh, yeah. It's happening the whole time. Also emotionally, like you said, you can go home and thankfully you have someone to vent to. But I do wonder about these people who aren't married or with their spouses are not health care workers. And so they go home to try to vent, but they don't get it. So like, how do you fully understand?

vent without someone understanding what you're saying it's probably you just go drink some alcohol or something go cry in the shower because like what it just wouldn't work for me so yeah I also say no you should date each other because you guys are gonna even like first responders I get why first responders date nurses makes sense

They get it. Yeah. Yeah. I think that we should date each other. I think the, I think it's just your, the, the, the relationships are going to be dicey. Yeah. You know what I mean? But I think if we all just have like this mutual understanding, it's like, man, we live in this high stress environment. Like we are not normal people. Yeah. Like, so when we date each other, it's going to be a little dicey at times. And like, we're not normal people. Like nobody in the ER is a normal person. I don't think. You're really not. No, I don't think you're a normal person either, you know, but we all got issues. Yeah.

I'm like, I got it. I've heard your other podcast. You talk about the issues you've had. Like I got issues. Like we all have issues. And for some reason, like we all just find ourselves in this field. So it's like the relationships are maybe going to be a little bit different. Yeah. I don't know. Yeah. It just works. Yeah, it works. Well, apparently you want to interview me. I was going to just ask you some questions. Ask me some questions. How do you do you feel like how do you feel about the nursing culture right now? I think culture is such a big deal in nursing. What do you think about it?

It's like a big question, so hopefully I can answer it. That is a big question. Sorry, you want me to clarify? No, I think I know. Like, is it good? Is it bad? Like, how do I think it's going? And do you think it's going in a good direction or not a good direction? So I think social media has made it better.

Okay. Personally. Just because it's getting our real life stories and scenarios and things that we go through out there. Because if you look back to nursing school, they didn't prepare you for a real life world. No. It's very book world. And if everything was a perfect world, but it's not realistic. Right. So I like social media because it...

helps these new grads understand like this is a hard job and I'm never going to sugarcoat that. However, when people say, well, what would you choose if you could go back in time? I would still choose nursing. Me too. 100%. The hours, absolutely. 36 hours a week for full time. The opportunity to pick up overtime is typically there.

Travel nursing. Love it. Oh, you're a traveler. That's right. I was a traveler. The opportunity within bedside, outside of bedside. There's just so much opportunity that in my opinion, it's a great field. But the culture can also be toxic. Yeah. But I feel like it's getting better with like fresh nurses coming in and being like, I'm not dealing with that. I do too. That's a good. That's why the character I have with my voice is the Barb character. Yes. Yes.

That's like one of the, I've actually, she's based off a real person. Yeah, they always are. She's based off a real person and she's a G. You know what I mean? Yeah, she was a G. I think she was an LPN. But she probably knew her shit. She knew her shit, man. She'd been working on it for like 40 years. Yeah. And it's kind of like this ode to like, this is what nursing could look like.

you know what i mean yeah she was that you know this is what nursing could look like but unfortunately it doesn't yeah because like we like a lot of like people like like to eat their own and i don't really know why that's a thing yeah you know young yeah but i do agree with you as i think it's like more people are watching social media and like younger nurses are coming we're going why are we doing this yeah you know what i mean i know and like why would you eat your young in my opinion i have no clue no one can learn in a hostile environment and like

You know, you said something earlier, like all of us are dealing with stuff before our job, before nursing school. We all have probably had something happen in our life that brought us here. And so it's like, why would you just be a total asshole to someone when you know nothing about them?

Right. And like how they respond and react to things. I could never imagine being so shitty to a student nurse or new grad. Right. Because they don't know. Right. That's what they're there for. I had, I was a student nurse and this chick was so shitty to me when I was a student nurse one time. And you'll never forget her. I will never forget her. What did she do? Do you remember?

Just awful stuff. Yeah. You know, like it was like, I was a brand new, you know, I'm in there. I was like my, it was like my first clinical ever. So we're getting like our CNA license, like through the clinical. Yeah. I mean, so I hadn't worked in a hospital before. So I'm like fresh and I'm like in some, like either a PCU and ICU. I'm not really sure. Some dude's like intubated. He's got cords everywhere. And we're like supposed to be giving him a bed bath. Yeah. She's like,

She's like, have you never done a bed bath before? Do you know what's going on? Because I just kind of was like standing there sort of like, what am I supposed to do? And I was just like, no, I just told her, I said, I'm overwhelmed by all these chords and lines in this guy. You know what I mean? Like, I don't know. And then the same day,

She was like, asked me some... She asked me about amiodarone, which I still remember to this day. I'm like, I know what amio is now because of you. But she like asked me about amiodarone. She's like, you know what that's for? And I was just like, um, no. And she's like, aren't you supposed to carry like some book with you and like look it up? I'm just like, Google exists. It's just like, no, we're not carrying books around. Like, are you stupid? No, no. I don't have like a little like med book. A little pocket book. Exactly. You know, she just...

Why treat someone like that? I don't know. Did you learn? I guess you don't. You did remember the amiodarone now. Oh, yeah. I learned about amiodarone real quick. Never forget amiodarone. But it's like, it probably didn't build your confidence by any means. No, it was awful. I remember leaving that day just like...

I was like, I hate this place. Yeah. You know, when I was a student nurse, I remember same thing. I was on a med search unit and, you know, you get there for their huddle and you can just tell that they fucking hate you. And you're like, yes, I'm going to be here for 12 hours. They just tell you right in front of your face. Oh my gosh. I never have the student today. Exactly. What? And they're like,

sighing, huffing and puffing like you're not right next to them. And you're like, great, great. They also treat you... What's the word? Infantilized? Like, they treat you like a child when you're a full-grown fucking adult. I think that's so rude. Oh, you got your little pen with you? Yeah. Stuff like that. I'm like...

I'm an adult. Don't speak. Do you speak to any other adult like that? You don't. It's just crazy. I remember I would go off and study. Like I would literally leave the unit. If they were being hateful, I was like, fuck this. I'm not sitting around for this. I would leave. My instructor found me one day. She's like, what are you doing? That's awesome that you did that. Luckily, I was OK. I mean, I could have been kicked out, but she was like, I was like, I'm not going to sit there and be treated like shit for 12 hours. Like, I'd rather just be studying. And she's like, honestly, yeah.

Okay. You know, for today only. You know, you can't do it again. But I was like, I just would never treat someone like that. Yeah. I feel like the culture is changing for the better, but I don't know why that had to be part of the culture anyways. I know. I think back to like what created that from the beginning. Maybe just like, I mean, I have a theory. What's yours? Tell me. No, tell me yours first because I'm curious. I just feel like maybe they're just people like nurses that just got underappreciated for so long and unseen, you know, by hospitals or, you know, hospitals.

they just weren't like recognized and appreciated, you know? I think that's kind of where it comes from. I agree with that. I think also way back when, you know, men ran medical, like women,

way back when, like Florence Nightingale days, it was men doing all of the medical stuff. And then when they brought in women, maybe at that time, like women were still very subordinate. And so like treated like shit for so long. And then they start treating people like shit over and over and over and over. Yeah. Until 2024. I mean, I think what I'm saying is what you're saying. Yeah, exactly. I think that's why. Yeah. That that exists because it is a female dominated thing. Yeah. Yeah. I wish more guys were nurses. I was going to ask you that actually. I forgot. Yeah. Like, do you think...

What do you think would do you think it benefit nursing with more men? A hundred percent. A hundred percent. Yeah. You know, like we were talking about earlier, like the sexist stuff, like it still exists. Yeah. You know, like when I walk into a room and the patient automatically thinks I'm a doctor, like there's still this thing going around where you don't think that the girl next to me is not the doctor. Right. I mean, like. Right. And I think just like more men in the role would help.

help that. You know what I mean? Because then it becomes more like, oh, this isn't just a female thing. Right. You know, and the females can be doctors. You know, I mean, it just normalizes it more and more. Yeah, it does. Yeah. And I think it, I think men bring like a, like a different, like, like dudes that work like a blue collar job and they pivot and they come into nursing. Those are the best fucking dudes ever.

Love those guys. Yeah. You know what I mean? Yeah. Because I don't know exactly what it is, but they just kind of like come in and they're just like, they're ready to work. They're ready to do their thing. They're like...

They're not afraid of things and they're just like, this is my job. I'm going to show up. You know, I was a welder for 20 years and now I'm going to do this. Right. You know, they're just, I just like guys like that. Yeah. Also men from the military seem to do really, or probably, probably women too. I'm just thinking of people who I've spoken to were men and they came from the military and went into nursing and they're thriving because it's like, it's the same thing over and over. It's very, um, it's

Regimented, I guess. And they thrive too. My husband actually just told me this morning about an article that was saying more

More men are coming into nursing from blue collar jobs. I read the same thing. Oh, where did I see that? Where did you see that? Because that's interesting. You said the same thing. Yeah. It's like a thing. Yeah. It's like happening. Yeah. And I don't... I didn't really read the whole thing. I'm not really sure why it's happening. Right. Probably because the pay is nice. You know what I mean? Like, I'm sure like you're getting paid. Your hours are probably a little bit better. Yeah. But it's a good...

It's a good culture shift, I think, for everybody. I think so, too. Yeah. And again, with more people coming in and like just demanding better, it will have to change. Otherwise, it will crash. What do you mean demanding better? Demanding like, don't treat me like that. Don't talk to me like that. We're a team. You know, like this whole even doctors over nurses. You're not over me. We're a team. You're not my boss. We're a team. Right.

And same with nurses to CNAs or et cetera. Like no one's beneath anyone. Nurses to RTs, like even seeing how some people talk to them. I'm like, what is your problem? That is so hateful. Like they're just doing their job. RTs? RTs. I love RTs. I was so scared. You're like, I love them. I love RT, dude. I feel like they're the most underappreciated person in the whole hospital. Man, when RT is there, I am pumped. I'm just like, we got them. We're down.

Yeah. We're going to RSI this guy. Like, let's do it. I love RT. I do too. And they always save my ass, especially in the ICU. I don't know shit about fuck about that ventilator. Exactly. I know like two things. Me neither. Anything else, I'm like...

Can you come help me? I know. And then it's like, what's the settings? And I'm like, settings? What do you want me to say? You know? Yeah. Yeah. What other questions do you have for me? Oh, that's a good question. That is a good question. That is a good question. Oh, I was going to ask you what your...

What are your goals? Through your social media and stuff, do you have an overarching, this is what I want people to get out of this? It's not just humor. It's kind of like a combination of humor and educational. You know what I mean? What are you trying to get? I think the reason...

Yeah.

It doesn't mean you had to have a passion way back when to go into it. It doesn't mean you're a bad nurse if you weren't passionate about it. Because like caring for people is the easiest part of the job, in my opinion. Like that comes naturally. Can I jump in really quick? Yeah, of course. I kind of hate that stuff. Yeah. Because I think like my role is to deliver. This is what I tell myself. I deliver high quality medical care. Yes. That is what I do. Yeah. You know what I mean? And like some of the stuff that's like, you're not a very caring nurse. And it's like, you're just trying to manipulate me. Yes. Into like...

I don't know, all kinds of stuff because people, you know, it turns into like this like manipulation game. They're like, you're not very caring. And it's just like, that's not my, that's not really my job. It's not to just get you ice chips for you to watch melt. Exactly. Exactly. Well, and I also think of like attorneys. Attorneys are very like male dominated and they're there to help people too. But they're not told you need to be caring about these people. They're told, no, you need to do your job.

And I'm like, this is part of our job. And sometimes it comes across very flat. Sometimes it comes across because we're doing so many things. Sorry, this is a long rant. The whole point of it is listening, showing our life realistically as a nurse. That's what I want to get out there to the general public specifically. I would love them to know more about what we do.

Yeah. And if, you know, and sometimes it comes across really harsh to them, but it's just true. Yeah, for sure. And like, I feel like we do care about people. Of course we do. You care about people. That's the easy part. That's why you did the job. Like, obviously I don't want this guy to die. Right. You know what I mean? And that's why I'm doing my job. Right. You know? And so there is like that side of it, but it's also just like a, we're not, I'm not here like the Florence Nightingale stuff. I'm not a martyr. Yeah. I'm here to just deliver high quality medical care. Right. That's what I take. Right. And I obviously hope the best. Yeah.

But a lot of times the shit we have to deal with in ER and ICU specifically, it's a lot of shitty stuff. Yeah, it is. It's like, obviously our humor is going to be dark. Yeah. You know? Totally. I have dark humor. That's another thing. When you see it all the time, it changes you. It changes your brain. Yep. Yep.

- Yeah, I agree with that. When you see dead people, it changes you. And so it's like, if I internalize this all the time, I'm not going to be okay. So I have to find some way to kind of like, I gotta deal with this and I can't be like,

I can't take it so personal, which is hard for people to hear that don't work in the profession. Right. But it's like you can't. Well, and they use the word jaded a lot. When it's not jaded, we have to compartmentalize. You have to. That's the only way you can come back and continue doing it. But I know like I'm thinking of like comments I've gotten that are like, you're jaded. You need to step away. I'm not jaded. I'm compartmentalizing what we had to do. There's a huge difference. Jaded is like, I don't care anymore. Right.

don't care what happens to this person, not really doing the best at my job. You know what I mean? I hate that. I do too. It's a real thing. It is. But they're not the same. So I'm just like, no. Right. They're not the same. We have a, I'm coming to shout out to Kathy here. Jake, Kathy. Jake and Kathy. Kathy. She's the bomb. She's like our, she's like our Barb. Yeah. You know? Yeah. And she, the other day was just like,

She's like so... She's flat. She's a strong personality. You know what I mean? She's very flat. Yeah. She'll just tell you straight up, like, time to go, man. You know what I mean? Like, we ain't getting you right out of here. Like, call your friend. Time to go. She'll tell you that stuff, you know? But like, she's also like...

she's also kind of like an advocate for like let's not lose the that we care about people absolutely we still have to give a shit because there's some people that do and they just they they kind of lose it you know and they're just like i don't care yep i don't care what happens and you're like man that's not a good place to be absolutely especially can i say especially er culture i assume that that's how it could be a lot of times yeah with not just the nurses the docs absolutely like people get like that yeah it's like

It's like a place that you go mentally and you're like, I don't think you should stay there. You need to come back. Yeah, you have to because I also think that's the road leading to possibly patient harm and not intentional. But like you're going to end up harming someone. I think so. Yeah. Yeah.

I don't really know how it happens to people. I think they just get so redlined. Yeah, burnt out. You know what I mean? And they're just getting redlined all the time. They just go, I can't, I don't care anymore. Yeah, like I can't care anymore. So they like go into this dark place. It's kind of sad, really. It is. Yeah. Super sad.

You said something that reminded me. I think this is a hot topic for ICU specifically, but you said we need to care more and continue caring for people. And a part of caring in the ICU is...

allowing family to exist and be there. That is a big controversy. A lot of ICU is like, I wish we didn't have visitors. What? And I'm like, but that's how people heal is with their loved ones, their support group. Yeah. And if my, whoever was in the hospital, if my mom was in there, you better believe I want to be in there. Exactly. And so I'm like, no, I worked at this one hospital that created a

Absolutely no exceptions from two to four, no visitors. And I understand. I'm like, cool. Breaks for the patients, breaks for us as well. But the no exceptions really got me because I would have like a patient with Down syndrome who...

depends on their family member who's there all the time. That person is there. Yes. They like, they need them. Yes. Yeah. I literally had to hide someone. I was like, don't come out of the room from two to four so that you can stay here. If they, they have no exceptions. They went around and like opened all the rooms, found them and made them leave. And I was like,

that is not what's best for the patient. It's just a stupid rule. It's like stuff like that. Like it made me think like you're not caring anymore. Like I understand the rule generally, but it has to have an exception. That doesn't make any sense. Yeah. I'm with you on that one too. I think family should be there for sure. I mean, it's a little hard when there's like 15 kids running around. You shouldn't have 15

people there exactly calm down you're like guys this room is packed full of people like I can't do this they're all like telling your name like this is Brittany and she's cousins she's married to him over there and you're just like okay guys guys guys I don't care about that come on I can't I can't care about that exactly I don't have time to go through everything and look at pictures of your dogs or whatever like

But I think family should be there. Absolutely. Well, wait, why do you have your social media? What's your message you're trying to get out? Just that I don't. That's a good question. It's kind of still like developing. Yeah. I feel like some degree. I think it's like there's like three facets to it. One is one is humor. People are like, this is funny. Yeah. There's an educational asset to it. People go, this is kind of educational, man. But there's also a there's a therapeutic asset to it. Yeah. And people watch it and they're like, I don't know why, dude, but this is helpful for me to watch. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. And that makes you feel good too. And I'm like, cool. I am. I'm like, that's cool. And people all the time are like, you're, you're, they're so realistic. They're triggering me. Like, and I'm just like, I'm like my bad dude, but it's just like, I, I just want to put out what's real. It's relatable. It's relatable and it's real life and people watch it and they go, Hey, I went through that. Like I'm not alone in this thing. And I think that's therapeutic. So that's kind of cool. That is cool. Yeah.

I like that. Thank you. Yeah, you're welcome. Appreciate that. You're welcome. I don't think I have any more questions for you. I'm trying to think here. That's okay. I think I lost them. That's okay. In my mind. Somewhere deep down there. It's a scary place sometimes. Well, that's all I have for you. Okay. Very good. Is there anything else you want to... What would you tell someone that's looking into...

They're trying to decide ER or ICU. What would you tell them? Oh my gosh. I've never worked in the ICU. I think if, ah, that's such a hard question to answer. I've never worked in the ICU. I don't think I'd like it. Why? I'm curious. I think it's a lot of details. Yeah. I'm a fast mover. I move quickly. I get my stuff done quickly and I like to just...

You know what I mean? That's good. Yeah. I'm built for that. Like that's why that's the ER. Like that's what we do. You know, that was kind of like med surg, honestly. Yeah. Honestly. Yeah. But the ICU, it's, it's, I think it's a lot more detailed. I don't feel like I'm a smart nurse. Oh, you're smart. You're a nurse. No, I know. But like, you know what I mean? Like you'll meet some people and they're like talking, they like can like, just like peek at labs and they're like, this is what's going on. I'm like, I'm not that guy. Sure. You know, I look at like hemoglobin. Sure. I'm like, all right, this is it.

this ain't good have you seen that tiktok of that girl yes i feel so bad for her what did she say hemoglobin hemoglobins but she said like hemoglobins he hemoglobin he hemoglobin that's what it was and she's like it was point four and i was like oh girl he did yeah point four he's been dead exactly oh i feel bad for her i felt so bad i was like god the internet just viciously her alive the internet's a dark place i feel bad for you if you're listening like

we feel for you did not deserve that no that's good though actually it shows people like if you're fast-paced learning kind of like adhd i think so yeah for sure it's really good yeah i think that's why i should skip over there because i'm i don't feel like the best icu nurse because like i'm up against these nurses that have all their lines labeled and they're all perfect and their their bed is perfect and all of their labs are written out and all like i'm like

I'm not that girl. Like type A plus. Yeah, I'm not type A. So I do feel misplaced sometimes, but I also like the ICU for the chaos. So I think though that we should both work in each other's units. That'd be cool. Right. Shadow each other. Like, that'd be cool. That would be fun, but it'd be helpful for, for to see, you know what I mean? Like this is what you go through and this is why you're upset with me. This is why you hate my guts. Yeah. And this is why I'm upset with you. You know, it'd be helpful. It would be helpful. Awesome. Yeah. That would be wild. Well,

Well, what's any last, any last words for the people listening? I don't, I don't really think I have any. Thanks for having me. This was super fun. I could just chat all day, but I'm a chatty guy. No, you're good. This was really good. This was fun. You're easy to talk to. Cool. Get your own podcast. Whatever.

Where can everyone find you? I'm just on TikTok and I'm on Instagram. Scrub Laddie. Scrub Laddie with an L. Some people think it's daddy. Scrub Daddy. Not daddy. It's not a sponge. I'm just a laddie. Yeah, not a daddy. All right, guys, the links to his socials will be in the description. And thank you so much. Appreciate it. Nice for being here. Yeah, of course. Bye, guys.

Bye.