ordinary mundane trivial
there were photos to prove it, but still, i shake my head. in the pictures, she was completely out. she was unarousable, holding a 10 ml syringe with about 2 ml of powdery, whitish fluid remaining, about 4 inches away from her IV access.
the unknown fluid was sent to the lab for identification, and was found to be a combination of dilaudid, benadryl, and phenergan. we didn’t know where she got the dilaudid, because it was not in her list of meds in the hospital. the phenergan and benadryl tablets were her PRN meds.
i’ve always thought that if you crush tablets, dilute and put them in your veins, you will die. i don’t know where i got that stupid idea, but i just did. anyway, she didn’t die, but multiple doses of narcan didn’t wake her up. i had her 2 days after the incident, and only deep sternal rub made her moan a little. i had to pry her eyes open.
of course, we don’t know if she took other narcotic pills PO before she passed out, but we were assuming she did, because a benadryl-dilauid-phenergan tablets pushed through her veins didn’t seem enough to knock her out like that. then again, what do we know? we don’t really see patients melting tablets and shooting them through their veins everyday.
on the third day, she was more awake, but barely. when her eyes were open, they were empty, and stared beyond the empty space. i don’t know exactly what will happen to her. i just know that some people do some sick things, i don’t know now if i will ever be surprised again.


scary
I don’t have any idea either.
another wasted life
Comment by Karin, RN — October 2, 2008 @ 10:18 am
I wonder what she was trying to accomplish, ya know? A really good nights sleep or what. Where’d she get the syringe I wonder.
Comment by kimmyk — October 2, 2008 @ 1:49 pm
kimmy: the syringe, i’m guessing she took from the garbage. to get high was a possible reason, since her drug tests showed positive when she just came in.
Comment by may — October 2, 2008 @ 5:55 pm
We had a patient on datura that was like that and still is…
The lights are on but theres no one home,
Elvis has left the building never to return…
That was 5 months ago…
We don’t get a lot of datura in our part of the world so it took a while to work out what they had taken…
Its a waste of a life..
Comment by Kj — October 2, 2008 @ 6:19 pm
Oh, May, how scary?
You just never know with some people. I last worked with a guy with hx of substance abuse and he was hoarding all his pain pills before he went for surgery.
After that, we had to dissolve everything in water, because he wouldn’t take them crushed in applesauce.
He just wanted to be stoned, but had a big enough stash to kill himself. To top it off, the docs sent him home with 360 Percosets (I’m not kidding) and other drugs.
I’m sure he was mad at me though…I gave all the narcs to the ambulance driver for his 5 hour journey home, pulled him aside and told him to watch him. I didn’t want him pulling any cr*P on them on the way home.
Comment by RehabRN — October 3, 2008 @ 1:02 pm
A sad, but seen all too often scenario. Not that PO meds pushed through an IV is COMMON in any way!!!
Tsk. Tsk. Just sad.
Comment by Strong One — October 3, 2008 @ 3:46 pm
That’s just crazy! Wow.
Comment by Becky — October 3, 2008 @ 5:49 pm
I’m sorry to hear that. I hope that she makes a full recovery.
Comment by Awake In Rochester — October 6, 2008 @ 10:30 am
[…] my patient who pushed melted tablets of phenergan, benadryl and dilaudid through her IV, she is on a suicide watch now. waking up after four days, she was able to to secretly keep plastic knife from her food tray. i’m not sure if she did attempt to cut her wrist with the plastic knife, but that’s what she told the psychiatrist. […]
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