92 year old guy on my unit, pretty confused, refusing everything all day shift. Meds, vitals, turns, wouldn't let anyone near him.
I walk in at 7:30 and he squints at me and goes "Sergeant." I just said "at ease" because what else do you say. And then he took every single pill. Let me turn him. Ate half his dinner. Every time I left the room he saluted.
His daughter came in later and cried laughing because apparently his drill sergeant was a short loud woman too. I'll take it. Best shift I've had in weeks honestly.
What's the weirdest identity a confused patient has given you that actually worked in your favor?
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Post replyMeanwhile I am never the sergeant. I'm always the daughter-in-law nobody liked. Got told to get out of his house twice last week and honestly I almost went.
The salute every time you left the room. I'm done.
Put it in handoff. Our unit started writing down what actually works for confused patients, like who they think you are and what tone they respond to. It cut way down on refusals between shifts.
Glad it worked, but I always feel a little uneasy leaning into it. Had a guy get really agitated when he figured out I wasn't actually his wife, and it set him back the whole rest of the night. Sometimes it backfires hard.
Had a lady convinced I was her sister Ruthie. Ruthie could apparently get her to do anything, including the incentive spirometer. I was Ruthie for four straight shifts and by the end I was answering to it at the nurses station.