NGT

obviously, not all second coursers are smart. sometimes we make the stupidest comments and the rationalizations that would make florence nightingale turn in her grave.

a few weeks ago while on duty at the neuro icu of the v.luna hospital, we were preparing to feed a patient through a nasogastric tube--that's just a simple tube that passes through the nostrils down to the stomach and used for feeding patients who can't eat normally. one of the first things you do when fedding through an ngt is to test for gurgling sounds in the stomach to check if the tube is still properly inserted. this is done by pumping a small amount of air into the tube and listening with a stethoscpoe for gurgling in the patient's stomach. you don't want to feed a patient whose ngt has been displaced because food might get into his lungs.

so there i was at the patient's bedside performing the gurgling test. martin (let's hide his real name, ok?) came rushing to my side, panting and wide-eyed as if he was seeing an ngt feeding for the first time. as i removed my stethoscope, he tapped my shoulder and said with all seriousness, "Is that the way to check if the patient is hungry or not?" i wanted to roll on the ground and laugh. what kind of nurses are we producing?!