5 West Nursing

If you’re a nurse, I’m sure you’ve seen one of these… you know, those things that seem to jump out of nowhere when you’re not looking while you make your way down the hall. They’re also known as WALLaroos.  (Little did I know that a wallroo  is actually an animal a little smaller than a kangaroo and a little larger than a wallaby.)

Well, the WALLaroos at our hospital litterally jump out of sight. I came in the other day and all you find are four patched holes on the wall, a tell tale sign that marked where they once were. When I asked a colleague what happened, he told us an interesting story…

As the day progressed, the relative quiet was broken by a crashing sound coming from down the hall. Upon doing a quick survey of the area, they found a doctor, someone well known in our hospital, on the floor, unconscious, with a WALLaroo beside him. He was apparently making rounds and was writing his progress notes on one of those things when he leaned forward and ripped it off the wall, hitting him on the head and knocking him unconscious, according to witnesses. Frantically 5 women nurses rushed to his aide, all of them probably hoping to give him CPR my colleague said. He was then taken to the ER for further evaluation and treatment. I guess in an effort to please the doctor, the hospital took all the WALLaroos out the following day. I wonder if they’d do the same if it happened to a nurse. I’m sure they would, but then again nurses are liabilities, doctors are assets, and therefore, they could care less about the nurse.

I’m just glad these occupational hazards are out of service. I know a few nurses that have been sent to the ER for sustaining minor injuries because of these things, especially when left half closed. It’s just sad that it had to take a “high profile” doctor to get hurt before the hospital decides that WALLaroos have to go. But then again, thanks to this doctor’s sacrifice, the rest of us wouldn’t have to. Way to go doctor… way to go!