More Nursing Adventures

A special woman at the city hospital had caught my attention several times. I would sight her leaving the parking garage in the morning, or walking into the hospital. I didn't know if she was a patient or a visitor. I did know was that she was a short, middle aged, african american woman who walked with a purpose, was always sporting colorful striped knee highs under a skirt and wore shiny black patent leather mary jane shoes.

This story takes place on day when I was assigned to a medical surgical floor I had not previously worked on. As I absorbed the inner workings of the sixth floor I noticed that we had a nursing assistant and that the nursing assistant was the woman with striped stockings!


The woman in striped stockings possessed all the quirkiness I had hoped for and then some. She went by the name of Miss Leenkels*.  I'm experienced in working with personalities like Miss Leenkels. Although we had a charge nurse and a nursing supervisor, Miss Leenkels was running shit on the sixth floor. I had a busy assignment  knew I couldn't make it through the day in one piece without Miss Leenkels help, so I spent the first hour of my shift proving my worthiness to her (cleaned my patient's poop by myself  and generally did not ask for help). I was able to demonstrate competence and we became fast friends. I was now eligible to receive Miss Leenkels help without asking.  She took me under her wing and warned me at the beginning of the shift to make sure I took a lunch break. I promised her I would.

At 2:00 I took my lunch break. Miss Leenkels was in the break room as well. She audited my lunch, decided it was inadequate and offered me a Lortab* and a Now and Later candy. She pushed the Lortab in front of me. She wasn't kidding.

"Take it", she said. "Don't you hurt? I know you do!".
"They're tens*, they're good ones!".

I couldn't believe she was offering me narcs in the break room in front of other people. I thanked her kindly and compromised by taking the Now and Later candy.

This was a first for me. I was both flattered and confused. I chalked it up to the cooky-ness that has defined my city hospital experience. How about you? Anyone offering you narcotics for a job well done?

*Name changed for privacy while trying to maintain the quirkiness of the name.
*Lortab is a narcotic pain medicine available only by prescription.
*Lortab comes in 10 mg 7.5 mg and 5 mg strengths.