Our Backs

Three hundred fifty pound barely responsive diabetic with a blood sugar of 43 laying across her bed in a dark room at the end of a crowded hall at the top of some very narrow turning creaky stairs. Extremely poor IV access. No way are we carrying her down. Her family says she normally walks on her own. They think she missed breakfast this morning. My preceptee misses twice with IV attempts. I miss twice myself on tiny superficial 24 sized veins in her upper arm. I do not want to quit. We had given her some glucagon, but that didn't work. Finally I get another 24 in her upper arm and we push an amp of D50 through it. She wakes up and does not want to go to the hospital. Her family feds her and agreee to follow up with her doctor, and we walk back down the stairs with just our equipment on our backs.

We also did a psych and a woman short of breath on exertion.