ER doctor here. Not much grosses me out anymore, for the most part anything visual I can bear and get through an exam without breaking my professional poker face. But I’ll tell you what, there is nothing you can do to stop yourself from gagging when it comes to certain smells.
I was a resident and had to drain a particularly large abscess on a patient’s buttock area (a pilonidal abscess to be exact) and this sucker had been brewing for a while. I was in a room in our ED that just had curtains separating 3 patient beds and my patient was in the middle room. I opened this abscess and several ounces of the nastiest, most foul-smelling pus came out and I honestly about vomited. It made my eyes water and luckily the patient couldn’t see me as I had to turn away and try to stop gagging. Both of the other patients in the adjacent rooms started complaining about getting nauseous from the smell and had to be moved into different rooms. We ended up blocking off that section once the patient was discharged until house keeping could come try to get rid of the smell.
So yes, we do get grossed out sometimes but we’ll put on our best professional face and bear through it to try and help our patients.
Edit: Sounds like lots of you have had pilonidal abscesses before. So have I so I know how painful and uncomfortable they are. I had mine surgically excised and luckily it hasn’t come back. Pilonidal Posse unite!
Adraekith on April 24th, 2019 at 13:53 UTC »
The problem is, there is much more disgusting about a living human body than a dead one
firemogle on April 24th, 2019 at 15:33 UTC »
I know doctors who have been very grossed out. I mean, they've seen shit that would turn you white.
They are still professional about it though.
OMS1 on April 24th, 2019 at 17:02 UTC »
ER doctor here. Not much grosses me out anymore, for the most part anything visual I can bear and get through an exam without breaking my professional poker face. But I’ll tell you what, there is nothing you can do to stop yourself from gagging when it comes to certain smells.
I was a resident and had to drain a particularly large abscess on a patient’s buttock area (a pilonidal abscess to be exact) and this sucker had been brewing for a while. I was in a room in our ED that just had curtains separating 3 patient beds and my patient was in the middle room. I opened this abscess and several ounces of the nastiest, most foul-smelling pus came out and I honestly about vomited. It made my eyes water and luckily the patient couldn’t see me as I had to turn away and try to stop gagging. Both of the other patients in the adjacent rooms started complaining about getting nauseous from the smell and had to be moved into different rooms. We ended up blocking off that section once the patient was discharged until house keeping could come try to get rid of the smell.
So yes, we do get grossed out sometimes but we’ll put on our best professional face and bear through it to try and help our patients.
Edit: Sounds like lots of you have had pilonidal abscesses before. So have I so I know how painful and uncomfortable they are. I had mine surgically excised and luckily it hasn’t come back. Pilonidal Posse unite!