November 5, 2024

Because mine no longer makes sense to people…

Many of the abscesses I drain require wound packing (I generally use 1/4” iodoform gauze, so these aren’t giant cavities), and during the procedure I tell the patient why I’m doing a wound packing, and what to expect.

When we’re done with the procedure, until yesterday I used to tell patients to remove their packing in 3 days “Like you’re starting a lawn mower, just get it out”.  That’s when the nurse laughed, and said her mower is an electric start.

I asked the patient if they’d ever started a lawn mower, and the answer was no.

So, what shall I use as a universally understood analogous action to smoothly but quickly pull something?  Zipper?  I’m coming up blank…

23 thoughts on “I need a new explanation

  1. Parachute Ripcord. Bonus points if they throw their arms out spread-eagle afterwards.

  2. Thank you for asking this! All physicians should think of these things.

    I was discussing a medicine with one of my daughter’s specialists, and he asked something about a spoon. A spoon? Dude, children haven’t taken medicine from a spoon since Reagan was in office.

  3. Reminds me of Gibson’s famous opening line in “Neuromancer: “The sky was the color of television tuned to a dead channel.”

    Which meant gray when he wrote it, but now almost universally is read as bright monochrome blue.

    Hm…as to the inquiry, how about pulling the opening strip on a Fed-Ex envelope or detergent box?

  4. Is “just pull it out” so complicated that they need an analogy? Slowly, quickly, whatever, as long as they pull it out. I do tell them to get it wet first in the shower.

  5. Grab the end and pull. Continue to pull until there nothing left in the wound your you feel tugging in your rectum. For either, stop at that point.

  6. I think a good analogy would be threading a shoe lace. Pull it out securely and quickly as if you were pulling a shoe lace thru an eyelet.

  7. Every 3 days? Packing should be removed daily…and pull it out nice and steady, smooth and easy.

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