Temperature taken in hospital

At age 45 I went to the ER with a serious head ache, (colors of cars were changing as I looked at them). As part of the initial exam the male nurse took my rectal temp. I asked why he was doing that and said that the doctor wants it. I did not protest because it would have made more work for a busy person.

Ended up in the ICU on nipride for refractory high BP, (220/90).

I had to go to the hospital for an infection when I was little. I had a high fever and felt really bad. I was also very scared. The nurse helped me get undressed and into a gown that fit me like a tent. Then I got into bed. A short time later she came back and had me roll over and took my temperature. I was afraid that she was going to give me a shot. That came later.

I can't remember having a rectal temperature taken as a kid.

I have never had my temperature tacken recally in a hospital. I do fantazise about it though.

When I was fourteen I was admitted to the hospital for a tonsillectomy. Following ether anesthesia I was totally nauseated and was vomiting continuously. I had rectal temps taken and was given a Phenergan suppository. That was a trip! Even though I felt awful I still enjoyed the rectal attention.

Every time I've been to the hospital, either the ER or admitted, my temperature was taken as part of my vitals. As this has been in the last 10 years or so, it's usually an electronic cart that automatically takes BP, pulse, pulse ox and oral electronic temperature.

I've never had my temperature taken rectally in a hospital before.

During the "early days" (1930, 40s, etc.) in many hospitals rectal temps were common. My grandmother on my mom's side was joking about the "wake-up" temps she got at 7AM when the first image of her day was a nurse standing by her bed shaking down a rectal thermometer and asking if she could turn on her side. Fun way to begin the day!

I went to hospital approximately 35 years ago for appendicitis; I was about 9 at the time.

Once or twice a day (I think it was twice, once in the morning and once in the evening), the nurses would come in, give thermometers to the kids and the kids would have to insert it rectally under the bedsheets (this was in France, where rectal temperatures were commonly used for kids and adults). Then they would come some minutes later, the kid would withdraw the thermometer and hand it to the nurse, who would read it and record the temperature.

I still recall the smell of the thermometer trolley - the thermometers were stored in jars containing some kind of disinfectant with a pungent smell, so one knew the nurses were coming from noises and smell before they would show up.

On a more recent occasion I was in hospital but then it was just some infrared electronic thermometer. Much quicker, less cleaning, one single trip instead of two...

And I forgot the cute anecdote: when I was in hospital as a kid, I had read comics and seen cartoons with people in hospital holding the thermometer in their mouth. So I thought this was the hospital way (at home it was taken rectally: mom would give the thermometer to me and I'd insert it under bedsheets). I started putting it in my mouth but the nurse immediately stopped me, said "Uh no... Here are the hospital we do not take temperature in the mouth" and stared at me. I immediately understood what she wanted, rolled on the side and did what I was expected to do.

These days it's done by ear thermometer mostly in hospital .

At the minute though I'm in the High Dependency Unit . They take constant temperature readings by a rectal probe .

It's a thin white silicone probe . It's quite thin . You can feel it inside the rectum but it's not uncomfortable in any way. They use these in the Intensive Care Unit also.

I know some hospitals use probes on the catheter these days too to get accurate temperature readings. Again these are mainly used in ICU.

You know how you are talking to someone and you suddenly remember something that you had not thought about for years and years? Well that happened to me a few days ago. Odd because once I remembered it a whole bunch of other memories surrounding that came back to me.

When I was 5 almost 6 my father was in the hospital for exploratory surgery. I remember he had been pretty sick for quite a while. Long story made short on that, he had a bad gallbladder. But back then gallbladder issues were often hard to detect and they didn't have tests to determine when a gallbladder was going bad. It wasn't all that uncommon to do exploratory surgery back then.

Anyway, I remember being up in my dad's hospital room one evening. It was after dinner but wasn't my bedtime yet so I would guess it was between 7 and 8 pm. My 2 brothers were sitting in the chairs by the wall and I was sitting on the bed with my mom. The nurse came in and talked to my dad about a few things. I don't remember what all she said though. Then I remember her asking my mom and I to step back so she could close the curtain around his bed. Then I remember her telling my father to get on his knees and elbows. Then I didn't think anything of it, but when I remembered my memory I sort of had to chuckle. That would have been 1976. My father was in the hospital for about a month that time. At the time of this memory he hadn't had the surgery yet so having him in that position wouldn't have been an issue.

I was telling Doc this the other day and asking him if that was logical and he said yes absolutely it would have been back in 1976, rectal temps were common and were usually the method of choice. Along with the memory of my dad's event, I told you that other memories often come along with that. Well for me I remember smelling for the first time, and being able to eat microwave popcorn. That was a huge deal back then because most people didn't have microwaves in their homes yet. They were Amana radar-ranges. They were huge and if I remember correctly pretty loud compared to todays microwaves. Oh the things we remember.

Consequently my father had about a 12 inch scar going from a little bit under his arm pit almost down to his belly button. Thank god when I had mine out 22 years ago they did a lap procedure and all I have are 4 x's on the front and or side of me. Wow times sure have changed.

Mashie

I'm a diaper wearing sissy and usually post to those areas of the board, but will post this here as it may be of interest to folks here.

I remember being in the hospital when I was 5, having my tonsils out. The rooms in the kids ward of the hospital were "two beds per room" with a curtain that could be pulled down the middle, and the rooms all had "cowboys & Indians" wallpaper (this was about 1962). Prior to the operation I was in this room alone, in the bed on the right. Then they took me off for the surgery.

After it was over, when I was waking up, I was back in my bed in the hospital room and I remember hearing something and looking across the room and there was a blonde girl who was about the same age as me, laying on her stomach in the bed with her white panties pulled down and there was a thermometer sticking in her butt. She had a "oh here we go again" sort of look on her face.

Prior to seeing this, I wasn't even aware that doctors / nurses did this. I guess that's because I was always "good" and voluntarily held the thermometer in my mouth so they never had to do it the other way? I never got to be friends with that girl, never knew why she was in there. I went back to sleep and when I woke up again she'd been moved somewhere else. But to this day I can still remember seeing her there getting her temperature taken, and the look on her face.

I have never had mine taken rectally in thew hospital .

I was in the hospital a bunch of times when I was little, from 4 and 7 years old, and in the 70's. I remember the trips in for tonsils (twice, lucky me, they grew back!) and adenoids, and tubes in my ears a bunch of times (my ears are a road map of scars, and I am very hard of hearing). I don't remember having my temperature taken while in there (but I do remember getting a shot in the thigh, and how much it hurt. I am assuming that they probably did take my temperature in my butt, It probably wasn't anything new to me because I was sick a whole lot when I was little. I don't have anything but a vague memory of r.t.'s when I was little.Fast forward to recent history, I haven't had to have one from a doctor or when I had a few eye surgeries, unless they did it when I was still under anesthesia (which I doubt).

I was in the hospital for a hernia surgery when I was 14. That was really the only time I remember having my temperature taken by a male nurse. Up to that point, It was from my mother or the nurses at my pediatrician's office. Although I was still nearly hairless, he came in and prepared me for the upcoming surgery. To that extent, he had me remove my pajama bottoms and then soaped up my penis. He used a surgical razor and removed the little hair I did have. afterwards, I was told to lay face down on my bed, and I waited while he shook down the thermometer and lubricated it. He was gentle with me, opened me up and inserted the thermometer in me and talked to me to keep me calm for the duration. It was not at all an unpleasant experience.

I have never been hospitalized but I recall when visiting others that it would sometimes be done to the person I was visiting. I would be asked to step outside so that the nurse could "take a temp," and eventually realized what this meant. Nothing was ever said but clearly I knew and the patient receiving the thermometer knew and thereby sharing an embarrassing moment.

Frankly yes, my girlfriend had her temperature this way in a hospital in Martinsburg, WV this past spring. so yes they still do!!!

Most times my temperature was taken without comment or fanfare. However, I do recall a time while in the hospital pediatrics wing when a pretty young nurse came into my room and asked me to "flip over " onto my stomach and that she was going to take my temperature.

I did and turned my head and watched her carefully as she shook down and eyed the thermometer, before lubricating it. She noticed my watching her intently, and remarked.

"Don't worry honey, this won't hurt at all- in fact, you may even LIKE IT" she said.

Then she bared my bottom, separated my buttocks with her fingers and very gently inserted the rectal thermometer into my anus before releasing my buttock and telling me to lay still.

"Good boy" she praised and patted my bottom. "It's not so bad is it?" Just a few more minutes and we're all done" she said softly

She checked her watch and then withdrew the thermometer from my tingling rear and covered me back up.

"That was easy , wasn't it?" she said and put the thermometer back into it's case and went to her next patient next to me down the hall.

This nurse took may rectal temp on me while I was on the children's wing and I never forgot her comment that I "may even like it" -how right she was!

When I was young, around seven, I think, my mother took me to the clinic associated with our local hospital that was for urgent care . I was running a fever for a few days and it would not break. Mom was worried and made an appointment to see the doctor. I fused and did not want to go for fear of getting a shot- I hated needles.

Mom signed me in and sat next to me in the waiting room, I had butterflies in my stomach all the while and finally my name was called and mom followed me into the exam room.

The nurse questioned my mother about my symptoms and she explained that I had a cold and was running a fever that would not break in spite of her giving me children's aspirin and so forth.

The nurse listened intently and then said

" Don't worry, I'll pop a thermometer up his bottom and take is temp for a start."

I sat on the exam table in my underpants while this nurse went to a metal drawer next to me , retrieved a thermometer and tube of K-Y Jelly. She held the thermometer under the faucet and shook it down then turned to me and I was told to roll over onto my tummy. She pulled down my underpants spread my cheeks and popped the thermometer up my rectum while my mother looked on.

I had a fairly serious automobile accident in my 20's (admittedly, I was more of a stud then). Once, and only once, during my four day stay I had someone take a rectal temperature. She was young, cute, and I'm not 100% certain she was part of the medical staff (kind of suspected she was the magazine cart girl). I was fairly well doped up on pain medication so wasn't really able to say anything smart/cute/seductive. Spent the rest of the time there hoping she'd come back.