The focus of this blog is in line with Halloween. I went around asking some of my colleagues about anything spooky they might have encountered as a nurse. As always, there were many comments about the “full moon.” Most nurses I know truly believe that a full moon can influence the behaviors of the patients they care for. Many of the nurses I spoke to stated that the full moon effect was involved in ER visits and random wanderings of their patients. Not sure if the next couple of stories are connected to the full moon.

One story an instructor told me that sent shivers down my spine involves the maternity unit at St. Boniface. The unit used to be a children’s unit and patients on the unit have reported seeing a small child wandering in and out of their rooms all night. This small child has only ever been seen by the patients on the unit.

Another story that I know of involves Riverview Health Centre where mysterious doctors orders appear in the charts at night. These orders are signed by the Head Doctor who had died many years past. And the museum in the Princess Elizabeth is often found with the lights turning on and off at night by the security staff.

Health Science Centre is also not immune to strange sightings. A nurse shared that she once saw a large man wearing full cowboy regalia washing his hands outside an isolation room. This man tipped his cowboy hat at the nurse and went into the room. The nurse looked down and the man was floating. The room was unoccupied. This nurse asked a more senior nurse she was working with about the appearance of the man. The senior nurse replied “Oh, that sounds exactly like Mr. ____. He passed away in that room several months ago.”

Other stories shared involve sightings of Sasquatches while driving on isolated highways. One person even shared that she personally saw a sasquatch when she was a small child. Stating that she “looked outside and saw a very large hairy man looking into the cottage. Then she screamed and her parents could not console her.”

Something to ponder as we approach Halloween. If you happen to have your own encounter, try to remember to check if it was a full moon.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Post written by Corrina Zacharkiw – Nursing instructor

Contributions from various Nursing faculty