1st nursing job in a doctor's office - a little wierded out

Hi,

In Washington State, an MA can administer injections, including immunizations. I believe CNA's are also authorized to do this. As far as starting IV's, I would have some objections to having a CNA or MA doing that. I would check your state's DOH for scope of practice laws and investigate this yourself before reporting the activity at your clinic, just to be sure. I also work in a doctor's office (fam practice) as an LPN and the MA at our clinic does pretty much everything that the LPN's do, but we don't draw blood or start IV's there. (Thank God!)
That being said, I would be cautious about staying in that environment. As you stated in a previous post, you should worry about your licence since, technically, the CNA is working under your supervision. An MA would not be, I believe, since they are technically working under the physician's supervision.

HTH,

monica

I was in a dr office one day and the recept told me "the nurse" is going to discuss your procedure with you (colonoscopy). So "the nurse" takes me into a business office area, sits me down and starts to discuss the procedure. I start asking technical questions, things an informed patient would ask...and she could not answer the questions. Not only that, she never even introduced herself. SO I said: "Are you a nurse?". She said: "Yes". I said, "Where is your ID tag?". She says, "Oh, it is in my desk". I said: 'May I see it?". She takes it out of the drawer and it has her name on it but no professional designation. I said, "Where is the RN or LPN identifier, as I was told I was going to speak with a nurse, to give me my procedure information and discuss...". She says, "Oh, I'm not that kind of nurse....".

I stopped the conversation right there and asked to speak with an office manager. I informed the office manager I was an RN, and "Your officer personnel are calling themselves nurses, I think you need to take care of that, because they are not licensed nursing personnel...I AM...and I don't think the BON of Texas would approve". She was falling all over herself apologizing.

I left, and needless to say I did not use these GI docs for my procedure. A week later I got a letter of apology from the office manager telling me she sent out a letter to all her employees requiring they NOT call themselves "nurses" if they were not RN/LPNs etc.