3 medication errors in 7 months!

I will attest that! Many times it is easy not to report (not judging - just stating fact). You are not alone.

Reading all these responses, I wonder, do the facility you work for offer any type of "nurse support system" to help. I can understand being written up to serve as a reminder, but this is one reason most of us choose to leave nursing...lack of support. Do you have a group you can discuss you guilt and fear with? If they do, what is the support group called.

I think it is great that you are taking personal accountability for your own mistakes. This is the first step in solving any problem. The culture of blaming others does not solve problems, it only prolongs them. Pharmacies, missing MARS, illegible practitioner handwriting and even other coworkers can make your job more difficult at times. However, the nurse is the one giving the medication and therefore, the nurse is responsible for insuring that the patient is being taken care of. You should know that every nurse on this board who has worked long enough has been responsible for a medication error. Try to slow down your pace. If you have to, review the 5 rights before pushing anything through that pimpdaddy 14 gauge. Also, maybe reviewing a medication error CEU might be helpful as well.

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/550273

http://www.newfoundations.com/Policy/Pietsch.html

I'm a new LVN grad myself working at a LTC for 5 months now. I have been floating since the begining but its only a 99 bed facility. I think I have done well learning everyones morning, noon, evening and noc meds but the other day I got suspended for 3 days for my first med error. I didnt administer coumadin to a resident because I could not find it anywhere in the cart. I made the awful mistake of not getting it from the ekit as well. Stupid I know. I dont know why that didnt cross my mind. I had noticed however that 3 different nurses had been signing for this med so I asked the same person who worked that cart the night before who happened to be working that evening on another cart where the medicine was. Least to say after a phone call to the pharmacy the med was never ordered. The others were signing but not giving is my conclusion. The don said they got it from the ekit but why did they not document that on the mar or order the med in the first place after realizing it wasnt there. why would they just keep getting it from the ekit? was the pharmacy out of supply?? and why didnt the other nurse tell me he got it from the ekit??? So I was the only one getting suspended for this...I think its totally unfair.

I've made similar errors in the past. The lesson that I learned is, ALWAYS check the original order and don't just listen to the nurse who gives you the report. When in doubt, always ask questions.

I was fired for medication errors. How is that for being honest. I was working at an assisted living working 2nd shift. Every other weekend I would work days. On two separate occasions, I pulled the wrong meds from the tray, thinking in my mind it was still evening shift, checked them on the medex and gave them. (to a single pt, not everyone in the building)

I was so ingrained that it was evening that for a moment I thought is was evening. After that I would write a note and hang it on the wall next to the med cart saying "days" on it so it wouldn't happen again.

I was put on a 6 month probation, after begging not to be fired, and was told if I had one more error that was it.

3 months later, after checking and rechecking everything, I forgot 1 pill.

I should have gotten out of nursing back then. I am human.

So what are you up to these days?