[lpnnurse051]

I have always been told to NEVER leave meds unattended. Excluding all the common senses reasons for not doing so is the possibility of the facility being fined by the state if found during a state survey..... at least in my state that is a legitimate concern.
Diane

[nadjjaa]

Originally Posted by amgo24

ok...the scenario goes like this......my mother in law was recently seen in the ER at a local hospital in my community. While she was being seen by the doctor, my ex and i waited in a hallway. While we were waiting, i noticed a table (much like the ones used in pts rooms), with a box of tissues on it. On top of the box of tissues, there was a patch laying with the label down. This was alarming to me, because it was in full view. There were no patients around except for a mother and her infant daughter. When a nurse walked by, I quietly told her about the patch. Her response was....."Oh...dont worry about that. It is nothing you need to worry about". Now, little does she know that I am in my last year of nursing school and I only have 8 weeks left. Therefore, as it stands right now....I do everything by the book. To me....it seemed like a big deal because what if it was a fentanyl patch, or a nicotine patch, and some little kid thought it was a sticker or something and put it on.

Needless to say, I am very upset by her reaction. Does anyone think I am overreacting? Or is there some legit reason why she was so nonchalant about it? Ive been taught to never ever leave meds unattended! Thanks!

Yikes, what if it was a Nitro patch??? Hello, headache!

[marygirl]

Something nurses need to be more concerned about that I run into all the time as an almost graduate: When you put a new patch on, find the old one and take it off. I have peeled as many as three nitro patches off of patients during their bath, knowing that they were due for a new one in an hour. I recently found two nicotine patches on a man when it was time for his new one. I am not sure I would have kept looking except that the first one I found was dated two days before so I knew there must be another one, and there was.
Patches are great but we are responsible for removing them, too! as for the supposed patch on the tissue box, I would let it go. You can't go back several days and figure out what really happened.

[opalmRN]

One side of me, the nurse side would have ask for a glove, scooped it up, and tossed it in a waste container.

The other side of me the mom of adult children, would have said, "Nope this is a hospital and watched my child." (and I'm not saying you didn't watch your child) I know some are gonna scoff but I'm from the school of parenting where accountability is my responsibility. Home or away, small children need to be watched. After all, this didn't occur at a daycare center.

It is impossible to say what kind of a "patch" this was, if it had any medication or if it was left by a healthcare worker or a patient. Lesson learned; You're observant, conscientious, and concerned all of these are fine qualities which will enhance your nursing career.

Opal

[earle58]

actually i think risk mgmt would like to know.
i could never have the 'it's not my business' mentality. the risks are too great to look the other way. it's just bad and potentially dangerous practice.

leslie

[LadyBugRN]

You are not over-reacting, one of my pet peeves among my colleagues is carelessness.

It does not matter what kind of patch it is, whether it is harmful or not. This must be discarded immediately in appropriate container and not left on the table or elsewhere. Now that I am a nurse, I noticed that so many nurses are either too busy or just neglectful or could care less to take the time to "clean up" oblivious to the fact that it could be picked up by a child and put it in his mouth. Taking the time to dispose of the like things.

Safety awareness is one of our responsibilities, among other things.

[NurseyTee]

Originally Posted by CrunchRN

You know what? There is no way I would touch a medication (if it was) that did not belong to me in a hospital where I do not work. That could be really misinterpreted. I have to stick by what I said. I don't think we all have to be nurses 24/7, and I think sometimes you need to just stay out of it.

Just my opinion though!

I understand this premise, although I do think the nurse that told the nurse on duty did the right thing by bringing it to her attention. I wouldn't, however make a federal case out of it. Yeah, they probably shouldn't leave things lying about, but it probably wasn't medication. Especially since you brought it to her attention. If it had been something dangerous, I'm sure her bells and whistles would have been going off in her head screaming **DANGER** it's her license on the line and criminal negligence or man slaughter charges if she just left fentanyl patches lying around for some kid to pick up and lick or stick to himself and died. And it wouldn't take much fentanyl for that to happen with a child. I just can't imagine that happening with any credible nurse. All the nurses I work with would never do something like this. They are all efficient and responsible and even though we are all really busy, they do things the right way. They are all really very good nurses, every last one of them, even the Nazi. (You would have to read my other posts to know what I mean by that)

[Jamesdotter]

Originally Posted by CrunchRN

You know what? There is no way I would touch a medication (if it was) that did not belong to me in a hospital where I do not work. That could be really misinterpreted. I have to stick by what I said. I don't think we all have to be nurses 24/7, and I think sometimes you need to just stay out of it.

Just my opinion though!

I agree, except...
any concerned parent, nurse or not, who recognized the patch for what it potentially was would do the same thing that the writer did; report it to a responsible person.

[katie258]

Tell me I'm thick but could you not have turned it over to acertain what it was and then bin it yourself? Probably what I would have done, But that is just me. Then tell the RN "I just binned a patch I saw left out, it was xxx hope you don't mind but there were kids around".