Co-worker hitting up the Dr.s for meds during shift?

[babiesX2]

The other day, a new nurse in our dept. (well-baby nursery) came to work sick (elevated temp and sore throat). The charge nurse wouldn't tell her to go home (didn't want to hurt her feelings ). She said she was going to ask the Dr. to give her a Rx when she made rounds. I thought this was inappropriate, and I told her so. Our unit director came in later in the morning and sent her home.

Am I the only one who feels it is unprofessional to come to work sick and then hit up the docs for an exam and some meds?

[catlady, BSN, RN]

Tell me that doctors don't write scripts for their relatives, friends, and each other.

[Spidey's mom, ADN, BSN, RN]

We also have a policy against it so that the docs don't have to worry about being approached at the nurse's station or in the hallway.

However, I have been told by a few of the docs to please come to them if I need something for my kids and I recently did do a "hallway consult" about my 5 year old with his doctor.

I think it truly depends for the docs - if they like and respect you they probably have no problem with it as long as it doesn't interfere with them rounding in the morning.

One time I was in Sacramento at a conference and had taken my son and mother-in-law with me (so I didn't have to leave my son behind). My mil watched him during the day while I was at the conf. Anyway, he got an ear infection, high fever, etc. I called one of our docs and she called an RX to a local pharmacy for me because she trusted my judgment.

Just a few weeks ago after getting back from Vietnam, I was out of my seizure meds and I called a doc here and he called 9 tabs into a pharmacy in the LA area for me so I could get home and refill it locally.

I'm not sure there can be a hard and fast rule when the docs themselves choose to do it.

steph

[SmilingBluEyes]

The bottom line:

Know policies first.

Know your doctors.

I am among those who do not believe doctors OWE me a professional courtesy. But I know some of my doctors well enough to feel "ok" with asking for non-narcotic meds in the case where seeing my PCM will take a while (and take me out of work, possibly). But that is where I am.

Know your policies. Know your docs/NPs.

[Spidey's mom, ADN, BSN, RN]

The bottom line:

Know policies first.

Know your doctors.

I am among those who do not believe doctors OWE me a professional courtesy. But I know some of my doctors well enough to feel "ok" with asking for non-narcotic meds in the case where seeing my PCM will take a while (and take me out of work, possibly). But that is where I am.

Know your policies. Know your docs/NPs.

I agree that docs do NOT owe us a professional courtesy.

steph

[ladyinred667]

T

It does burn me that nurses are not allowed the same privileges of being ill like the nonmedical person is.

Believe it or not, when I used to wait tables we had the same problems calling out sick. Charming, isn't it?

[PedsER-RN, BSN, RN]

i've asked docs i work with for a script before, but then again i work in an er and know them pretty well. i got sick at work one night and the doc offered me a phenergan rx. i certainly wouldn't ask a doc i don't know well.

the cn should have sent the sick nurse home, esp. if she worked in a nursery. that's wrong to knowingly expose babies to a sick person.

[weezer123]

I would think the doctors are putting theirselves in jeprody ,,, what if someone had a bad reaction or died from their "being Kind"....Perscription!!!

[abby40]

The Doctor I work for (Family Practice) just tell's the nurse to make an appt., with him and he will be glad to treat them. Most of them do, we have several from the Hospital that are regular patients.

[clee1]

The Docs I work for, (an Urgent Care clinic) are glad to help out one of the staff.... but, we ALWAYS fill out an encounter chart for ourselves, just as though we were one of the "regular" patients.

Keeps everything on the up-and-up that way.

[27YearRN]

The other side of the coin...

As an advanced practice nurse I am held to a standard that any rx that I write has been preceeded by a history, physical exam, and treatment plan that is documented.

The last thing I need is for a pharmacist to report me to the medical board if one of my nurse friends accidently mentions that I wrote a rx for her UTI or sinus or whatever.

If it hadn't happened in our community to several docs, nurses and PA's I probably wouldn't mention it.

So don't be offended if some docs or NP's decline to give you a rx.

The company I work for also has clear guidelines that say "no exam, no documentation, no script".

[traumagirll99]

I think the bottom issue here is that there are some nurses who will take advantage of the situation. I used to work in the ER with a nurse who was going through a difficult divorce. She would come in to work and we would all get a blow by blow of what was going on in her ending marriage. Well we also had a very sweet and helpful ER doctor who felt so bad for this nurse that when she told him that she couldn't sleep, eat, or function because of the stress he very nicely wrote her a script for Ativan and also for Ambien to help her. well when this nurse overdosed on her ativan and ambien 3 weeks later this very nice doctor had a lot of explaining to do. She was later terminated and a policy came out that if we asked an ER doctor for a script on the side that we would also be terminated.

[rn/writer, RN]

I think the bottom issue here is that there are some nurses who will take advantage of the situation. I used to work in the ER with a nurse who was going through a difficult divorce. She would come in to work and we would all get a blow by blow of what was going on in her ending marriage. Well we also had a very sweet and helpful ER doctor who felt so bad for this nurse that when she told him that she couldn't sleep, eat, or function because of the stress he very nicely wrote her a script for Ativan and also for Ambien to help her. well when this nurse overdosed on her ativan and ambien 3 weeks later this very nice doctor had a lot of explaining to do. She was later terminated and a policy came out that if we asked an ER doctor for a script on the side that we would also be terminated.

She's very fortunate that she lost only her job and not her life. The doc is too.