New nurse here...slapped today by patient.

So...I'm a new RN, still in orientation mode. I was starting an IV on a patient, my primary nurse was present as well as a student we had with us. The patient's husband was also present.

I started the IV, I was getting ready to place the tegaderm on and BAM.

She slapped me straight across the face...pretty hard too. No mark, but it stung. I just left the room immediately, that was my first instinct. My primary nurse was dealing with the patient.

Anyway, the patient was an older lady....77, but she was A/O x3. NOT a confused patient, she later said she thought we were just "playing with her" I'm assuming she thought this because the student was watching? I don't know. She knew we needed to start a new IV, her IV infiltrated.

So, my question is this....at what point does a nurse actually look at a situation as being assaulted. If this lady slapped me across the face in the middle of the grocery store, I would have called the police.

What is that fine line? What if she bruised my face? Is that different?

Any advice is appreciated.