RN babysiting gig gone south

Nurses General Nursing

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This recently happened to my cousin and I dont think she was wrong but she is as mad as hell at the situation.

She's a May 09 grad RN who hasnt been able to get a job yet so she babysits for extra cash. she was asked to help babysit for this family with 3kids (8,12 and 15)whose parents were going to be out of the country for two weeks. She met the parents a day before they left the country, she was availalbe but had a class 4pm on Tuesdays. They said it was ok and would get 15yr to come back home early so that she could stay with the youngest while my cousin went to class. On the Tuesday, she picked the 8yr old from school, fed him and helped with homework. The oldest was supposed to be home at 3.20 so my cousin could leave b/c her class was 40mins away. well she didnt show at 3.25 and my cousin put the 8yr old in front of the tv and left for her class. She kept calling to check on the kid on her way to class and the 15yr showed at 3.35, so she was relieved.

While in class she got a nasty text message from the parents who were displeased because she left their kid alone for TEN whole minutes. When she finally spoke to them and explained what happened, she got an earful from them and they basically made her feel incompetent and useless. They said they couldnt trust her BUT they didnt tell her to leave b/c she was their only option. she continued the gig and told me that everytime they called for their kids, they made her feel like she was a monster looking after their precious ones". Nothing she did after that was right.

Maybe because she's family but I dont think should have been chastised like that. I just want to know what folks think about the situation. also is she putting her license at risk by babysiting? can she be reported to the board for this?

And she got paid a whopping $225 per week i.e $32 per day for an RN, Unbelievable!!!!:crying2:

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Yes, she put her license at risk. Those people could call the board and complain against her license, even though she was not employed as a nurse. They can claim anything and the Board would investigate. Of course, their word against hers. Anything you do, particularly anything you do for pay, once you obtain a license, can affect your license.

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Specializes in Hospital Education Coordinator.

they called because they felt guilty. They hired her to have a nurse, not a babysitter. They would probably sue if someone got hurt. The nurse learned a hard lesson.

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This has me wondering if this post is even for real.

IMO, there are so many wrongs in this entire situation I don't know where to start. The parents were certainly crazy for leaving their kids with a stranger 24/7 for two weeks. Your cousin was certainly wrong for leaving an eight year old alone. You cousin never should have thought this fifteen year old would be dependable enough to trust he woudl be there in tiem for her class.

I can't believe the parents didn't come right home immediately when they found out about this.

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hjjju

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I am a registered childcare provider and will be starting nursing school next month. No child should ever be left alone unless the child is of an appropriate age and you have consent from the parent. Even if your cousin had to miss her class, she is responsible for the care of the child not the 15 year old who was late. If I were the parent I would be upset too. What would have happened if the 15 year old for whatever reason never came and on your way to school you were in a severe car accident. Now this child is in a home he/she is unfamiliar with and all alone. Who do you think the police would blame you or the 15 year old? Please don't think I'm being rude, that's not what I'm trying to do. You have to be very careful when you get into the childcare business, even if it's just a "gig" and not registered there are still a lot of rules and liabilities that apply.

Also if she wasn't hired to be a nurse, then why should she get paid as one?

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I don't think they are going to report her but anyone can report any of us for anything.

The family is nuts because they left their children with someone they don't know for 2 weeks. Your cousin is also nuts to leave an 8 year old alone in the house even for 10 minutes. You don't leave an 8 year old alone. EVER. She should count her blessings nothing happened to the child during that time. This could have had a disasterous result.

If she didn't like the salary she shoudn't have taken the job. She was being paid as a sitter not a RN. I wouldn't have sat for $32 a day either.

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@ cynop. this situation is for real.

She was recommended to the parents by a family friend, so it wasnt like she answered an ad on craigslist.

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I definitely think she should have stayed with the kid. I think it's one thing for a parent to leave their own child home alone for a couple minutes while they run an errand, but it's a totally different story when it's not your kid and when you don't know when supervision (the 15 year old) will be home. Things could have gone a lot worse and your cousin should consider herself lucky.

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I am a registered childcare provider and will be starting nursing school next month. No child should ever be left alone unless the child is of an appropriate age and you have consent from the parent. Even if your cousin had to miss her class, she is responsible for the care of the child not the 15 year old who was late. If I were the parent I would be upset too. What would have happened if the 15 year old for whatever reason never came and on your way to school you were in a severe car accident. Now this child is in a home he/she is unfamiliar with and all alone. Who do you think the police would blame you or the 15 year old? Please don't think I'm being rude, that's not what I'm trying to do. You have to be very careful when you get into the childcare business, even if it's just a "gig" and not registered there are still a lot of rules and liabilities that apply.

Also if she wasn't hired to be a nurse, then why should she get paid as one?

Thanks for the input. I don't have any kids so I really didnt think it was that bad but your comment makes sense.

I am not saying she should be paid RN wages but just reflecting on how bad the economy/job situation is.

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Leaving the child alone was not only unacceptable, it was illegal. I hope she learns from this situation and does not lose her hard-earned license.

I feel bad for her; I don't think she was trying to do anything wrong.

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Leaving the child alone was not only unacceptable, it was illegal. I hope she learns from this situation and does not lose her hard-earned license.

I feel bad for her; I don't think she was trying to do anything wrong.

Depending on the state the babysitter was in, this is not necessarily illegal. In my state, there are no laws governing at what age a child can be left alone. Personally, I would never leave an eight year old home alone.

Miz Que

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