Will I get kicked out of nursing school?

Purple_roses · Apr 14, 2017

If anything did happen, I don't think it would be complete dismisal from the program. I would think they would fail you in that particular class (if they even do that) before they kick you out of the program. You did the right thing by being honest and open about it and filling out the incident report...that might go a long way too.

Extra Pickles · Apr 14, 2017

I presume it would be up to your program. If you get kicked out, they should kick out your instructor.
You are in school to learn, not double check licensed nurses you are SUPPOSED to be learning from.
The licensed professional and your instructor are responsible for this error.

While I don't disagree about the responsibility to the patient being the primary nurse who is assigned to that patient, it IS the responsibility of the student to know what it is she is giving. She did not check the vial the med was drawn from, but DID administer the medication. Mistake made.

It's been awhile since I've been in school and when I was there the instructors oversaw every medication administration we did. However I see students all the time now who are with ME when a patient is due a medication and they are 'approved' to give it. I'll also tell you that in no case am I going to draw up a med and hand it to the student to give, either I draw it up and give it OR the student draws it up and gives it. I was always taught to never give a medication ANYONE has drawn up if it wasn't ME. This would be a stellar example of that rule and what happens when not followed.

Mavrick, BSN, RN · Apr 14, 2017

I'll also tell you that in no case am I going to draw up a med and hand it to the student to give, either I draw it up and give it OR the student draws it up and gives it. I was always taught to never give a medication ANYONE has drawn up if it wasn't ME. This would be a stellar example of that rule and what happens when not followed.

Lesson learned for everyone.

I worked a hospital where there was disaster in the ER. The nurse flushed a kid's central line with a fluid she thought was Sodium Chloride. Turns out someone else had draw it up and handed the syringe to the nurse which contained Potassium Chloride (they look alike you know) and instantly killed the kid.

I don't have to make that mistake to learn from it. I taught myself to NEVER give a med someone else has drawn up. They draw it, they give it.

Ellie G · Apr 14, 2017

Lesson learned for everyone.
I worked a hospital where there was disaster in the ER. The nurse flushed a kid's central line with a fluid she thought was Sodium Chloride. Turns out someone else had draw it up and handed the syringe to the nurse which contained Potassium Chloride (they look alike you know) and instantly killed the kid.
I don't have to make that mistake to learn from it. I taught myself to NEVER give a med someone else has drawn up. They draw it, they give it.

thats why potassium chloride vials are not kept on floors anymore. It's a disaster waiting to happen. That nurse had to have been a wreck. I can't imagine.

NicuGal, MSN, RN · Apr 14, 2017

I take it that this place also doesn't use an electronic MAR. If they do, then was the med scanned prior to administration. yes, it is your responsibility to check the vial yourself and draw it yourself. There is nothing wrong with saying, " Oh, I was taught to only give meds I draw up myself". Such a hard lesson.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Apr 14, 2017

thats why potassium chloride vials are not kept on floors anymore. It's a disaster waiting to happen. That nurse had to have been a wreck. I can't imagine.

No doubt, I was doing clinicals on the CVICU once and there was a code so they had cracked the code cart and after I was allowed to go rummage through it and instead of NS Bolus bags someone stocked the carts with Potassium ones instead. :| :|

In my NS program we never had an instructor present for meds, we were assigned a nurse and the nurse was allowed to refuse having a student. But the nurse we were with oversaw we did our meds correctly. I am willing to bet this student won't make this mistake again, but I don't feel she should be kicked out of school either. Med errors happen and in hospitals now it's supposed to be where you're not terminated over them either to encourage reporting them when they happen and trying to develop better ways to prevent them.

Editorial Team / Admin · Apr 14, 2017

I would be very prepared to speak with your instructor or anyone else who may be meeting with you. Know what you did wrong (giving a med drawn up by someone else) and have a plan to prevent it from happening again (only giving meds you've drawn up yourself, performing multiple checks such as when drawing up and again just before administering). I hope that you've learned from the event and that the school will be willing to work with you to avoid being expelled. Best wishes.

Ellie G · Apr 14, 2017

We had someone hang a 500cc bag of heparin instead of Hespan. We had a cart stocked with all the stuff for heart recovery and replaced what was used afterwards from the Pyxis. Whoever had stocked the cart put the wrong med in the drawer and the nurse that hung it didn't notice it until the bag was almost empty. Have to check every single thing when giving medications. If talking about this stuff prevents even one tragedy then it's a good thing.

allnurses Guide · Apr 14, 2017

I helped a nurse prepare an immunization for a child and administered the vaccine. It wasn't till after I administered the vaccine did I realize my nurse pulled up the wrong vaccine and the infant got a double dose of a vaccine that was given previously. I had to fill out an incidence report with my instructor today and I can't help but feel like this is my fault because I shouldn't have trusted that nurse and I should have reconfirmed what I was giving. I'm scared that this mistake might cost me my seat in the nursing program. Has this ever happened to anyone as a student?

Never, under any circumstances outside of life/death, give a med that you did not draw up yourself.

Ellie G · Apr 14, 2017

I went in on an extra shift one night at 11 because the nurse who had come in at 7 had to leave and they called me and asked if I would come in. When I got there she was hopelessly behind and I was frustrated. She was far from ready to give report. She told me that she hadn't done her HS finger sticks so I went and did them while she was getting everything together. She looked at the results of one and said he needed sliding scale. I looked at the sliding scale and she drew up the insulin which I verified with her. Because I had seen it drawn up I went and gave it. An hour later on a chart check, I noticed that he was not supposed to be covered at HS. This was in the days of hand written kardex. I felt like the biggest idiot on the planet and I was furious with myself. I let my frustration and the "I'm going to be catching up all night" feeling override my better judgement and didn't check the order thoroughly. Thankfully the patient was fine. I informed the physician and we gave him a light snack. It stuck with me for the rest of my career though. Even when two people check, a mistake can still be made. Never rush giving medications.

Happymango · Apr 15, 2017

Thank you everyone for your comments and insight. I have passed meds all last semester and always did the 7 rights however for some reason I did not this time and put my full trust in the nurse who pulled the bottle up. I am aware that this is also my mistake and I am devastated that this happened. I learned a great lesson that day and I'm sure my peers did also. I will NEVER make this mistake again.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Apr 15, 2017

Thank you everyone for your comments and insight. I have passed meds all last semester and always did the 7 rights however for some reason I did not this time and put my full trust in the nurse who pulled the bottle up. I am aware that this is also my mistake and I am devastated that this happened. I learned a great lesson that day and I'm sure my peers did also. I will NEVER make this mistake again.

That's all you can do, you learn and move on. Don't dwell on it. Have your day to be devastated and then let it go. Our mistakes or the mistakes of others is how we learn and evolve.