Help!! Sticky situation relating to "abuse"

Specialties Geriatric

Published

I need some guidance and some help! 2 days ago at my LTC facility I had a severely demented pt state to her family member that someone "hit her". The family is deeply involved in the care of pt and are at the bedside nearly 75% of the time. They are all very loving, friendly and appreciative of the care that their family member receives from our facility so when the family member stated that the pt had mentioned this, the family member whole heartedly believes that it did not occur. The family member is also DPOA and upon discussion of this I informed the family member that we could do two things. 1. Involve the DHS, do a full investigation and rule out any type of abuse and 2. run some tests to check for infections r/t increased confusion. Both myself and family interviewed the pt and she was unable to produce any reliable information about being "hit"... again the pt is severely demented. 30 minutes later when we asked her again she said she was never hit. Family stated they did not want to make a big fuss over the situation as again they did not believe that any abuse really occurred. I got the order for the ua, cbc, cmp and cxr which ended up + for infiltrate. I immediately contacted my Assistant DON for clarification about documentation and ADON said not to document anything regarding the patient being "hit". I did not report the occurrence to DHS per family request, but at the same time didn't document anything per ADON. After the long weekend and working today I got a call from my DON stating that they were going to do a further investigation and not to come into work tomorrow. NOW I'M FREAKING OUT because I didn't report to DHS!! My boyfriend thinks I should speak to a lawyer and I feel my job may be in jeopardy because if it comes down to it, I know the facility license and not MY license is of top concern to my employer. Any words of wisdom and advice would be MUCH appreciated!! DON says she will call me tomorrow to let me know if I can come back to work.

Specializes in ortho, hospice volunteer, psych,.

i suspect you just got caught in the middle of something. it isn't fair at all, but it does happen sometimes. keep us posted.

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Specializes in Geriatrics.

On the positive side; if you are found innocent then they have to pay you for the time you are suspended (at least they do here).

On the con side: talk to a lawyer... just in case!

Please up date us as soon as you know something.

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I'm sorry this happened to you. I do think you got caught in the crosshairs but I feel confident no complaint was made against you by this family. On the contrary, they are prob your best ally. You learned a good lesson here. Follow proper procedure from here on out. If the ADON, DON, etc. don't like it that's just too bad. The ADON gave you bad advice and you erred in listening. Next time you will just document accordingly. I pray you aren't the scapegoat and that does happen from time to time. Gut tells me you will keep your job and that the DON believes your version. Hopefully this ends up just being a blip. Keep us posted.

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Update: Thanks you for all the helpful responses. Big Lesson learned. Neither I nor my ADON lost our jobs, and thankfully my days off were paid. I went back to work today. I should have just reported it to the abuse coordinator and they would have taken care of all the paperwork. I'm considering myself very lucky.

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whew!

good for you.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
Update: Thanks you for all the helpful responses. Big Lesson learned. Neither I nor my ADON lost our jobs, and thankfully my days off were paid. I went back to work today. I should have just reported it to the abuse coordinator and they would have taken care of all the paperwork. I'm considering myself very lucky.

Whew!!!!:yeah: That was close!!! NUrsing is about learning every day.....just don't repeat your mistake's and you'll be a great nurse. Now.......get that malpractice/liability insurance!!!!!! ASAP!!:redbeathe

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I remember the first day of LPN school, and the first day of ADN school. The very first lesson was CYA ( cover your a--). If ever there was a situation to CYA, this was it. Good luck to you.

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Specializes in Trauma Surgery, Nursing Management.

No matter what-and I mean NO MATTER WHAT-always document your findings. As soon as you hear a supervisor tell you, "Don't document XYZ...", you know that something is up. Furthermore, trust your own instincts and trust in the knowledge that you have by being a diligent and prudent nurse. You know that you should document everything...but that little reminder doesn't exactly help you now.

I would not be too worried (easy for me to say, eh?) because you covered your turd cutter by telling your DON exactly what went down, and did so in a timely manner. That may have saved you.

I suspect that the DON is going to read the Riot Act to the ADON regarding this situation. The fact that the ADON requested you not report to work leads me to believe that the Seventh Level of Hell may ascend upon the ADON, and the DON wants to conduct this meeting with her friends Hellfire and Brimstone.

You shouldn't have anything to worry about. This issue seems to be purely between the ADON and the DON at this point. You did the right thing; the family stands behind you. The ADON exercised GROSS misjudgment by instructing you not to document the alleged abuse. The DON likely recognized this, and I would bet the farm that you couldn't have pulled a needle out of her back end with a John Deere tractor when she fully comprehended the situation.

Rest your head easy tonight, honey. You did all the right things.

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