Background: I am a new grad RN. Graduated with my RN in may, received my LPN in may of 2011. I currently work in a LTC facility though I have considered other jobs because the facility where is work is very stressful. The nurses are frequently required to work short staffed. Many days, there is only one nurse for 40 residents. When I started work there right after I got my LPN, my training left much to be desired. I'd never worked as a nurse and the training was awful. They never gave me a choice to continue training, they just gave me three 12 hour shifts of training and then I had to be charge nurse on my own. Anyway, two weeks ago, a resident fell. The CNA caring for him was from agency and she transferred him with an assist of one when he was a two assist. She also claimed he became angry with her and sat down on the floor himself - which is likely since he is a hothead. Anyway, I had meds in my hand and I instructed the CNAs to obtain vitals and not move him and then I'd be down. When I got down there, they already had him up and he was MAD. Refused to allow me to assess him, though I did look at his back, legs, and bottom. I documented everything I could and that was the end. There was no s/s of injury or anything. He c/o general achiness a couple times t/o the day but apap helped and that was that. The next day, when I was off work, he c/o severe pain in his right leg. They sent him to the hospital and he had a hairline fx of the distal femur. I go in to work and my boss helps me write up a statement about everything I knew that happened. Then, a couple days later, I'm called in her office and told that I'm being written up because I failed to complete a head to toe assessment on the resident immediately after the fall and I failed to document said head to toe assessment. I'm also being written up because some CNAs complained that I'm at the nurses station too much, I'm not a team player, and I need to help them out more. Seriously? Most days, I'm the only nurse and it's all I can do to get my charting, meds, faxes, and treatments done. And with all that, I help out as much as I can. I take residents to the bathroom, I get them up or lay them down, I comb their hair, etc. I just don't do it when I'm busy with nursing tasks. Plus, the CNAs have full staff and that's what they're hired for! And I already documented that the resident who fell refused a head to toe assessment.
Then, my boss calls me today on my day off and demands I come in tomorrow on my day off to meet with her. She refuses to tell me what this meeting is about and is determined I show up. I spoke with a former coworker of mine and she said that they can't ask me to come in for a personal meeting on my time off - if it was a staff meeting, then yes; personal, no. She said they can't write me up or anything if I can't come in on my personal time. She said this almost exact same sequence of events occurred to another nurse several months ago and she was fired in the personal meeting. She advised me not to meet on my time off and if they're going to fire me, they can do it during work hours and find someone to cover the rest of my shift. She said I should let them fire me so I can claim unemployment.
What do you guys think? It sounds suspicious, right? I don't know what to do. All I know is I did everything I could do and I don't believe I'm at fault here. I almost don't care about being fired - I'm actively searching for new employment but I need the money and was counting on the income until I can find a new job. I also don't like being accused of something I didn't do.
