Babysitting as a Dx

Specialties Pediatric

Published

Ok so can you all believe this one.....to explain a little bit on how this can even happen I'm a navy nurse....so basicly the healthcare is free for the service member and family.

Ok any way....back to my story....the other wk our doctors admitted a pt to our floor with the admitting dx of Babysitting....

The mother of this pt was admitted to our tele floor, so instead of sending the kid home with the grandmother or the dad...the powers that be admitted the kid (with no medical problems) to our floor.

Thank goodness I wasn't there that day b/c I would have hit the roof.

Just b/c we don't have to pay for our health care as service members doesn't mean that we could abuse the system, and waste vaulable nursing skills on babysitting. Maybe I would be a bit more understanding if the mother had nobody else to take care of the child (ie if the dad was deployed), but that wasn't the case. There were 2 other caregivers besides the mother!

Maybe I'm just being harsh and have a cold heart...what do you all think?

Specializes in ER,ICU and Progressive Care Unit,Peds.

No there wasn't a question of abuse for this child. The child was simply admitted for baby sitting purposes b/c the mother was admitted to our hospital.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

No insurer in the world is going to pay for that, private or government and the hospital will eat it. I would have refused that assignment and called social work stat.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Maternal - Child Health.
No insurer in the world is going to pay for that, private or government and the hospital will eat it. I would have refused that assignment and called social work stat.

But that's where military institutions differ from the civilian world. They do not usually have to answer to third party payors.

My sister practiced medicine in the military, and told similar stories involving admissions of adult patients.

I'm not trying to justify unnecessary admissions, just explain how they occur in a system with little oversight from "outside" payors.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ER,ICU and Progressive Care Unit,Peds.

Jolie is correct!

We don't have to answer to a third party, so things like this happen more than what they should.

But it did happen! I work there; I'm in the military; it happened!!!!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment