Verbal orders in texas from Medical assistant

U.S.A. Texas

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Working in a home health agency. There is an MD office where the MA (Medical Assistant), an unlicensed individual, calls our nurses with MD orders.

Does anyone know if that is acceptable practice? :uhoh21: could not find it in rules...help please.

Leslie RN

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Specializes in LTC, Nursing Management, WCC.
Working in a home health agency. There is an MD office where the MA (Medical Assistant), an unlicensed individual, calls our nurses with MD orders.

Does anyone know if that is acceptable practice? :uhoh21: could not find it in rules...help please.

Leslie RN

I don't know if it is in your state, but it is acceptable in mine. But if there are questions regarding the order, then you must speak with the MD. I called in orders all the time prior to going to school and I wasn't even a MA.

For the most part I don't have a problem with taking an order from an UAP, but if the order is complex or just doesn't make sense then I ask to speak with an RN or the MD.

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Specializes in PACU.

That's a big no-no with my agency ( I'm in a different state, however). You should refuse to take them until you verify that it is legal in your state and that it is acceptable to your agency.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

Moved to the Texas Nurses forum.

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In Oregon a CMA can phone in orders from an MD.

Whoops! I didn't see that this post was moved to the Texas board...

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I deal constantly with this issue in a different way. I will call a physician's office with a non-critical (but still important) report on a cardiac patient and specifically ask for the nurse. 8 times out of 10 the MA will say "I'm Dr' so and so's nurse." It is a dead give away when they can't pronounce "tachycardia." Then I ask for them for their name for documentation and I'll say "so are you an LVN or an RN" and this is usually followed by a LONG pause.

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It is inadvisable to take an order from anyone but the doctor. But it happens all the time and the best way to protect yourself is to make sure you sign: t.o. Dr. Mac/Sallie Meek - office staff/Jane Nurse RN. Until there are more JCAHO citations or lawsuits over this issue, I doubt that anyone is going to get the doctors to stop shirking their duties and write appropriate orders themselves.

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Specializes in ER/ OR/ PACU and now Occupational Health.

We were told both in school AND in hospital orientation that this is a HUGE NO NO!!!!!!! We were told that an RN in no way was to take an order from anyone but another NURSE/PA or of course the Doc.

If it were me I would ask for a title before any order was even given because I worked WAY too hard for my license to lose it over a mistake made by a person who can't even pronounce common medical words.

But that is just me.

Go check out the nurse practice act on the Texas BNE website. I am sure they have something addressing this issue.

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