About Incident Reports

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

I was told that 3 days after a patient left his lawyer requested all hospital records and incident reports over a nosicomial problem. (Don't want to get too detailed.)

I wrote a pretty incriminating incident report, that,while true, guarantees I'll get a supoena. What bums me is I feel my privacy is violated in that there should be some kind of private internal reporting system that allows for documentation. My incident report set in motion a chain of events that eventually helped the patient, but no one will see that part.

The big defense lawyers with lobbiests with deep pockets have gotten their way.

I wonder if this means nurses are going to be less inclined to make incident reports. We have a private line we can report ethical delemmas, so I guess I'll have to start using that.

Mainly, I'm just venting.

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Tort reform. That's more important than any internal reporting system.

[ohmeowzer RN, RN]

i thought the courts were not entitiled to the incident report that it was a internal document.... i'm sorry this happened to you .. please keep us posted on how it turns out

[RN1989]

This may not have anything to do with an incident report.

Many reports never get written because it would take the nurse 2 hours after the shift to complete one. But lawsuits are still filed and records requested.

If the patient/family/someone else knew something happened, the presence of absence of an incident report doesn't mean much. There is not necessarily any indication that an incident report would be turned over, particularly this quickly. Everywhere I've worked, it takes forever to get incident reports through to all the quality/risk/nurse managers that need to see it and half the time they are lost in inter-office mail.

People aren't stupid - they can tell when something is wrong - even if you didn't say "I filled out an incident report".

A good medical malpractice attorney or a legal nurse consultant would put your name down anyway, even without the incident report, because you were there at the time and had some kind of knowledge of the incident.

If you didn't personally screw up - don't worry about it. This issue might be something that needs to come out to prevent someone from getting hurt in the future, in which case your participation is honorable.

[10MG-IV]

i thought the courts were not entitiled to the incident report that it was a internal document.... i'm sorry this happened to you .. please keep us posted on how it turns out

me too I thought "incident reports" were internal only and the ^%**($%$ lawyers couldn't have them. :argue:ARGHHHHHHHH.

I am going to be a walmart greeter.

Now when I write up I reports do I have to tailor them for the Lawyers.... Some one in the legal room please respond.

[Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP]

I thought the incident reports were internal and not for review as well. Maybe this differs state by state? Either way, I am sorry that you're being dragged through this. I was a brand new nurse and had my NM call me into her office to tell me a family was contacting a lawyer over something that happened on my watch. She had reviewed my documentation and didn't think anything would come of it and nothing ever did....but it is still terrifying and a pain in the backside. Hang in there, Tweets.

[PsychRNOhio]

I think that an incident protects you more than endangers you in a suit. In that you can out in all the detail you wouldn;t necessarily put in a medical record. Timeconsuming or not, incident reports should be used to "CYA"

[TopazLover, BSN, RN]

I wonder if the lawyer asked for it by name. We changed the name of the report a few years ago and made in clear in P&P that this was an internal audit form, not part of patient documentation.

Sorry you are pulled into a wringer for being a good conscientious nurse. Like the other posts said you would have been anyway if your name appeared anywhere connected with that pt. The only good news is that more paperwork is filed than ever gets through the court system. I will keep you in my thoughts about this one, and keep the old fingers crossed that it blows over without messing with your head any more than it already has.:icon_hug:

[Grace Oz]

It's a while now ( 6 years) since I retired, but it use to always be that whatever we documented had to be such that it could "stand up in a court of law." Both case notes and incident reports. It was repeatedly drummed into us that we must always bear in mind is that one day, maybe, what we'd written could be called as evidence etc.

There was also a quote pasted at all nurses stations: "If it isn't written. It didn't happen". I never did quite figure out just how we were meant to interpret that! :)

Sorry you're dealing with this Tweety. Being a quality nurse who does his job well, sometimes, unfairly, throws back at you! Hang in there.

[I love my cat!]

Sorry this is happening to you Tweety.

Well, I know for a fact that 'incidents' are underreported if employees know that there will be a negative outcome for them.

When I first started Nursing, I use to overhear Nurses talking about mistakes and not reporting them. Fellow co-workers would reassure each other that it was the "right' thing to do if they wanted to keep their employee record clean and/or keep their job.

People in this particular facility quickly learned that being honest and reporting an error equalled one or all of the following:

-reprimand

-negative report in employee's file

-probation

-termination

What was the whole point of reporting for these Nurses? Yes, it would have benefited the patients, but in reality, not too many people were willing to risk their license, job, or reputation for that. Their livelihood was on the line, too.

There needs to be a way that incidents can be filed/reported where everyone can learn from them. Not be punished.

I don't know much about the law, but I always thought that if the court subpoenas something, they get it.....which is why I always tell people to be very careful what you tell your MD or Psychiatrist.

What might be considered private and confidential now, is an open book when the court issues a subpoena.

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

me too I thought "incident reports" were internal only and the ^%**($%$ lawyers couldn't have them. :argue:ARGHHHHHHHH.

I am going to be a walmart greeter.

Now when I write up I reports do I have to tailor them for the Lawyers.... Some one in the legal room please respond.

I thought the incident reports were internal and not for review as well. Maybe this differs state by state?

There needs to be a way that incidents can be filed/reported where everyone can learn from them. Not be punished.

I don't know much about the law, but I always thought that if the court subpoenas something, they get it.....which is why I always tell people to be very careful what you tell your MD or Psychiatrist.

What might be considered private and confidential now, is an open book when the court issues a subpoena.

I'm not sure if it varies state by state, but time was lawyers could get their hands on the patients chart only, not incident reports, but the laws changed recently, perhaps just this year. Now lawyers are asking for public records and all incident reports and we must give them up.

I do agree that incident reports shouldn't be used to punish, but to report incidents so that changes may occur or lessons learned, or merely to let someone know of potential liability. I think this new law sets us way back in nurse and patient advocacy.

[I love my cat!]

It shouldn't be used to punish, but to report incidents so that changes may occur or lessons learned, or merely to let someone know of potential liability. I think this new law sets us way back in nurse and patient advocacy.

AGREE AGREE AGREE...100%!! I mean really, who is going to freely and openly report every single mistake/misunderstanding KNOWING THAT DOING SO would MEAN THAT THEY WOULD BE FIRED!!!!!!!!!!!!