Being Sued / Losing License

Nurses Professionalism

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It seems that about 2/3rds of the posts on here mention either being sued or losing your license...it doesn't seem to matter what the topic is someone makes a comment about losing your license or being sued.

I am curious as to whether this is a valid fear or whether this is part of fear-based nursing culture.

1. How many years have you been a nurse?

2. How many nurses do you know personally that have been sued?

3. How many of those nurses who were sued have had to testify in court?

4. How many of those who testified were found guilty?

5. How many nurses do you know personally who have lost their license for patient related (non-criminal) actions? (By non - criminal I mean not for cases of drug diverting or robbing a back or something where the nurse knows what they are doing is illegal and will result in losing their license)

Thanks!

I occasionally go onto my state's website and peruse the disciplinary actions. I have also found that the majority concern controlled substances or DUI, etc. What was really striking though, to me, was finding the report of the action taken against a former DON. She was disciplined for clinical practice. While she was the DON at the facility where I worked, she was stealing controlled substances from the employer, yet that was not what the Board eventually got her for. Today her license is in good standing. I dare say she is most likely still diverting for her own use.

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Specializes in Health Information Management.

I am now a Nurse Manager at another facility, and I have extremely stringent polices on narcotics. When I first took over the position we started having duragesic patches missing off the residents. Sure occasionally a patch falls off, but we were missing excessive amounts of patches. Ended up doing a facility investigation, had the entire nursing staff tested for Fentanyl, had the state come in and investigate, police investigation, and we never were able to figure out who it was. I have a feeling it was an employee who was terminated shortly before the nurses started noticing they were missing.

It was the worst investigation I have ever been through. I now have my charge nurses checking placement of these patches q 1 hour. It's a bit excessive, but it's something I had to do as an intervention. Many of the nurses keep asking me, if we can go to q shift checks, however my original plan of correction was for hourly checks for 6 months and until 100% compliance was achieved during 6 consecutive monthly audits.

I keep finding blanks in the MAR, so they continue to check these q 1 hour, and I enforce this to the max.

I never want to go through that again.

What an awful situation! I don't blame you a bit for being cautious.

This is a side note, but I'm curious about something - could the patches have been falling off either because of the type or the time of year? Sweating really seems to weaken the adhesive. How is your facility's climate control?

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Specializes in Hospice, ER.

I've been an lpn for 3 1/2 yrs. One of my clinical instructors was sued, she did nothing wrong, but happened to be the nurse on duty (L&D, no prenatal care, drug use, baby died, everybodies fault but the mom). Nothing came of it. A couple of nurses & techs have been to court, but to testify mainly about DUI stuff. A couple of nurses are going to court because they have been assaulted by patients. We no longer put up with this. Several nurses I have worked with have lost their licenses due to narcotic use, but none for harming a patient. NJ has a program that will help addicted nurses get their licenses back if they comply and seek help. The bon website lists diciplinary actions and boy is it interesting reading! A real primer of what not to do.

I've noticed patches fall off because the pts skin is so dry & flaky. Also if they are hypoglycemic or have chest pain, and sweat them off. But as for picking them up and using them myself, eeeeeeeeeeeewwwwww! But I have heard of this happening. Also of staff chewing them.

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The thing about med errors and 5 rights is it can only carry you so far.

I gave a narcotic ordered for recovering addicts except it was not intended for my pt.

Right drug ordered right pt ordered for right time right route right dose but the DOCTOR ORDERED THE MED ON THE WRONG PT.

It was through talking with pt and wife while giving the meds that I realized something was amiss. I reluctantly went back through this man chart to realize that not only did the doctor make a mistake but also the pharmacist who has special med profile reconcilliator made a mistake as well. Scanning did not avert the error. I had to CONVINCE the covering doctor to follow up because I knew this med was not for my pt. The pt recovered but had to spend a few days in icu for resp failure. The doctor; totally excused and covered by senior doctors because "she was new doctor". Me the "new RN" well I guess I am supposed to instinctively know when THIS order is correct and life saving due to the doctor's supreme knowledge and when THAT order is a "goof" by the exhausted/young/overworked (insert whatever excuse of your choice) and should be disregarded. And how sm I suppose to know the difference??!!?? Well because I'm THE NURSE!

Sorry for getting carried away with my vent. The hospital totally covered it up because it was doctor or pharmacist error. If it had been MY error (and mine alone) you can bet I would have been canned and disciplined at state licensure board. I don't trust doctors nor hospitals with my hard earned license and my family's source of income. No way.

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Every nurse is in danger of being sued at any time for anything. The thing to remember is that being named in a suit IS NOT the same thing as committing an error. With more nurses having , the malpractice lawyers now have a new target group to sue. And the inverse. Chalk it up to our litigious culture, folks.

But be very aware that the nurse is the final step in the order, and we ARE held responsible if we give the wrong dosage, med, or permit a treatment that we know to be against our pt.s best interest. And be VERY aware that the hospital, doctor, pharmacist etc. is more than willing to throw you under the bus. I probably make 3 calls a day to pharmacy, and they probably cringe when they hear my name. I do not care; I will continue to check when I don't know, or suspect a problem. The same with the doctor too busy to write orders properly, RT who turns off my pt.s o2 without consulting with me, etc. Too bad I don't get the recognition or compensation due my responsibilities.

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Specializes in LDRP.

I do know someone personally who's license was suspended. I do not know why, honestly, I only found out because I saw her name on the BON website (we worked together on teh same unit right after graduation, and both moved on, so I dont have contact anymore)

I do not know anyone who has had to testify in court. I've been a nurse 5 years.

Though, on occasion, I look on the virginia BON website (my state) and look at the case decisions, b/c I wonder why people get in trouble with BON too. http://www.dhp.state.va.us/enforcement/cdecision/boardresults.asp?board=10&send=View

that is a list of the case decisions for the last 90 days. I like it because you can look at the documents and see what exactly they did.

some of the cases on there

1. felony possession of cocaine. (license suspended)

2. diverting narcotics (licenses suspended)

3. licensed suspended for being diagnosed with paranoid scizoaffective disorder and multiple psychiatric hospitalizations

4. diverting narcotics (license suspended)

5. calling in prescriptions for narcotics for own self, using a name/DEA number of a doctor they worked with-without the doctors knowledge or consent. did this several times. conned several doctors out of hundreds of narcotic pills. (license suspended)

6. convicted in court of felony grand larceny (licenses suspended)

7. bipolar/psychotic/anxious/alcoholic convicted of assault/DUI-license suspended

8. convicted in court of identity fraud (license suspended)

9. substance abuse-then had to enter a treatment program-refused required drug tests, lied on applications for jobs about why she had been fired, etc. continued drug use. (license suspended)

10. heroin addiction and diverting narcotics (license suspended)

so, mostly suspensions come from drugs. There were some ppl who got reprimanded or ordered to take a class if they were reported to teh BON for patient care issues, but mostly its drugs.

also, you get your license suspended in Virginia if you bounce a check to the BON (say, for your license renewal). they do reinstate it after you pay the money, but thats on the BON website forever, that you bounced a check to teh board and had your license suspended.

work hard, don't cut corners, don't do drugs and you'll likely be fine.

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Specializes in Acute care, Community Med, SANE, ASC.

I know of a current lawsuit involving one of the hospitals I work for as well as a list of physicians, at least 9 nurses and even a tech (CNA). It is a big lawsuit over a case that made national news. I believe the nurses are all ER nurses. I believe all people named in a lawsuit receive notification of such, as they did in this case according to the court documents available online. The case is still pending so I don't know if they will testify, etc.

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

Check out your BON newsletter disciplinary action section to see reasons nurse looses license.

PA: http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/disciplinary_actions/12528

Legal Eagle Eye Newsletter has many court cases with RN's being sued and outcome http://www.nursinglaw.com/

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I think the funny thing my hospital ever did was start allowing RNs to note and post their own orders. About 5 yrs

ago 2 people had to check ea. order-1 needed to be a RN. Once this was allowed there is always 1 order ea night that

is not correct. Oh well. Kinda off the subject. But tonight I had a covering doctor @ the NH where I work PD call the police

on me ( well as he was screaming @ me on the phone he changed his mind and said he called the cops on the NH for not

answering the phone) END RESULT-they came. My end result I'm drinking

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Specializes in Operating Room.
Throwing around the "It's my license and I have to protect it" is so common in the clinical setting that it makes you want to scream. It makes it look like that nurse is always on the defensive 24/7 and is extremely annoying. Yes, people lose their license but this isn't the only profession where people lose their license.

Practice good prudent nursing and overall you shouldn't have anything to worry about.

That's in an ideal world. Most of us don't practice in this ideal world and we do have to protect our licenses. Obviously, you've never seen anyone thrown under the bus. Employers won't protect you. So, guess what, if I'm in a situation where I think I may be screwed like that, you can bet that I will do everything I can to protect myself. If this makes me annoying, too bad, so sad.
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Our state survey team, and the law enforcement agent who came in for the investigation informed us of facilities where staff members were removing these patches, and either placing them back on themselves, or (which is completely disgusting) licking the patch in an attempt to get a fix. Im not sure if you are in management or not at your facility, but you may want to discuss the situation. I never thought it would be a problem. Patches fall off, it happens, but when we were missing several it really became a scare.

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What an awful situation! I don't blame you a bit for being cautious.

This is a side note, but I'm curious about something - could the patches have been falling off either because of the type or the time of year? Sweating really seems to weaken the adhesive. How is your facility's climate control?

Well this was during the winter, not saying it isn't warm in here in the winter...but in addition to the patch being placed, we also placed an opsite over the patch as well. It was just the strangest situation because it started with one patch missing, then another one, and another one, and another one, and the nurses staff finally brought it to management after about a week of noticing several patches not on resident.

It could be possible that they all fell off, even an opsite on comes loose, patches could get caught up in the bedding etc. Just seemed like so many, we felt we had to start a major investigation.

But after the investigation, I think we have had 2 episodes where the nurse couldn't find the patch when checking, and they were months apart. The original incidet where all these patches became missing was over a year ago.

Again, maybe I am being over cautious, I don't know. The nurses are having a hell of a time keeping up with these checks hourly, I keep telling them if I can get 6 consecutive monthly checks at 100% compliance, I can lower them, but every month I check, I find blanks on the MAR.

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