Boundary Between What Nurses And Doctors Do In ER

[opheaphea]

Where Does The Boundary Lay Between What Specific Duties Nurses And Doctors Have In The ER?

I'm thinking about becoming a nurse and eventually working in the ER. Only problem is I haven't been able to find any information about what specific medical procedures and treatments nurses in the ER do that doctors in the ER don't and vice versa. For example, giving a patient stitches or a cast.

I don't know if this sounds stupid or I'm not making any sense, but I haven't been able to find any specific information about where exactly the boundary lies between what nurses can and can't do, so if there's anyone who could answer this, that'd be great!

Thanks!

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

That's gosing to vary on the state. What you want to know is your state's nurse practice acts and your facility's policies.

[Party_of_five, BSN]

Typically the NP or PA will do minor stitches and a MD (or resident since I work at a teaching hospital) will do more major ones. At out hospital a tech (unlicensed) can do splints/bandaging. Any actual procedure is going to be done by a MD. Nurses mainly assess/monitor, give meds, IVs, teach ect. If you want to be the one doing a lot of procedures like a lumbar puncture, resetting a broken leg, draining a abscess ect then you will want to be a MD. While nurses are involved in these procedures, we are not the ones directly doing them.

[CX_EDRN]

That's really going to depend. We don't suture, but we can take them out. We don't cast at all in my ED, but the RNs and techs splint. As a whole, I have personally found that we have a lot of freedom in the ED that I didn't have on the floors. But that freedom is within my scope, ie I don't have to wait for orders for things like straight cathing, ordering certain meds or plain films. On the floors, I had to page an MD and wait for a response, in the ED I can just do. It's awesome.