But she's not a nurse!

Nurses General Nursing

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I just started a new position running a clinic. The clinic is staffed by myself and one CNA. I am so happy to be working with this CNA as she has over 15 years experience working in this clinic and is a wealth of knowledge and help to me. I adore her. She is very nice and cooperative. I only have one problem with the entire situation. Everyone who comes to the clinic calls her, Nurse Judy. All of the employee handouts and printed information and brochures have her listed as Nurse Judy. They have me listed as Nurse Diane. As if we were one in the same. I am a RN and of course her supervisor. She is 20 years my senior and I really do have alot of respect for her. I just can't live with her using the Nurse designation. I know it is against the law and I'm thinking that is the angle I will try and to set the record strait. Other people who work in the company would never let thier assistants be called thier own professional titles. All of the other staff are non medical. They have worked with Judy for years, they trust her and love her. Any ideas on how to handle this?

I think she is a nursing assistant, not a medical assistant...unless I totally read this situation wrong.

Webster's definition of a nurse (the noun) is:

'A person TRAINED to care for the sick and infirm.'

So I guess by general definition, CNA's CAN call themselves 'nurses'...as the general term 'nurse' doesn't mention formal education.

Maybe the 'Registered Nurse' added to YOUR name tag and to the brochure following your name will suffice....and will maintain your pleasant work environment...;)

My question (forgive if this has been addressed already, and I don't want to open another can of worms for you!)) is will you as the RN be liable for what she does in this office from a legal standpoint? How is your job description written? Does it include supervision of staff and what does your BON say about clinic situations with nurses and assistants?

Perhaps there are some clinic RN's on this forum from your state who will know....

That's the great thing about MA's...is that they work under the doc's license......be better for you if she was a MA...

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Specializes in LDRP; Education.
Originally posted by Flo1216

Nurse Judy may be the greatest thing since sliced bread but does that mean if a person is nice, that they can assume any title they want, even if they haven't earned it? I do agree however that the issue should be approached in as subtle a manner as possible, however it should be addressed.

Great post, I agree.

I know some ancient RNs who delivered more babies than the new OBs. Should they assume the title doctor?

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Specializes in Community Health Nurse.
Originally posted by Susy K

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I know some ancient RNs who delivered more babies than the new OBs. Should they assume the title doctor?

Right on Susy K..........cause I......for one.......delivered THREE babies from my own body......so......guess that makes me a Baby Doctor..... :rotfl: :lol2:

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Thank you so very much to all who have responded to this thread. You have given me much to ponder.

Today, I changed all the handouts. They now say either Diane _______R.N. or I removed the names altogether and left a blank for either one of us to sign. It was easy to do since I had to make changes anyway to add my name to the literature. There is only one handbook that I can't change till next year...and I plan on just using our names and title without the Nurse word being used. Since I am in charge of everything that has to do with the clinic, I didn't need to go through any channels to make the change. I didn't mention it to Judy, I just did it. I figure, if she asks I'll tell her why I made the change. From a legal standpoint, I think she would agree as she is a real CYA type of person and wouldn't want to place herself at risk. I'm basically just CYA for both of us, b/c if I referred to her as Nurse Judy too and printed the materials that way, wouldn't I too be falsifying our own clinics credentials and also be held responsible for that false pretense??

I really do like Judy and I wouldn't want to see anything happen to either of us. To clarrify: We are on our own in this clinic, we'd be lucky to see the doc once a year and it wouldn't be at our clinic. I get my orders from the patients primary doctor to provide the care that we give. It is the patients AND coworkers who refer to her as Nurse Judy. I am not intending on correcting them just yet......After I develop my own relationships with others, I can then discreetly tell them what up and why. They are professional themselves in thier own right, and they all have thier own assistants. They would never allow the assistants to be called by thier own earned titles and the assistants are very quick to tell me that they are assistants to avoid confusion. So I think they will understand very quickly and naturally comply with the proper designated titles. It is illegal in my state to call yourself a nurse unless you are an LPN or RN. period.. So that is solved IMO.

I absolutly love my job. The environment is what we will make it. She has the experience and enough knowlege to have earned her respect, from me and others. I will include her in the major decisions that we will face. I will learn from her and she from me. I see us becoming great allies and perhaps if we're lucky, we can become friends too. I don't intend on messin' up a good thing. So I'm definatly not going to push the issue.

Your reinforcement and answers are appreciated. Thank you for keeping it civil and respectful. Enjoyable and helpful reading.:)

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Yay, Flowerchild!

Love

Dennie

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whoa whoa whoa....sooooo who was the licensed nurse prior to your arrival? was there one?????or was this MA working wihtout supervision????

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Sounds like you've got it handled nicely Flowerchild!! :)

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I delivered my daughter and I dellivered this baby once while backpacking (remind me to tell you the story sometime).

-Doc Hammer

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I understand all of your posts.

I am a MA and will be taking my National Exam in Jan. to become a CMA. I am also a Phlebotomist, and will also be taking my National Exam in Jan. to become certified. I am finishing up my Associates Degree in MA.

Doctors around here, too, call their CMA's nurses and only a few will correct themselves when told.

I don't know about anywhere else, but where I live CMA's are certified to draw blood, draw up meds, give injections, start IV's, take vitals, do EKG's, call in prescriptions, do urinalysis testing, culture plates, and assist the doctors with procedures in the medical office, plus do front office duties. We are trained to work primarily in Doctor's office's, not hospitals, but some do.

Although we all have different licensure's (Doctor, RN, LPN, CMA, CNA, RMT, etc), we all have one great thing in common, and that is to take care of our patients with the best care we can give them within our scope of practice.:) Belle

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sunnygirl, an RN, yes, no.

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Doc Hammer, I'd love to hear the story about the backpacker! Delivering your daughter must have been a wonderful experience!

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Let's hear it, Doc Hammer!!

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