Failed a Med Pass Today

[Chris189]

Everything was going fine. I was passing PO's, hanging IVPB's, etc. Around 10am I passed some PO's to a woman. No problems. I then hungg an IVPB with my instructor in a another room. As im documenting for the IVPB I remembered I had to sign for the PO's I had just passed. I was going to finish documenting the IVPB and go document for the PO's. Right then the primary nurse came and asked me if i had passed those 10am meds. I said yes and I was coming over there to document that right now. She knew that I was passing all the meds for that pt and had watched me pass them. As I walk around the corner I see her with the MAR and talking to my instructor. My instructor comes over and said that we needed to talk. She said that she going to fail me for med pass because of unsafe practice. Now I understand the importance of documenting right after you do something. Im not downplaying that I made a mistake. My instructor said what if the primary had passed those meds again(however unlikely because she knew I was doing them and watched me pass them). I guess im not really sure what im trying to say. Just frustrated with the whole situation. Feel free to chime in here.

[Despareux]

Hopefully you'll get a chance to redeem yourself. I failed today too, because I forgot to put my gloves on when I gave an injection. And the REALLY messed up part is the whole time I was preparing to give this med, I kept thinking that I forgot something and as soon as I was done--DARN IT!! I forgot to put my gloves on. Yep, I was written up. I will never make that mistake again.

[cschoppe]

So while you were preparing the injection was your instructor in there w/ you? Did she see you get prepped and everything and let you go at it w/o gloves? I know the instructors want you to learn but my instructors are usually very helpful and usually seem like they don't want you to hurt the patient so while they are in the room assisting us w/ procedures they are giving us assistance all the while. Just seems weird if the instructor was right w/ you that they didn't say anything like "uh-hum...gloves.." lol

[Despareux]

Yep, my instructor was there the whole time. I appreciate my instructor for not saying anything; it's a tough lesson, but It is clear that I need to be more cognizant of what I'm doing and to understand that it's okay to ask if I'm uncertain.

[suanna]

As usual, finding ways to dicipline and threaten a student nurse is a much higher priority that actually teaching them the skills they will need to do the job. I can't help but wonder if our profession has so little science to teach that we have to make up ways of being critical of our students. I can't think of any other occasion when a patient will have 3 licenced care givers with co-equal responsibility to ensure an accurate med pass- the RN, the student, and the instructor all with liability to the patient in ensuring the meds were given- The problem being, what they taught you was that documentation is more improtant than patient care. You didn't go to lunch, or home, or off the unit without documanting your med pass. Until you report off on the patient you should be the one setting priorities as to what you need to be doing- charting, patient care, teaching, ... It is none of another staff members business when you choose to document your med pass until they take over the patient. I would be livid if another nurse duplicated a med pass on my patients because they didn't see confirmation in the documentation that I had done it. Unfortunately, you don't have a licence yet, and are subject to the whims of a clinical instructor and primary RN who are more intrested in finding fault than providing care. All this rant is assuming you have not had any previous problems in missing documentation that would warrent closer observation than would normaly be expected. I have no solution to offer but thank heaven I'm not a student in todays system- I'd never make it. I put a high priority on patient care, documentation is important, but not to the exclusion of hands on care.

[Nicole74]

Its seems to me that you could have easily documented right after you given the meds. Sometimes it's like they want to find fault.

[debstmomy]

Did you have your MAR with you when you admin them?? Why not sign right then & there, before the IVPB? Not judgement, just thinking.

[debstmomy]

As usual, finding ways to dicipline and threaten a student nurse is a much higher priority that actually teaching them the skills they will need to do the job. I can't help but wonder if our profession has so little science to teach that we have to make up ways of being critical of our students. I can't think of any other occasion when a patient will have 3 licenced care givers with co-equal responsibility to ensure an accurate med pass- the RN, the student, and the instructor all with liability to the patient in ensuring the meds were given- The problem being, what they taught you was that documentation is more improtant than patient care. You didn't go to lunch, or home, or off the unit without documanting your med pass. Until you report off on the patient you should be the one setting priorities as to what you need to be doing- charting, patient care, teaching, ... It is none of another staff members business when you choose to document your med pass until they take over the patient. I would be livid if another nurse duplicated a med pass on my patients because they didn't see confirmation in the documentation that I had done it. Unfortunately, you don't have a licence yet, and are subject to the whims of a clinical instructor and primary RN who are more intrested in finding fault than providing care. All this rant is assuming you have not had any previous problems in missing documentation that would warrent closer observation than would normaly be expected. I have no solution to offer but thank heaven I'm not a student in todays system- I'd never make it. I put a high priority on patient care, documentation is important, but not to the exclusion of hands on care.

I totally agree with your first statement!!! Sometimes, I really feel like I am being HAZED into the sorority of Nursing!!!! Long nights working on care plans, when I haven't even assessed my patient. Maybe 3 hours of sleep before I pass meds & perform patient care! It is crazy!!!!!

[Seas]

I think the instructor is right. The primary nurse could have also administered those same medications after you and double dose the patient. Whether she knows student nurse is doing them or not. They may not fully depend on students and want to make sure the patient had the meds.

[ckh23, BSN, RN]

All I can say is learn from it and do it as they want you to. Just know in the real world you are usually so busy that you don't have time to chart your meds the second after you give them.

[ckh23, BSN, RN]

I think the instructor is right. The primary nurse could have also administered those same medications after you and double dose the patient. Whether she knows student nurse is doing them or not. They may not fully depend on students and want to make sure the patient had the meds.

The primary nurse watched her pass the meds. The time it took the nurse to go to the instructor the student could have already documented it on the MAR.

[kgh31386, BSN, MSN, RN]

As usual, finding ways to dicipline and threaten a student nurse is a much higher priority that actually teaching them the skills they will need to do the job. I can't help but wonder if our profession has so little science to teach that we have to make up ways of being critical of our students. I can't think of any other occasion when a patient will have 3 licenced care givers with co-equal responsibility to ensure an accurate med pass- the RN, the student, and the instructor all with liability to the patient in ensuring the meds were given- The problem being, what they taught you was that documentation is more improtant than patient care. You didn't go to lunch, or home, or off the unit without documanting your med pass. Until you report off on the patient you should be the one setting priorities as to what you need to be doing- charting, patient care, teaching, ... It is none of another staff members business when you choose to document your med pass until they take over the patient. I would be livid if another nurse duplicated a med pass on my patients because they didn't see confirmation in the documentation that I had done it. Unfortunately, you don't have a licence yet, and are subject to the whims of a clinical instructor and primary RN who are more intrested in finding fault than providing care. All this rant is assuming you have not had any previous problems in missing documentation that would warrent closer observation than would normaly be expected. I have no solution to offer but thank heaven I'm not a student in todays system- I'd never make it. I put a high priority on patient care, documentation is important, but not to the exclusion of hands on care.

This rant is very assumptive of a nurse, as well as the instructor...yet the student sounds so innocent. Who says the student is so innocent? I'm in school for my MSN in education as we speak, and I would fail you too. Well actually I'd make you sign your MAR before you left the patient's room. But if you were giving meds on your own now, then yeah I'd fail you. As a nurse, if there's a student who has some involvement in the care of my patient, you're right that affects my license. So before you go and say the RN is trying to find fault, or the RN's are eating their young, or this that and the other about how mean the nurse is. Think about we have 5 patients with a student taking 1 of them. Sometimes we don't know what the student and instructor will or won't be doing. And if something isn't signed, and I want my meds done for all my patients by a certain time...sign your MAR. If you didn't sign it, you didn't give it. That's a lesson you should learn. That's just a bad habit to start forming, signing your MAR later at the end of your shift. You aren't even a nursing student, what grounds do you base your assumptions and rants on?