FREAKING out... my first fall and an investigation is on.

[SweettartRN]

Last Sunday I had my first fall.

Our facility PA was with me during my initial assessment and checking the resident out. She was found on the floor by her bed. She had no c/o pain, and VS were stable during initial and post assessments.

She ended up falling again on a later shift and was sent to the hospital. Her status that I have received is sketchy at best.

To make a very long story short, she was a new resident, the family is angry and threatening a lawsuit, but we are finding out that they withheld information about her history as well as conflicting stories from several family members.

I am freaking out because I am one of the nurses that she fell under.

Am I at risk now of losing my license?! I am a brand new LPN, and I can't deal with this right now.... I can't risk losing my license for this.

The facility has said all of my t's are crossed and i's are dotted, but I am still worried.....

[egglady, LPN]

I would say that about 60% of families are ready to "threaten" a lawsuit. The TV commercials from law offices about "has your loved one been injured in a nursing home" etc, have really emerged. The reality is that of those 60% , I would say maybe 1% actually do, and if your documentation is thorough, you have nothing to worry about!!

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

The facility has said all of my t's are crossed and i's are dotted, but I am still worried.....

If they're behind you and saying not to worry believe them.

:)

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

the family is angry and threatening a lawsuit,

You may seriously wish to consider completing a course in nursing and the law so you can become thoroughly familiar regarding what patients, residents, and family members can and cannot sue for.

In order for a party to sue, he or she must have a cause of action. If you or the facility have not been found guilty of a tort (civil wrong), then any action to sue you or the facility would probably get dismissed if it ever got filed in the first place. Personal injury suits are extraordinarily risky and really expensive for lawyers, so they normally do not accept medical malpractice or nursing home neglect cases unless a crystal clear cause of action exists and a large amount of monetary recovery is likely.

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Oh, and by the way - www.nso.com for nursing malpractice. Don't leave home without it. It's cheap.

[systoly]

Sweettart,

I highly doubt the facility would have given you the all clear if there were any areas of concern. If anything, I'd be more concerned with the second fall, but falls do happen and aren't always preventable. Falls are part of life. When we see them on America's funniest home videos we laugh. When it happens at a LTC we think of lawsuit.

[Debilpn23]

I Agree with the above posts if they say all your Ts were crossed and Is dotted you should have nothing to worry about. Unfortunately falls happen,even though we do all we can to prevent them.

[SweettartRN]

Thanks everyone.

I feel better after having slept on it for a night.

I also realized that much worse things have happened than this before, not to me necessarily, but to other nurses. We can't prevent falls 100% of the time.

[Mr Ian]

Just to add to the other comments:

When it comes to bad outcomes and the BON there are two main things they look at:

1. Was normal protocol/practice followed? Even if they were not - there are often extenuating factors that are considered - eg the PA missed the same things; the local practices weren't explained to the nurse; excessive workload; length of time in practise; etc. Only in cases of sheer incompetence or negligence is this clear evidence against the nurse.

2. Has the nurse used this as an experience to learn from? Even where mistakes are made, the BON should recognise nurses are human and errors are made. What is important is how the nurse learns from it. If the nurse refuses to accept they can improve the situation - regardless of their own culpbaility - then they are not behaving acceptably. Even where the service is completely at fault - the nurse has an obligation to ensure it is rectified.

If you ever face the BON - these are your two main considerations:

1. Is your practise up to date or who's fault is it if it isn't?

2. Are you sorry for any mistakes +/or are you willing to be part of the solution?

[carlolpn]

Hi

If you "but" was covered there is nothing to worry about. Falls happen, it is how we handle them that is the important thing. Families threaten all the time, put blame on the staff. It is not easy for family members to see a loved one in a situation like that. The family and staff should find ways to work together , so this can be prevented in the future

[Ginger's Mom, MSN, RN]

Remember the investigation should be about support systems in place not only one nurse ( you). Best of Luck

Alex

[LesMonsterRN, ADN, RN]

It sounds to me that your documentation is as it should be and your facility is backing you up - both good things. My opinion is that you are in good shape and should have nothing to fear.

Now, a word or two about families. Over the years I have dealt with a lot of different types of families in LTC. Some are nasty and talk about "sueing" but the majority are great folks to work with and one of the most vital parts of the healthcare team. That said, sometimes the unpleasant families have the potential to be great in the end. If the resident is new to LTC, there may be a lot of psychosocial things going on, especially guilt - "I promised Mother I would never put her in a nursing home". Sometimes we are just the Big Unknown and so a family may be very wary of us for a time and then eventually calm down. This kind of family just needs their space in which to work out their feelings. Be there for them, but don't hover.