I am being written up!

[uscstu4lfe]

I received a write up. I'm still a very new nurse, and this write up is coming from months ago, when I was still precepting with a nurse. Basically, the doctor changed an order of dilaudid to half strength, and I forgot to highlight and DC it on the MAR. I filled out the information sheet for pharmacy, placed it in the MAR, etc, but I just forgot to highlight it (my fault!). So the next day the day nurse ended up giving the old (full strength) dilaudid, then caught it after the fact, and then made out an incident report. I guess I deserve it, but at the same time I was a little surprised because I was still orienting and received it some time after-the-fact. Have you ever been written up??

P.S. I should say the patient was fine! I think the reason for the half strength order was just part of the weening off.

P.P.S. The management people I work with are nice people, but I rarely hear any "good jobs!" "You're doing great!".... all I ever hear about is what I did wrong (your patient's room is messy, make sure it's clean..... your IV tubing is about to expire, make sure you change it... etc).

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

The whole concept of "write-ups" annoys me. Humans make errors and only in nursing do you get slapped on the wrist and demerits like a child.

I have reported med errors, but I don't think I've ever been "written up."

[OgopogoLPN, LPN, RN]

Wow, I'm surprised they could write you up if you did those actions and it was the other nurse who gave the old strength!!! He/she should be the one to check for new orders on the MAR, even if it's not highlighted.

Plus, the error seems quite minor. One more dose of the higer dilaudid certainly wouldn't hurt someone.

I made a med error the other night and wrote an indicent report. As my manager said when I was hired, incident reports are about quality control, not getting people in trouble. (although I certainly don't want to have to do another incident report for a med error!!!!!!)

I hope it all works out for you!!!

[BellasMommyOBRN]

being a new nurse has to be so nerve wracking (i haven't filled your shoes yet!) but i think they are just trying to express to you how serious they take med errors. your new. your still learning. don't beat yourself up and don't take it personally. this is at least what i would tell myself. just learn from it and prove how eager you are to take good care of your patients.

good luck!:heartbeat

[uscstu4lfe]

I work night shift, so I am responsible for the "chart checks" so it falls back on me.

[JMA-RN2B]

It seems silly to me that you're being written up for this. So you were supposed to do chart checks and missed it. Obviously the nurse behind you wasn't using their "5 rights" when it came time to give meds. That is one of the first things we've learned in nursing school....she should have checked the MAR!!! Had she, she would have found the discrepancy and verified the orders. Don't worry too much on this one, like you said the patient was fine.

[Farmer Jane]

When you say you are being "written up" do you mean you're being subject to disciplinary action or that you were notified that an error was made? It's pretty normal to notify you if you were involved in an error. Unless you're in a malignant environment it shouldn't be a big deal. If you're being disciplined, look into your HR policies--progressive hospitals should have a policy against this.

[Ms.RN]

i think this write up is too severe. first, the another nurse obviously made a mistake when reading mar or gave the old dosage thinking she knew what dosage that patient is suppose to take. i think a nurse who gave wrong dosage should be written up. you did transcribe the new order in the mar. second i dont understand why they wrote you up few month after you filled out incident report. i think incident report should be given right after soneone has made a mistake and needs corrective action

[grammyr]

Why did your manager wait months to write you up and why were you written up? If the next nurse had checked her orders, she would have found the change and not made the med error. Yes, you made a mistake, but you weren't the only one.

Don't beat yourself up over this, just take it as a learning experience.

[Farmer Jane]

Absolutely! If you're never made a mistake you haven't been a nurse for very long. It's happened to all of us. :)

[FireStarterRN, BSN, RN]

I agree with the post that these write ups are generally educational, to notify those involved in an error. Where I've worked, they were never punitive.

As far as the medication sheet, the nurse who improperly transcribes a medication, and then signs her name to it saying it is correct, is the one responsible for the mistake. Once the medsheet has been signed off by an RN then it is presumed to be correct down the line. Every single nurse giving that medication shouldn't have to double check it against the original order. That would be too time-consuming and inefficient.

[PACU'er]

You shouldn't have been written-up for the following reasons:

1. You are in orientation and the preceptor should be over-looking and double-checking your work.

2. The oncoming nurse should have been more aware and caught the error before medicating the patient, instead of after.

3. Pharmacy should have a better system. If you sent/scanned (whatever) the order per procedure, it's up to them to process it safely so that staff are aware (and documenting) on the most current order.

4. Errors happen to the best of us, no matter how experienced.

Thankfully, the culture of nursing is changing from a blame game to a system of identifying a breakdown of the process. This way, people will be more likely to report errors. Learn not to make the error again and don't let it get you down!