Suspension

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Can a DON just suspend a Nurse if they came in 50 minutes before their shift, look at the assignment, the floor is very short staffed, with 2 nurses and 48 patients, 5 aides ,on call is called , no resolution to the situation , it's just basically, it is what it is, the nurse hadn't punch in and asked the oncall to consider this a call in and left back out of the building 10 minutes after entering.. but recieve a phone call later in the evening stating Suspension pending further investigation... what could possibly be being investigated?? Its not abandonment, it's 50 minutes before shift, he hadn't punched in...

We all have a right to refuse an assignment we think is truely unsafe. We can, however, get fired for it. But if this nurse had worked the shift and something bad happened with a patient then the nurse's license would be on the line and the nurse couldn't use the "unsafe staffing" defense if they had accepted the assignment.

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The great part about a Nursing License is ,they Travel.. 😊😊and Nurses DON'T and shouldn't have to put their license in jeopardy..if something happens to the patient such as fatal med error, or a fall resulting in a major injury, the family or the state don't wanna hear how short staffed you were.... atleast he knew NOT to punch in then it would have become abandonment... it's not about what job will you go to, it's about which one will you pick because that's how plentiful nursing options are, the grass may not be greener on the other side BUT at least you can still make some green still having your license instead of jobs trying to put you in risky conditions and situations that they wouldn't place their license in.... folks throw around the word FIRED like that's a scary word😂😂😂

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Specializes in Emergency, Telemetry, Transplant.
folks throw around the word FIRED like that's a scary wordí ½í¸‚í ½í¸‚í ½í¸‚

I glad you think this is funny now, but you seem to be oblivious to the idea that your reputation can travel with you license. Maybe you have no problem moving a long distance to get you next job, but, if I were that NM, I would make sure everyone knows about your lack of character.

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Specializes in school nurse.

I'd go a step further. If the nurse involved is actually questioning the "justice" of the suspension, I'd fire them for that alone. It bespeaks of a character that any facility would be better off without...

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
The great part about a Nursing License is ,they Travel.. 😊😊and Nurses DON'T and shouldn't have to put their license in jeopardy..if something happens to the patient such as fatal med error, or a fall resulting in a major injury, the family or the state don't wanna hear how short staffed you were.... atleast he knew NOT to punch in then it would have become abandonment... it's not about what job will you go to, it's about which one will you pick because that's how plentiful nursing options are, the grass may not be greener on the other side BUT at least you can still make some green still having your license instead of jobs trying to put you in risky conditions and situations that they wouldn't place their license in.... folks throw around the word FIRED like that's a scary word😂😂😂

His future at that job is essentially over, because nobody will want to work with him after the callous, unethical stunt he pulled. They may put up with him for a little while, but "he" will come back with a post titled something to do with "fired for NO reason" or written-up for every little thing, etc. People like that never get it that they are the problem.

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I glad you think this is funny now, but you seem to be oblivious to the idea that your reputation can travel with you license. Maybe you have no problem moving a long distance to get you next job, but, if I were that NM, I would make sure everyone knows about your lack of character.

Believe me, ask any one of the several nurses blacklisted from a certain facility in the area where I once lived what they thought about the nurse manager grapevine. The only one who found employment quickly was the one who secured a new job before the fallout began. Years, distance, intervening 'grunt' labor jobs for at least one of the others. I mean, to have names bandied about in interviews only to be passed over for yet another job, nothing to laugh and be smug about.

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Specializes in MDS/ UR.

The internet has made it a SMALLER world. Your posting vent might already be making the rounds. You probably rang the dinner bell again.

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The great part about a Nursing License is ,they Travel.. 😊😊and Nurses DON'T and shouldn't have to put their license in jeopardy..if something happens to the patient such as fatal med error, or a fall resulting in a major injury, the family or the state don't wanna hear how short staffed you were.... atleast he knew NOT to punch in then it would have become abandonment... it's not about what job will you go to, it's about which one will you pick because that's how plentiful nursing options are, the grass may not be greener on the other side BUT at least you can still make some green still having your license instead of jobs trying to put you in risky conditions and situations that they wouldn't place their license in.... folks throw around the word FIRED like that's a scary word😂😂😂

It's definitely possible to find alternate work if you're willing to move around and have an open mind. You'll find that the best employers value stability, though. A stable work history is more likely to keep you from having to jump from one bad situation to another.

Staffing does matter and is considered when it comes to things like falls ...less so with rare, fatal errors as those are more a matter of inattention.

I've worked in "survival mode" and know it's not easy. In those situations, the goal is to keep everyone alive and hopefully at least as good as you found them. Ts don't always get crossed and Is don't always get dotted and that's OK.

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Specializes in retired LTC.

This is kind of like when an employee telephones ahead to the on-duty shift and asks a friend to 'check out' the schedule for him/her. Then depending on the staffing, the emp will then make another phone call to call out (all sneaky-like thinking the earlier phone call won't get reported!).

Then they wonder why they get called into the office too.

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Specializes in Psych, Peds, Education, Infection Control.
Have I wanted to turn right back around when I've seen my assignment/how crappy the floor and staffing was? Absolutely! Have I or would I ever actually do so? Absolutely not. For so, so many reasons.

I was just going to say this! I've looked at the staffing when I arrived and mentally went "nope nope nope" the whole way to my floor, I've joked about turning around and walking right back out, but I'd never do it. That makes a bad situation worse and is completely disrespectful to your patients and coworkers. The suspension is, honestly, getting off easy, and I'd be surprised if this person kept their job.

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Specializes in PMHNP/Adjunct Faculty.

In Texas we have something called SAFE HARBOR which protects your license in unsafe/inappropriate staffing situations and makes you not have to be an absolute (insert words here) to your coworkers. Look up the laws in your state, there is likely something like Safe Harbor where you are. If you feel as though you are being assigned an inappropriate patient population to you or staffing is so unsafe that it risks your license, BEFORE accepting your patient load notify your supervisor that you would like to declare Safe Harbor. This protects your license should something happen during your shift and you made every reasonable effort with the situation you were given. Declaring Safe Harbor triggers a process all the way up to administration/corporate depending on where you work. Haven't seen it happen a lot but when it does, magical things happen like DONs/supervisors working the floor, administration showing up. They will do a lot of things to avoid Safe Harbor.

Absolutely what you did was unprofessional and inappropriate. Declaring your state's version of Safe Harbor would have been the appropriate response. You deserve to be fired. Think of the horrible day your coworker... and your patients... had that day. Even if you aren't fired get another job. No one in that facility will be able to let go of what just happened. Reputations in nursing are everything and yours will follow you. I hope you are able to successfully get a fresh start somewhere else. Good luck to you.

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Specializes in Psych, Corrections, Med-Surg, Ambulatory.
We all have a right to refuse an assignment we think is truely unsafe. We can, however, get fired for it. But if this nurse had worked the shift and something bad happened with a patient then the nurse's license would be on the line and the nurse couldn't use the "unsafe staffing" defense if they had accepted the assignment.

Actually you can accept an assignment under protest. A union shop will have a form to complete stating you are accepting the assignment under protest and that you did request the help needed and will not be held responsible for a poor outcome.

If your facility is not unionized, then you can provide the same information on a sheet of paper. Your manager gets a copy, upper management gets a copy and one gets sent to the accrediting body. If these are union forms, then the union gets a copy.

You do have choices other than refusing an assignment or risking your livelihood.

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