this nurse is REALLY ticked

Joe,RN · Dec 20, 2001

What's the old cliche? Been there, done that, have the T-shirt! I wish you well in your endeavor! Bear these things in mind. Do you want your medical history on the street for all to see? Do you want your life totally disrupted for the four or five years that it will take to litigate your case. Are you ready for the predjudice that is directed towards healthpros with aledged drug dependencies? The antidepressants that helped me cope were as bad as the pain killers. The rumor mill (composed of your friends, family and co-workers) alone will be tough to deal with. Finally, are you asking for enough in damages to support you for the rest of your life because you may have trouble finding a job afterwards. Don't forget, you'll have to share about half of it with your attorney, if your case is ever settled. Lawsuits have a way of becoming what your life is all about. Sometimes it is better for you to let something go and get on with your life. Don't kill the messenger here. I've been through what you are considering and the end result was not worth all the effort and certainly not worth the five years of my life. Please know what you are getting into before you head in that direction.

Slowone · Dec 20, 2001

Not sure if it was a a joke or not, but an earlier posted made reference to bypassing the whole workers comp if injured on the job.

FYI for anyone considering doing that..If you injure yourself at work and do not file workman comp and you have your insurance company pay for medical care, that is insurance fraud and the insurance company will seek repayment if they find out.

Not to mention the fact that if you have on going medical complications..you don't have anyone to sue!

thisnurse · Dec 21, 2001

i was leaving for work when i got the mail. my workmans comp has been terminated as i never got injured at work. immediatly picked up the phone and called my lawyer.

now im in kind of a gray area but that is ok.

i have to follow up with one of the quacks tomorrow. i dont know for sure whats going to happen but i did tell one of my managers whats going on. EVERYTHING.

maybe i shouldnt have done that but i did.

and i am at the point of not caring about who knows what.

ive thought about all of this and my medical records being "out on the streets"..its worth it to me. im not just saying this because i am angry, ive given this much thought.

i found out today that they have been doing a few things they should not have been and i also found out that i have been shorted in my pay all along.

i did nothing wrong. im not keeping this drug thing a dirty little secret. i have all kinds of documentation stating what was going on. my primary even has a letter from my surgeon asking him to take me on as a patient and explaining the circumstances.

so if i dont get a job at one place because of that i sure will at another place. but in the meantime i will certainly take care of myself and make sure my rights are protected.

thanks for all the advice, and thanks for the lawyer advice. they can be just as big of a snake as some of these comp docs.

grouchy · Dec 21, 2001

Joe brought up some good points. I hate to get you more upset, but let me give you another warning re confidentiality. About a year ago, I was looking online for jobs at a local hospital. I stuck the hospital name in a search engine. On the first page of results that came back was a link to a dispute between a nurse and that hospital over workman's comp for back pain. I'm embarassed to say that I clicked on the link and read the page. The page may have been from the state workman's comp board, I'm not sure. Anyway, it went into all the details the hospital was using to try to discredit her claim. Apparently she had seen a therapist for depression, had admitted marital problems to the therapist. Clearly, they had subpoenaed her therapy records. I was shocked that all this was on the internet for anyone to see. I'm glad I don't know the nurse and don't even remember her name. I don't know what the legality of this is. That's why I say get a lawyer, not to sue, but to learn your rights, and to protect your confidentiality and your license. And don't say too much to anyone who doesn't have to know anything. Good luck!

thisnurse · Dec 21, 2001

grouchy,

i dont think there are many of us out there who wouldnt have clicked that link...lol

ill take my chances with the confidentiality issue. i have nothing to be ashamed of and i have done nothing wrong. these insurance people are not going to make me feel otherwise.

i am posting all of this for two reasons. first of all i really need a place to vent. obviously its not something i can talk about at work.

secondly i am hoping this serves as a lesson for those lucky ones who are just starting out and/or have never been injured at work. if it happens to you, you need to be prepared to face these same things that so many of us have faced. you need to be prepared to fight and to keep your eyes open for the big screw.

this was such a simple lift. the patient was so light and i was not alone. and im so careful when transferring patients. i never do it alone and i am not above using the hover mat or lifts if need be. i do whatever i have to in order to avoid back injury because i realize its a common injury in our profession. and yet here i am. and i am not alone.

this world would be so much less complicated if people could just be real with each other and not try to screw each other out of what is rightfully theirs.

thisnurse · Dec 22, 2001

tonight my manager told me there is no such thing as light duty. i have to have the insurance doc fill out a back to work form stating how much i am and am not allowed to lift. if his findings dont match the job description (50 lbs) there is no position for me on the unit.

grouchy · Dec 22, 2001

Dear Thisnurse,

My jaw dropped when I read that "no light duty" thing. I wish I was a lawyer, I really wonder about the legality of this, especially in light of the accomodations employers have to make for disabled employees under the Americans with Disabilities Act. I mean, just last night, I heard on National Public Radio news that Walmart was successfully sued for violating the ADA act- now, when they interview people, they can't even ask if you need any special type of accomodation to perform the job. You may be able to find a transcript of this at http://www.npr.org. I would ask around-has anyone else at this facility ever been placed on light duty? If so, this may be discrimination. Does your facility have a written policy regarding this? Did you have to sign a statement, or have a doctor sign a statement certifying you could lift 50 lbs to be hired? Is the ability to lift 50 lbs in your written job description, or was it part of the job advertisement? I wonder if this is going too far, but could someone from the American Association of Nurse Attorneys help?

This makes my blood boil!

This is truly a Catch-22 situation. And for what? Aren't they short enough nurses already?

What really kills me about this, if you step back and think about the big picture, is that your work limitations are are actually part of the changes that the profession has no choice but to adjust to. I keep reading about how the average age of RNs is now approx. 43. I read an article in Nursing Spectrum that stated that employers may have to retool hospitals to make them more ergonomically appropriate for the aging nursing workforce, and create opportunities for experienced older RNs to continue to contribute to hospital nursing by doing the paperwork and team leader roles. This is necessary because younger people are not entering nursing schools at a rate sufficient to replace retiring RNs. I believe the article quoted from the work of Peter Beurhaus (I'm not sure about the last name), whom, if I remember correctly is a nurse, and a Phd health care researcher at Harvard.

Stay strong, and don't let the b*****ds get you down!

P_RN, ADN, RN · Dec 23, 2001

http://www.ahcpub.com/ahc_root_html/hot/archive/heh102000.html

yep that's the name.

And yes, the insurance company DOES come after you about injury payments. It's called subrogation..."under question"....

And YES they surely do grind you down.

thisnurse · Dec 23, 2001

when we all begin to decline with age and are able to do less and less they will just head over to the philipines and buy new nurses.

i havent told my attorney yet about there not being a position for me. i do recall being asked if i could lift 50 lbs. i recall it being discussed. however, that was BEFORE i was injured and i could do that. no doubt i will be able to do it again too but they are trying to twist my arm.

of course you know the workmans comp doc is going to say i have no restrictions. after all, he says i didnt get hurt at work. so i am screwed.

i will probably go back next week. i am confident i can do the work but i WILL NOT lift of pull. I will either get someone to do it for me or I just wont do it. I'll figure some way around it.

You know if I was my manager I would have said that we will MAKE light duty for you. I would have talked to the other nurses and asked them if they could lend a hand for a while.

And this woman is wondering why her nurses and assistants are quitting or transferring to other units.

Shes not too worried though. She has a batch of imported nurses on the way.

KARRN3 · Jan 3, 2002

YOUCAN BE A VERY GOOD NURSE,WORK FULL TIME-OVERTIME AND DO WHATEVER ADMINISTRATION ASKS YOU TO DO, BUT BOY WHEN YOU GET HURT IT'S LIKE THEY DON'T EVEN WANT TO BOTHER WITH YOU. IT'S LIKE BEING USED UP AND THROWN AWAY. I GOT HURT LIFTING A PATIENT WITH A CNA WHO DIDN'T FEEL LIKE CARRYING HER SHARE OF THE PATIENT'S WEIGHT-EIGHT MONTHS LATER MY BACK IS STILL NOT RIGHT.WHILE I WAS ON LIGHT DUTY, MY UNIT HAD "NOTHING FOR ME " I WENT BACK TO WORK A FEW WEEKS AGO AND WAS BLESSED WITH THE HEAVIEST NONMOBILE PATIENT ON THE FLOOR PLUS FOUR OTHERS.CAN'T BELIEVE THAT AFTER WORKING SO HARD FOR SO LONG TO BE TREATED SO POORLY. MOVING ON TO ANOTHER UNIT AND GOING BACK TO SCHOOL. IT WAS A REAL EYE OPENER-YOU HAVE TO LOOK OUT FOR YOURSELF.