I'll be kick out of the nursing program???

NicInNC, CNA · Apr 7, 2005

I had to have surgery on my leg and during the visit, the doctor kept saying "Left leg". Well, on surgery day when they were going over everything, the nurse said "It's your right leg, correct?". I was like "WHAT?!!!". The DOCTOR wrote down right even though he said left. So, that right there tells you that NONE of us are perfect. I'm just glad that they verified everything before surgery!

CHATSDALE · Apr 7, 2005

i know this is not going to be very comforting but it is never the things that you thinkare going to be bad that are...it is something that comes out of left field that really takes you down

that is why they call it 'UP JUMPS THE DEVIL'

meownsmile, BSN, RN · Apr 7, 2005

This sounds like a minimal problem. An ammended documentation is all that should be required. Computer charting is such that you can go back and strike and ammend on almost anything even after discharge. Your instructor should take you and help you correct your documentation. So you wrote left and it should have been right,, but i bet the dressing or whatever ended up in the right place hmmm?

How was it found anyway,, did they do a chart review? Or was someone looking for a problem?

If it wasnt computer charting,, single line through the entry and rewrite the entry circling the time so it is noted it is out of order. Simple fix. Go to the instructor and ask her to help you correct it. If you meet the instructor on the site even when not in clinical, you can still get it corrected and if you are able to go in asap to do it rather than wait till the next time you are there it shows honest concern for your work. That should be taken into consideration.

FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I · Apr 9, 2005

hello everyone, thanks for all of your responses! how should i start? well it's the dumbest mistake... ok i have some problems telling Lt to Rt, Rt to Lt!!! i know... maybe i shouldnt be a nurse afterall anyway i am usually ok it's just that i would need more time to think about if it's Lt or Rt but i guess that day i didnt realize that i wrote down Lt. instead of Rt. where the wound is, inaccuately. the hospital filed an incident report and my instructor is going to see me next week. now iam much worried, cause i've heard stories where the other nursing student had incident reports filed by the hospital and they were out of the program!!:uhoh21: i know the mistake seems little but it's actually a big problem for me in the future if i am out there in the real world as a RN, but i am hoping i won't get kick out of the program cause i've spent so much time and efforts!
so this is the whole story guys.......i know, iam so dumb:o

Please don't put yourself down like that. There are lots of people who can't tell the difference between Left and right. My own sister is like that, and how she manages to tell the difference is by looking at her wedding ring that's on her left finger. May I suggest you do something like that? If you're single, you can still buy a cheap ring and place it on the finger of one of your hands.

FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I · Apr 9, 2005

hello everyone, thanks for all of your responses! how should i start? well it's the dumbest mistake... ok i have some problems telling Lt to Rt, Rt to Lt!!! i know... maybe i shouldnt be a nurse afterall anyway i am usually ok it's just that i would need more time to think about if it's Lt or Rt but i guess that day i didnt realize that i wrote down Lt. instead of Rt. where the wound is, inaccuately. the hospital filed an incident report and my instructor is going to see me next week. now iam much worried, cause i've heard stories where the other nursing student had incident reports filed by the hospital and they were out of the program!!:uhoh21: i know the mistake seems little but it's actually a big problem for me in the future if i am out there in the real world as a RN, but i am hoping i won't get kick out of the program cause i've spent so much time and efforts!
so this is the whole story guys.......i know, iam so dumb:o

It sounds more like certain members of the staff don't like the students, and the perfectionist instructor kicks them out of the program because he/she gets embarassed that one of her/his students made a mistake. Nobody was harmed, so I don't see the big deal at all.

kwagner_51 · Apr 9, 2005

I have problems with Rt and Lt too. The way I do it is, facing the patient, I shake their RIGHT hand, so the pt's body is the OPPOSITE of mine.

I did not take dance classes, but my dd does. she also has problems with L & R but my sons don't. I honestly think its in my genes to be screwed up about R & L.

__________________________________

In His Grace,

Karen

Failure is NOT an option!!

Nrs_angie, BSN, RN · Apr 10, 2005

I really doubt you will get kicked out of the program for that. The whole entire reason that we have instructors with is on clinicals is because they hold responsibility for us. That's why they sign off on everything we did. Did your instructor sign the charting after you made the mistake?

You are NOT dumb. I still have to look at my own hand to figure out which is right and which is left. ( When I was about 7 years old I threw a cup at my brother. I know, i know it was bad. But the cup broke and I got a cut which scarred my right hand for life. So I always look at the scar to remember my right hand from my left ). You are NOT dumb just because of that. Sometimes I even screw up a b from a d. I guess i am a little dyslexic. We all just have something in our brain that works differently.

Anyways... all you had to do was error it and date it and initial it. Do you know what your state requires legally when you make an error on the chart? Talk with your instructor or refer to one of your Nursing Fundamentals books and find out what is legally accepted in the state you work in.

Being that it was an incision site... no harm was done to the patient. If they had amputated the wrong arm or something then that would be a definate legal case. You should also read the charts and make sure they did the surgery where they were supposed to do the surgery. This is an example of why a patient must sign the consent form and specifically state for example that the LEFT breast will have a mastectomy. So just to cover your own back, look at the chart. Read all the history and the surgical consults and make sure that everyone else did their job right!

Hey maybe this will help you. Think of it this way.... If you are right handed and you are going to shake the patient's hand when you meet... they shake with their right hand. I dunno if it will help or not... but let me know.

Maverick80 · Apr 10, 2005

Don't feel too bad, I have trouble with right and left too. I think it's genetic, my aunt is the same way. They say look down and see which of your hands makes an L shape when you spread your thumb away from your fingers. I don't find that all that helpful, but you might.
Out of curiosity, any others with the right/left problem have early dance training? I sometimes think it's related to the mirrors and the teacher's left being your right (those two factors in combination).

You know that is really odd that you say that...i am going to be starting nursing school in the fall ....finally done with pre-nursing...yea...but yes i mix up right and left all the time...i really have to think about it before i make my descion...i hope that after dealing with it on a day to day basis it will get easier...but to answer your question i started tap dancing when i was 4 years old...my teacher used to make fun of me because i would always go the wrong way...not that it really bothered me though!! But i stoped dancing 9 1/2 years later...i never thought about how the mirror and the teacher would and could affect it. i had always just assummed i was dyslexic but i work really hard not to get things mixed up!! Maybe this will help you with your theory..and we can all blam it on our dancing pasts!!

Nurse Ratched, RN · Apr 10, 2005

ENOUGH please of discussing presumed alternate poster identities.

If there is a post in violation of the TOS, report it with the reason why. Otherwise, the harassment is not appreciated.

Edited to add: several off-topic posts have been removed.

Thank you!