Group Home and Giving Meds

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Ok, this is probably a dumb question and I think I already know the answer, but here goes:

There is a group home and it has 4 residents. There are employees there that are not certified or licensed as anything. A RN runs the place (owns it) and another RN manages it. The manager puts all the residents' meds into their individual containers and they go in the locked cupboard for the entire week. The employees are responsible for putting the meds in cups at the times that the residents are supposed to get them and handing them to the residents.

My question is this: Can't both of the RN's lose their licenses for allowing UAP's give the meds?

I'm pretty sure that this is a HUGE no-no, and I was offered a position there but do not want to do anything illegal. I'm seriously thinking of just bowing out of the position...

Thanks!!

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Specializes in psych,maternity, ltc, clinic.

In a group home what the Unlicensed workers are doing is supervising med administration. As long as staff are training and supervised by an RN/LPN this is fine. Group homes and assisted livings do this all the time. The RN/LPN sets meds up and trained staff observes residents taking them. THis is not illegal to do, as long as policy/procedures are followed.

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From what I understand, there is no training other than here are so and so's meds. They are separated into daily meds and I think time of day also. Plus they have staff doing nebulizer treatments too. I'm just a little leary of this because I have no clue what is "ok" to do as just a staff member... Also the staff member is generally the only one there... No RN/LPN on duty.

I guess the reason I'm so nervous about it is because it goes against everything they have taught me in school. :uhoh21: I am afraid of giving out the meds and say there was an error... Am I caught in the middle?

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Before I was a nurse I worked in a group home and gave out meds all the time. But those were in labeled containers not in pill boxes. We took med training that was approved by the department of developmental disabilities (DDD) and never a problem.

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Specializes in psych,maternity, ltc, clinic.

I am DON of a small assisted living. THe facility operates under my license.

I can delegate tasks to unlicensed personel, but I had better be sure I have trained them and that this training is documented.I set up and reorder meds as well as transcribe new orders etc.And since Im there M-F days anyway, i will usually do meds, as it gives me a chance to assess the residents. I go over our med procedures, prns, documentation,policys etc with new employees and have them watch me do meds, then I observe them doing meds til I am satisfied they get it. THis does not mean there are not errors, tho there are few. Myself, or another nurse is on call 24/7 for counsel,and if an error is made, they are to contact us for instructions. Errors are usually small and something like someone giving a resident their HS meds at dinner. Depending what they are taking, this usually require no intervention.THis is written up as a med error and I take these opportunitys as teaching moments with my staff. If someone continuiosly made mistakes and just didnt "get it", I would have to let them go, but this has not happened to me yet. We hire good people and train them well on the front end, plus continuing ed all year. Nebs can also be delegated but require training and there should be a policy and a way to check off competencies for anything delegated.

If a staff person makes a serious mistake that causes harm to resident, it is on me, but if I can show that I trained well, documented that training, gave feedback when errors occured etc:, I would probably be ok. However, if I just threw someone into the job with no training, and a serious error took place, I would have no defence.

What type position are you being offered? Nursing or staff?

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Specializes in A little of this & a little of that.

You need to check out how the home is licensed. In most cases group home staff are allowed to give meds, how they are trained varies by state. I've gone to some of these places in different circumstamces, mostly to do GT meds. Usually there are bubble cards like in LTC and whoever gives the meds takes directly from them. Just check with either your BON or Dept of Developmental Disabilities, they'll let you know where you stand if you are thinking of setting up meds as they do. It's probably not illegal to have staff give them, but setting them up like that should be.

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Specializes in LPN.

The non-licensed personnel in the behavioral group homes I know of say they sign out every medication with their name and the time. This helps prevent errors as well as making any errors that occur easier to track. This is actually more than we do as nurses - we only sign out the narcs.

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I am being offered a staff position. I am in my first semester of nursing school right now. From what I have seen there is no training for the staff. All of the pills are in those big M-F pill boxes with the residents' names on the sides of them.

The staff is generally there alone - one person. The owner (RN) works at a hospital, and the manager (RN) is generally not there either. Also from what I understand, this place is a revolving door as far as staffing.

The big plus from my end is that it is really close to home and the shifts fit in with my schedule well.

I'm not exactly sure how this place is licensed yet. I guess I will have to go back to find out for sure. I am really unfamiliar with any kind of assisted living, ltc facilities.

Thanks everyone for your input.

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