I was fired from an Indiana LTC facility when I didn't get a resident their pain medication quickly. The resident had just come back from the hospital (from pneumonia) and had pain from a prior ORIF. In my defense, she was premedicated at 3 pm at the hospital and the new orders said to give a percocet 5/500 Q6H so she could not be medicated again until 9 at the earliest. My shift ends at 1030 and there were no other pain orders! I found out that there is no 5/500 dose (only 5/325) after frantically checking the emergency drug kit on both sides of the building, calling the doctor's cell 3 times and only getting voicemail, and finally calling the nurse on call for advice. The 3rd shift nurse called the doctor again at his home number and he did answer and change the order to 5/325. Usually this doctor can always be contacted via cellphone. The next day I was fired by the DNS for allegedly not following the official procedure for contacting doctors such as one call and then if no callback within 30 minutes, call the medical director, then if no callback within 30 minutes, call the nurse on call. The DNS (who was the NOC that night) even told me that night to try calling a second different doctor who sometimes covers which is against the official procedure for which I was fired. I had been given a final written warning about 3 weeks before with no verbal, 1st, or 2nd written warning. It was for a resident being found by the 3rd shift on a deflated air mattress (which was later repaired after this spontaneously happened to 2 other nurses) and for his g-tube leaking solution. The resident was unharmed.
All of this is not the end of the world but I just got my license last year and I hope to do an RN transition program and apply for a new RN license. I know that question 5 on the IN license renewal/application asks if you have been fired or reprimanded at any nursing job. This is under penalty of perjury. I posted this on the IN board but it got no reply. Does the board typically renew/grant new licenses if there is a termination for some sort of clinical grounds? I did try to get the medication but I failed and it was given ASAP on 3rd shift. I called the board anonymously but they said that they could not comment without full details (such as my name). MOST IMPORTANTLY, has anyone put a reprimand or termination on a renewal or new application and gotten a new license? Do LTC facilities typically notify the BON if you've been fired other than for drugs/booze, etc? I am also aware of a few deficiencies at that LTC including carelessness by another nurse that caused that ORIF in the first place. These deficiencies are a few months old already but I wonder if I told the dept. of health would that appease the BON that I am trying to do the right thing for residents' care and give me the new license or is this idea crazy? Thanks for any help!:cry:
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