Hypothetical Situation

Nurses General Nursing

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You're a nurse. You are told a scenario as follows:

A coworker at a Children's hospital spends a few weeks caring for a sick child as primary nurse. Child is eventually discharged to home with home health referral. Same nurse is asked by mother to serve as nurse for child at home. Nurse agrees.

Weeks pass. Nurse's wife comes to hospital, furious. Describes situation where nurse and mother of patient have been engaged in a sexual relationship. Another gossiper implies that nurse and mother spend his shifts drinking adult beverages, and etc. at home of child. Wife files for divorce. Nurse tells mother of child that he can no longer have relationship or serve as nurse for child. Mother of child threatens to contact board of nursing.

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*The above scenario is probably hypothetical.

Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
In the hypothetical scenario the OP describes, the wife of the nurse must also be cuckoo, considering she came to the hospital ranting and raving and subsequently filed for divorce. In fact, the OP never said anything about the family making accusations, just filing a report to the BON.

OP: If the nurse told the mother of the child he can "no longer have a relationship," are you saying that the nurse admitted to having a sexual relationship with the mother? I assume (again) that the report to the BON is retaliation for breaking it off?

Wife of nurse may have worked at the hospital, in which case I wouldn't consider her to be cuckoo to rant and rave to her coworkers about the shabby treatment her husband was giving her. Subsequently filing for divorce seems to be a FABULOUS idea if any of this is true -- or if nurse's behavior has given her reason to strongly suspect it MIGHT be true.

This is a bizarre story, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility of it being NOT hypothetical. I've heard crazier stories that WERE true.

Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.

I agree with jadelpn's post.

You are NOT supposed to :poop: where you eat, so hope this hypothetical nurse has malpractice and a good attorney on standby... :no:

Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.
Wife of nurse may have worked at the hospital, in which case I wouldn't consider her to be cuckoo to rant and rave to her coworkers about the shabby treatment her husband was giving her. Subsequently filing for divorce seems to be a FABULOUS idea if any of this is true -- or if nurse's behavior has given her reason to strongly suspect it MIGHT be true. This is a bizarre story, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility of it being NOT hypothetical. I've heard crazier stories that WERE true.
I totally get what you're saying, but...My response was to big al lpn's post in which he wondered why we were all assuming that the nurse did it. Then he said the family might have just been crazy re: lying. I was pointing out that the wife would have to be labelled cuckoo also for the nurse's supposed innocence to be maintained, considering her accusations about the husband. In other words, if one believes the nurse is innocent because the family is lying, one would also have to say the wife is lying.

Or this could be one huge rumor at the expense of the nurse in question's reputation.

First off, I am not sure how many NICU nurses are clamoring away at wanting a home health or private duty gig on their time off.

Don't know of many home health agencies who are that quick to hire within the time that discharge would be planned for the child and when home health needed to start. Or how many parents of critically ill kids decide to go the private duty self pay route.

With all that being said, unless someone was in the house and seen the parent and the nurse drinking it up and having wild horizontal bopping going on then not one person really knows for sure what the heck may or may not have occured.

The wife may have assumed. The nurse may have assumed that the wife wouldn't question the sudden need for him to take on another job. I would assume that "doing private duty" is the almost "perfect" excuse to carry on an affair. I would say that one could assume that the nurse in question was not actually married to another nurse.....cause c'mon ya'll that would be stupid of epic proportions....

There could be many, many family dynamics going on that would make this situation not as odd as rumored. However, I maintain a couple of things--Most faciities have a conflict of interest policy. Most agencies don't hire in 2 days or even a week--and discharge happens pretty swiftly when the decision is made. And the biggie--people start and maintain rumors all of the time. I feel for this nurse if in fact every bit of it is untrue.

Loss of license and marriage. Probably jail time on insurance fraud if billed for care of child when it was really drunken sex.

Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.

I still say lawyer up and have good ...no matter if truth or rumor...hypothetically.

I could see it happening though; one would be surprised how many nurses moonlight; you can either bring a case to the agency one is moonlighting; or a parent can bring a nurse on; nurse fills out paperwork, clears all references and checks, and there you go.

Honestly, I would be mortified for the nurse :eek:

Specializes in Nurse Scientist-Research.

In the NICU where I work it's not unusual for the parents of more complex infants to ask about the NICU doing private duty or "babysitting". It's almost always the kids/families that we . . . how shall I say this nicely. . . are anxiously awaiting their discharge and hoping every future pregnancy is long, healthy and boring.

We cannot make assumptions; regardless of what the RN may or may not have done, if there are accusations, he needs to get a lawyer, hopefully he will get ahead in this legal game. The advantage usually goes to the first one to the courthouse.

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