I need some info please

Nurses General Nursing

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I'm not a RN, I just a dental assistant but I need some information please. The oral surgen I work for is wanting all of us assistants to start drawing up the drugs for the IV sedations. None of us are comfortable doing this and we don't want the responsibility since we are not trained to to this. Isn't there some law that says you have to be a RN to draw up drugs or even help with administering them? We have to pinch the Sugar water bag while he acturally pushes the drugs through the IV but we don't even like doing this. He's saving money and won't get a nurse in the office full time. Help please before we kill someone! Thanks

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What state is this?

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Specializes in cardiac/critical care/ informatics.

In my opinion, if you have a liscense I would check with the state board that liscense you. My guess is that it is NOT within your scope of practice. Besides it isn't safe practice the person administering the med should be drawing it up.

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I live in Ohio

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I don't have a license. I took 9 weeks of a class. I've never had any experience with IV's or drugs or anything.

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Specializes in ER, ICU, Infusion, peds, informatics.

if you are doing it under his direct supervision, then it is mostly likely legal. not necessarily safe, but not practicing nursing without a license, either. check to see if any limitations are put on dental assistants by the state of ohio.

docs hire medical assistants all the time and teach them to do stuff like that in the office. as long as they arn't claiming that their "nurse" is going to give the medicine, then they are ok. often the medical assistants arn't even "officially" trained, but learn through on the job experience. a doc can train his staff to do just about anything, especially if the staff doesn't have a license. when you have a license, then the licensing board may put restrictions on what you can/can't do.

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Specializes in orthopaedics.

i would approach him in a nonconfronting manner and state that you and the others are not comfortable with doing this until you are properly trained to do so. let them know that you are unsure if this is within your scope of practice and that you are more than willing to help but for your sake and the sake of the patients lives you would like to better be safe than sorry.

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Specializes in Trauma/ED.

My wife is a dental assistant so I have asked her about this process before because I was a little disturbed by the practice of a oral surgeon friend of ours. He is having his dental assistant push deep sedation meds without any training only his coaching. In my research the reason it was not illegal was because the medical assistants are not licensed at all and are merely working as an extension of the Dentist (like an extra set of hands), they are working under his license and as long as he's certified for sedation dentistry it is legal.

I still would not be put under by a dental assistant who is watching me on the monitor never having any arrhythmia class or ACLS training. If I'm having oral surgery I will be going to the OR thank you.

Earlier post on same topic

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