I'm Overly Stressed Now

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Hi guys. I am a new nurse and I had a horrible day. Hoping y'all can help me out. I just started at a memory care unit 3 weeks ago. 

Today, I sent someone out for a fall for the 1st time ( broken wrist) ... called the NP... she ordered me to send them out so I called Emergency ... attempted to reach the family ... paramedics came and took her to the ER ... finally got in touch with the family. The 1st thing they ask is if she had one of our aides with her. I found out later that this was policy which I was never told about. 

This lady now says she is coming after my license. Should I be scared?

Specializes in Geriatrics.

Ahhh the woes of LTC. You know these *children* are unhappy because they have to pay a pretty penny to have mom dealt with because they don’t want to. And they are watching *their* money (Inheritance) dwindle every day. That dream of playing golf in Hawaii fades every day that mom is thriving.... many plan on getting it on the flip side by a salacious story and captivating litigation, when the facility and nurses pay for whatever sins they can come up with. Better to cross your Ts and dot your Is. Don’t take it personally. If you would have sent someone she probably would have been mad that she went to ER instead of urgent care.... I empathize with you. 

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Specializes in Mental health, substance abuse, geriatrics, PCU.
2 hours ago, vintagegal said:

Ahhh the woes of LTC. You know these *children* are unhappy because they have to pay a pretty penny to have mom dealt with because they don’t want to. And they are watching *their* money (Inheritance) dwindle every day. That dream of playing golf in Hawaii fades every day that mom is thriving.... many plan on getting it on the flip side by a salacious story and captivating litigation, when the facility and nurses pay for whatever sins they can come up with. Better to cross your Ts and dot your Is. Don’t take it personally. If you would have sent someone she probably would have been mad that she went to ER instead of urgent care.... I empathize with you. 

A resident falls in a nursing home and media is all over it screaming abuse. A family member milks their elderly loved one for every penny and asset they have and nothing is ever said.

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May not be a popular decision but I gave my 2 weeks the next day. Was not fond of the support I wasn't getting. Thanks to all of you for your words of wisdom

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Specializes in Geriatrics, Dialysis.
On 2/16/2021 at 10:48 AM, AshleyBrien88 said:

May not be a popular decision but I gave my 2 weeks the next day. Was not fond of the support I wasn't getting. Thanks to all of you for your words of wisdom

Sounds like the right decision to me.  You 100% did what any responsible nurse would do by sending the resident to the ER for evaluation and treatment after the fall. 

I worked LTC for 25 years and never heard of a facility with a policy for sending a staff member with the resident to the ER. Who exactly is supposed to care for that CNA's residents when they are gone? What is the policy if the CNA ends up still in the ER with that resident after their shift is done? Sometimes those ER visits take hours! 

After that resident left your facility she was cared for by medical professionals, first the EMT/paramedics that transferred her to the ER then the ER staff, it's not like she was ever left without care during the transition to the ER.

In no way was it your fault for not following an unusual policy you knew nothing about. You were definitely thrown under the bus by this employer for your inability to read minds.  I guess you missed class the day they taught that particular skill. Funny, I missed that day also.

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