Okay. Here's the thing, I work in LTC on overnights as a CNA. I got written up for this and wondering from everyone else if I should learn my lesson or fight it
Res. X started yelling. When asking what he wanted, he stated he felt sick and requested I give him a basin. I gave him one, made sure he was fine, and then left his room. I went to answer another call light across the hall and put that person into the bathroom. I came back to check Res. X and he had a sm. amt of emesis in the basin. HOB was elevated, call light was within reach, and basin was in front of him. While I had been in with X, a tabs alarm had been going off as was a pressure alarm. This resident (whom I'll call F) has a hx of falls, is unstable with ambulation, and can be confused. Knowing that I was only 20-30 ft from Res. F's room and that all the other staff was on the other end of the hall and had no way of making it to her in time, I decided to check on the alarm. I escorted Res. F back to bed and returned to Res. X, who had thrown up more in the time I was gone. I alerted the nurses right away and cleaned up Res. X right away.
I found out I was written up several days later from another nurse that hadn't even been working that night. When I questioned another nurse, she confirmed the rumor going around. I confronted the nurse that had written me up and she said that she had to do it (Chg nurse told her to) and that the Res could have aspirated. I was told that I should not have left that res and that I should have radioed for help on the walkies to respond to the alarms. Despite refusing to sign the write up and telling her I felt I did what was best at the time (a resident that falls easily was more of a priority than a resident that had emesis with a HOB elevated--and it wasn't like I left him and never returned). I knew the rest of the staff could not have gotten to her and thats why I left him.
Was I in the wrong? What would you have done? Should this be fought?
gee pagan, tell us what you really think...lol ....i cant see either one of us allowing a higher up telling us we had to "write up" a person in an incident that we werent even there for! and without asking the person for their side even.....and i agree, go up the chain and find out why this was done.....
that's my question, why was someone who wasn't even there doing the writing? what's that all about? climb that chain!
Thank you everyone for your imput. I am strongly considering talking to HR about this. I don't feel I did anything wrong and told the nurse that wrote me up that I didn't do anything wrong. Granted yes, I could have called for help, but, no one could have booked it down the hall in time. Sure he could have aspirated but who's to say he couldn't have with me baby sitting him. Yes he is a ratherly large pt. that has some trouble moving his extremities, but I don't know of any hx of aspiration and I left him with the HOB elevated and a basin. I was gone for 90 seconds at the very most. I may only be a CNA 1 test short of being a licensed LPN, but I did what was best at the time.
They can't force you to sign it and they could stand on their head before I would. I'm also little leery about the CN instructing this nurse to write you up considering no one even saw you do this. How do they know?! Did you mention it to this particular nurse that the patient almost fell and you went to help them?! The correct respone should be, Thank you." I wonder if this nurse did it on their own and they are now sorry they did and they are putting it on CN instead.
This is why I hate health care. No matter what you would have done someone would say you shouldn't have done something else. And management is always focussing on "safety first" until you start calling for backup/help all the time, then they tell you that you need to "use your judgement" and handle the situation yourself.
I don't think you did anything wrong.
I agree.
Damned if you do and damned if you don't- that's health care work for ya'.
Batman24
1,975 Posts
You prioritized and did so properly. There was no reason for this to result in a write up. I wouldn't have signed it either. Hold firm on that.