Reporting another nurse

Jensmom7, BSN, RN · Jul 11, 2015

Rule #1: Don't take responsibility for the things you have no control over.

You reported an incident. It's now out of your hands and in the hands of the DON.

If she loses her job, are you to blame?

No. Because of her irresponsible actions, SHE will be to blame if she gets fired.

My advice to you is to keep quiet about this from here on out; the DON will do her job and there will be some sort of outcome based on the investigation. It doesn't need to become break room speculation.

canigraduate · Jul 11, 2015

I think you're looking at it from the wrong perspective.

Instead of focusing on the person who's job is now in jeopardy, think of the person who's life is no longer in jeopardy.

imaLvn2 · Jul 11, 2015

Thanks. I'm not one to talk. I don't like to be involved in work politics, dramas, gossips. I'm going to go on like nothings happened and of course let the Don handle it.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Jul 11, 2015

I'm going to go against the grain here, but I generally do not report coworkers based on suspicion alone. If someone's job is potentially being placed in jeopardy, I only furnish cold hard facts and observations while leaving my gut feelings out of it.

Adele_Michal7, ASN, RN · Jul 16, 2015

Is it possible the nurse forgot to sign the MAR? I see this happen a lot. You potentially are getting someone fired over a missing signature?

sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN · Jul 17, 2015

When I was the DON, and had suspicions, I would mark the back of scheduled med cards, prior to suspected nurse shift,and then eval. If my suspicion was confirmed.....terminate. This sometimes created a reportable to DADs event, but never cited since action was taken.

sallyrnrrt, ADN, RN · Jul 17, 2015

Is it possible the nurse forgot to sign the MAR? I see this happen a lot. You potentially are getting someone fired over a missing signature?

Not when scheduled doses were not punched out on med card, and you had then marked with date and time dose due.

Jensmom7, BSN, RN · Jul 17, 2015

When I was the DON, and had suspicions, I would mark the back of scheduled med cards, prior to suspected nurse shift,and then eval. If my suspicion was confirmed.....terminate. This sometimes created a reportable to DADs event, but never cited since action was taken.

And THIS is precisely why you turn it over to the DON. You aren't tattling, you're reporting something out of the ordinary. Not only do you not have the tools to investigate, it's above your pay grade.

When the DON investigates, s/he will come to a conclusion and act accordingly. If there is no corroborating evidence, no harm, no foul. The nurse won't even know there was an investigation. If there is...buh-bye, and rightly so.

OCNRN63, RN · Jul 17, 2015

I'm going to go against the grain here, but I generally do not report coworkers based on suspicion alone. If someone's job is potentially being placed in jeopardy, I only furnish cold hard facts and observations while leaving my gut feelings out of it.

I agree. Once you cast suspicion upon another nurse, you can't unring that bell, even if you find out later you were wrong.

Jensmom7, BSN, RN · Jul 18, 2015

I agree. Once you cast suspicion upon another nurse, you can't unring that bell, even if you find out later you were wrong.

The thing is, unless OP blabs it all over the unit, the DON will do her thing, the matter will be resolved one way or another, and the nurse in question would never know who had the original suspicion.

Someone is always auditing charts and MARs. If it's as simple as having a brain fart and not signing things out, she may get a verbal warning (if it's the first time), no harm, no foul, not fatal. The DON won't tell her who said anything.

If she really was blowing off meds, well, she'll be gone, and good riddance. She still won't know who brought it to the DON.

The key is that OP refrains from engaging in break room chit chat and stays quiet.

Lmbetts33 · Jul 24, 2015

If you had suspicion that a nurse is not giving medications, would you report it? I have noticed on a few occasions that my fill in nurse is not giving certain medications (how I know, it's not signed out) I know that as a nurse, I am supposed to be an advocate for my patients but I was contemplating because I was scared and don't know how to go about this. So, for the past 3 days, I couldn't sleep. And today, I finally bottled up the courage to ask a fellow nurse whom I trust and she advised me to report it. I informed the Don and she thanked me for letting her know. I felt like a Hugh weight has been lifted off my back. But I'm also worried that now, someone is going to possibly lose their job. Am I to blame?

I say your darned if you do and darned if you dont!