Med error,I'm suspended,I need advice,please!

Published

HI,

I am new to this site and I would like to say hello to all the nurses out there!!My name is Julie and I am an LPN.I made a med error two nights ago and have been suspended without pay till further notice.I have a hearing tomorrow with administration and my union representative.Any advice would be greatly appreciated.Thanks so much!!!

hi, i am new to this sight. and i have just started my carriere in medical field.can you advice me what care should be taken not to make any mistakes?

it has been explained to me that 'no matter how careful and how much care you take, you are human, and humans do make mistakes' Always follow your 5 rights in med admin though...that cuts the chances of mistakes 10 fold...atleast that's what I have found. JMHO

p.s....

also, never give meds that someone else has drawn up. ESPECIALLY when you didn't see them drawn up and are not sure what they are...k?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

:Melody: :bluecry1:

VERY FISHY! How do you know the RN didn't actually take the pain pills and the correct meds were actually in the cup? If 5 pills were missing from the narc count, they could have easily been in per pocket, with the correct pills being in the cup and you never knowing it. Did anyone check the supply of the other medication? If security was meeting you at the door, it sounds like this RN was pushing all the blame off on you and blowing the situation out of proportion. It sounds like she had a supervisory role....which means she could have imput into what happens to you. She could have been the one putting you on suspension!

All I knew is that one of her pts.wanted a pain med.I looked at the Mar and there was a NEW order for oxycodone 5mg Q6hrs.He usually gets tylenol with codeine,but that order had been dc'd and a new order had been written that day.Pharmacy had delivered the Oxycodone earlier in the shift and it had been recieved by a new nurse.I pulled the Oxycodone out of the narc bin and and counted to make sure of the amount before I popped it out. It was 5 short.I can only tell you I panicked,I searched everywhere for the missing five,all kinds of things went thru my mind,the least being that the RN had mistakenly put five oxycodone in the cup instead of phenobarbital.She didn't mark anything on the phenobarbital narc sheet.The phenobarbital and the oxycodone look exactly alike.ONly way to tell is by reading the label.What a mess!!We quickly did all we could to get him out of the building fast,he was fine when he left,hospital observed him overnite then let him go the next day.The RN in charge wanted to take all the blame in this mishap,saying that she was in charge of me and there would be trouble.I said absolutely not.I said I was going to tell the truth and take what's coming,which I will.It was my fault. Would she inevitably have given the meds she had prepoured??I can't answer that,it doesn't matter.So when she made her initial report she did not put my name in the report,only that she had made the errror in pouring and giving.I put exactlly what happen,the truth.Now she is falsifying records. by not saying what really happened.She has also told the administrator while she was being questioned,that she could have given him 100mg of oxycodone and nothing would have happened to him.I don't know what she is thinking,I have not been in contact with the facility since this happen.Union stewart has advised me to sit and wait and that is exactly what I have been doing.She has been on the phone with them everyday.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
it has been explained to me that 'no matter how careful and how much care you take, you are human, and humans do make mistakes' Always follow your 5 rights in med admin though...that cuts the chances of mistakes 10 fold...atleast that's what I have found. JMHO

p.s....

also, never give meds that someone else has drawn up. ESPECIALLY when you didn't see them drawn up and are not sure what they are...k?

I totally agree and don't forget the 3 checks. That has saved my behind more than once. I check as I pull them and I check as I put them in the cup. I guess in this day and age its hard to check the 3rd time before you give them. And don't get caught up as the older nurses in my unit do with not reading the MAR and going from memory. Read every page of the MAR for changes and additions. I've seen this too many times to make me feel comfortable. My other favorite is those that leave the meds on the bedside without watching to see if they are taken.

PLEASE don't use this as a reason to leave nursing. If anything I bet you will be a better nurse because of it. You know what you did was really wrong. What the RN did was wrong too and I hope she learned from it also. I trust the people I work with, but I also know they are human and make mistakes. I would never give a med that I didn't pull myself. We have all made mistakes and if we are honest and caring, we learn from them. I wish you the best.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
gosh, we are all human...i'd say the only problem u had was that u didnt document your attempts to answer the reason why the narc count was off.....My facility has a "no blame med error reporting form." No one on the form is identified as far as the name goes... we've all made mistakes,,,the important thing is to learn from them,,,and go on, and make for sure it's reported to the MD..

This sounds wonderful I really think this would help stop errors and prevent future errors

Up Vote Up Vote ×
:Melody: :bluecry1:

All I knew is that one of her pts.wanted a pain med.I looked at the Mar and there was a NEW order for oxycodone 5mg Q6hrs.He usually gets tylenol with codeine,but that order had been dc'd and a new order had been written that day.Pharmacy had delivered the Oxycodone earlier in the shift and it had been recieved by a new nurse.I pulled the Oxycodone out of the narc bin and and counted to make sure of the amount before I popped it out. It was 5 short.I can only tell you I panicked,I searched everywhere for the missing five,all kinds of things went thru my mind,the least being that the RN had mistakenly put five oxycodone in the cup instead of phenobarbital.She didn't mark anything on the phenobarbital narc sheet.The phenobarbital and the oxycodone look exactly alike.ONly way to tell is by reading the label.What a mess!!We quickly did all we could to get him out of the building fast,he was fine when he left,hospital observed him overnite then let him go the next day.The RN in charge wanted to take all the blame in this mishap,saying that she was in charge of me and there would be trouble.I said absolutely not.I said I was going to tell the truth and take what's coming,which I will.It was my fault. Would she inevitably have given the meds she had prepoured??I can't answer that,it doesn't matter.So when she made her initial report she did not put my name in the report,only that she had made the errror in pouring and giving.I put exactlly what happen,the truth.Now she is falsifying records. by not saying what really happened.She has also told the administrator while she was being questioned,that she could have given him 100mg of oxycodone and nothing would have happened to him.I don't know what she is thinking,I have not been in contact with the facility since this happen.Union stewart has advised me to sit and wait and that is exactly what I have been doing.She has been on the phone with them everyday.

Please don't put yourself through the anxiety and stress of worry about this event. The Patient is fine. An error was made but you are not totally responsible. I would be very surprized if you experienced any long term negative consequences. I the error is reported to the state the hospital would also be held accountable for their poor staffing practices. Take this break to work on your resume and start looking for another job. Their are wonderful nursing facilities out their that are supportive. They would value

your experience. You sound like you would be a great team player. You wanted to help out the other nurse when you knew she was busy and overloaded. It's ashame that you have to go through something like this. Please don't leave nursing. Their are sick people who need your care. Believe me thae facility you are working in is not the norm. Unless they send you roses with a big I'M SORRY don't consider going back. Good-Luck your in our prayers.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in LTC and Critical/Acute Care/Homehealth.

My med error kept me out of nursing for about a year and a half. The patient was fine, but I kept going "shoulda, woulda, coulda" in my mind for all that time. Finally, I am going back to work. I AM a little nervous, but I know that this time around, I will be more cautious. If it makes me a little slow, so be it.

Don't give up nursing. What you have to realise, and it took me a long time to realise is that we are human. We make mistakes. What matters is do we take responsibility for our mistakes and learn from them? :)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med-Surg.

I've been a nurse for over a year and my last year I worked for a LTC and I forgot to take this woman accu-check and when I caught it I told the supervisor. She said that everything was okay but when I came back to work the DON ask me to come into the office and fired me over that. I thought that was the stupidist thing that I ever heard. I was angry and felt that it was uncalled for I wasn't even on the job for 2 weeks. I told her that everyone make mistakes and she told me in the world of nursing we are not allow to make mistakes and I told that is an unrealistic view and I don't agree she was very angry I also told I didn't want to be apart of a facility that didn't help new graduates grow as a nurse. Most of the nurse that I worked with were very upset with what happened one of the nurses that I was in orientation with quit the week after me. Now I understand the importantance of covering yourself.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Gerontology.
I've been a nurse for over a year and my last year I worked for a LTC and I forgot to take this woman accu-check and when I caught it I told the supervisor. She said that everything was okay but when I came back to work the DON ask me to come into the office and fired me over that. I thought that was the stupidist thing that I ever heard. I was angry and felt that it was uncalled for I wasn't even on the job for 2 weeks. I told her that everyone make mistakes and she told me in the world of nursing we are not allow to make mistakes and I told that is an unrealistic view and I don't agree she was very angry I also told I didn't want to be apart of a facility that didn't help new graduates grow as a nurse. Most of the nurse that I worked with were very upset with what happened one of the nurses that I was in orientation with quit the week after me. Now I understand the importantance of covering yourself.

As I said I have been a nurse for six years and what I would have done is checked the patient's blood glucose level if range is good then fine no problem but if it was abnormal I would have called the primary or covering M.D and explained that the blood glucose level was taken late but this was what the result is and let him take it from there he knows what he'll want done and that is not something to get fired over that DON is horrible for what she done everyone makes mistakes, that's why we have . But if the world was perfect than there would be no sin tell her to get real. Anyway what she should have sone is went over the technique and establish with you the reason the blood glucose was omitted and try to decelop a plan of action so that this will not be another occurrence just like hospitals do when nurses make med errors or when a patient has an incident such as a fall she' just nasty.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

:uhoh21: :confused: :confused:

Please don't put yourself through the anxiety and stress of worry about this event. The Patient is fine. An error was made but you are not totally responsible. I would be very surprized if you experienced any long term negative consequences. I the error is reported to the state the hospital would also be held accountable for their poor staffing practices. Take this break to work on your resume and start looking for another job. Their are wonderful nursing facilities out their that are supportive. They would value

your experience. You sound like you would be a great team player. You wanted to help out the other nurse when you knew she was busy and overloaded. It's ashame that you have to go through something like this. Please don't leave nursing. Their are sick people who need your care. Believe me thae facility you are working in is not the norm. Unless they send you roses with a big I'M SORRY don't consider going back. Good-Luck your in our prayers.

Well administration has made their decision about my med errror.Basically they called me and apologized for putting me thru the stress.Asked if I was okay and asked me to come back to work,I will be with another nurse for one day so she can see how I do my med pass.I asked if I was going to be on the same floor and they said yes,but if I wanted to switch to another floor they would accomodate anyway they could.Just the thought of going back is giving me palpatations.I said that I needed a couple days to think about what I am doing,this has me really shaken up.The RN involved has taken a sick leave,she went to her personal physician and he gave her a leave because of her abnormal heart beat.He also gave her some Ativan to help calm her nerves.I need give them my 2 weeks,this was way too much for me to handle.Thank you so much for all your prayers,telling the truth is the only way to go.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
:uhoh21: :confused: :confused:

Well administration has made their decision about my med errror.Basically they called me and apologized for putting me thru the stress.Asked if I was okay and asked me to come back to work,I will be with another nurse for one day so she can see how I do my med pass.I asked if I was going to be on the same floor and they said yes,but if I wanted to switch to another floor they would accomodate anyway they could.Just the thought of going back is giving me palpatations.I said that I needed a couple days to think about what I am doing,this has me really shaken up.The RN involved has taken a sick leave,she went to her personal physician and he gave her a leave because of her abnormal heart beat.He also gave her some Ativan to help calm her nerves.I need give them my 2 weeks,this was way too much for me to handle.Thank you so much for all your prayers,telling the truth is the only way to go.

:balloons: :balloons:

YAY!!! At least you got an apology! Much better than the initial kick in the pants!

Well, good luck, you'll do fine when you go back and at whatever new facility to end up going to....of this I have no doubt!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in LTC and Critical/Acute Care/Homehealth.

I can understand taking some time off. I really needed the time after my med error. Take some time relax, read journals, do a few CEU's. In other words, RELAX.

I am happy that you got an apology. All I got was, "new nurses shouldn't be on that hall anyway," and "you shouldn't have gone to THAT supervisor, you should have went to one that was on floor 4."

I am happy it turned out all right for you.

Be Blessed.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ER, ICU, Nursing Education, LTC, and HHC.

First of all , it would seem to me that having five pills in a cup that look the same would be a red flag, that is NOT usual.. Second, the nurse who put 5 narcotics in a cup had to know they were all there.. she had to sign them out.. I would hope administration is reviewing the narcotic sign out sheet carefully,. I has a nurse sign out 4 vicodin every 2 hours as if given. (ie: 2pm, 4pm, 6pm, 8pm,) and they were not given, because the resident was in hospital.

Had to drug test and suspend immediately.. was a big mess to deal with all that. In my facility BOTH nurses would have been suspended for investigation, terminated after investigation done, and reported to BON in most cases. Giving someone else prepoured meds should never happen, and to have 5 in a cup.. I suspect that the nurse pouring was trying to divert them and got side tracked.. many lessons to be learned here.

Both had a part in being wrong, and suspension is in order from my perspective.. (yes, I am in management)

Even though no harm was done, it had th epotential to cause serious harm and/or death depending on the individual who recieved them. POTENTIAL is the key word here.. Suppose it was a frail little old 70 lb lady, 5 narcotics coul dhave easily kille dher... many scenerios in which this error could have resulted in death.. Lucky it did not... The bigger question is 1) why there were 5 pills in the cup?

2) why you gave someone elses prepoured meds..especially when all 5 looked alike ?

Sorry you are in this predicament.. good luck.. I think the lesson has been learned.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion