Medication Aides

[R.L.Silva]

I am asking this question of you because I have looked for days for my answer and am still empty handed. I need to know where I might find information on medication aides and their state practice limitations for Massachusetts. I know this is an odd forum to ask this question but I am at my wits end. I am doing this for a friend who Manages a Community Health Center. Thank you!

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

LTC medication passes are somewhat like an assembly line. You pull and pass the meds as fast as you can, there is no time for assessments. 30 to 40 patients, averaging probably 10 meds apiece, maybe more. Some take their meds crushed, some have to be talked into taking the meds, hunting down meds, hunting down residents, answering questions, residents with immediate needs begging to be helped, prn pain meds, prns for agitation, prns for constipation...

and all am meds MUST be passed in a 1 hour time frame.

Then, minor dressings, breathing treatments, reordering meds, and start the 1000 pass.

Repeat chaos for 1200, 1300, 1400,

It isn't anything like hospital work. It is a monotonous (sp?), stressfull, nerve racking job that very few nurses will do.

Possibly use of CMTs will continue until there is nursing home reform?

Possibly---no, probably-- the use of CMTs will continue until one of them does something so harmful, something that gets big media attention, that people with the real power to stop it (legislature, anyone?) will get involved and ban it outright.

Until something gets national media coverage--something that makes the general public go "WHAT??!!??", nothing will be done. No "reform" happens without a tragedy, unfortunately.

[schmuffin]

I am a med aide, and the facility that I work has us med aides do everything. meds, narcotics, insulin, treatments, dressings, charting, support plans.....you name it. they want us to take off doctor orders, which i refuse because according to the state we arent allowed, but they try!!!!!!!! we had aq 5 day class, now its down to 4 days and about a half an hour of actual hands on trainging on the floor before they stick you out there yourself terrible isnt it???

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

I am a med aide, and the facility that I work has us med aides do everything. meds, narcotics, insulin, treatments, dressings, charting, support plans.....you name it. they want us to take off doctor orders, which i refuse because according to the state we arent allowed, but they try!!!!!!!! we had aq 5 day class, now its down to 4 days and about a half an hour of actual hands on trainging on the floor before they stick you out there yourself terrible isnt it???

Speechless.

Ok, not quite: In nursing school, I was grilled for weeks about insulin (short acting, intermediate, long acting, peak times, etc), had to pass a skill evaluation and oral quiz on same, before being allowed to draw and give insulin to a patient (and that was under direct supervision for the first three times).

And that was JUST insulin.

Something tells me the "course" you described falls a tad short.

[lpnflorida, LPN]

A fantastic think piece.

[azgirl]

I worked for an assisted living facility that had the caregivers watch a movie about the 5 rights and gave them certificates to pass meds.

[mr.ahp]

So what's the big deal.... You are all nurses right? (most of you)

PASS YOUR OWN MEDS!

[bsrn0523]

so what's the big deal.... you are all nurses right? (most of you)

pass your own meds!

correct me if i am wrong please, but i believe the gist of the argument is that we would rather pass our own meds. like someone else said, no med aide/cna will ever give meds, catheterize, or do dressing changes to anyone in my family. that is a nurses job.

jenn:nurse:

[lpnflorida, LPN]

So what's the big deal.... You are all nurses right? (most of you)

PASS YOUR OWN MEDS![/quote

Again, while I have never worked with a medication aide. The point some are making is in some places of work it does not sound like they have an option about it. Some appreciated that someone else was available to assist them on the large LTC units. Some can not image not passing their own medications.

Some people gave the rationale as they understood it as to why in some situations it would be ok. The example I think was like in a home setting where the choice was either a medication aide gave the meds or the patient or their families gave the meds.

I view this whole theme as exploring people's individual comfort level about having a none licensed person giving medications.

[roberje]

I would just like to add that the use of unlicensed assistive personnel to administer medications does not take away the responsibility of the Licensed personnel (i.e.Registered Nurse/LPN). The liability is ultimately still in the nurses hands so if you feel comfortable basically signing off on something that you are not doing and are just trusting that person to do this appropriately, meaning they are following the same guidelines you learned in the many years of training, then you can choose to do so. You can also choose to not delegate this nursing task, even though it will increase your workload, it will ensure the safety of your patients!

[lunden]

that is utterly crazy!!! no medication aides evvver!!!

[OgopogoLPN, LPN, RN]

I am currently a new grad LPN working in a LTC facility. If my facility had med aides, I would be out of a job!!!!

Anyways, although giving meds is a HUGE part of my job, it's not the only part. I like this aspect of my job and would not want a med aid. If my resident had an adverse reaction to a med or combination or meds, or a med error had been made by a med aid and not properly documented, it would be much harder to investigate what the error was etc than if I had given the med myself.

Oh, and if a resident was having a reaction, a med aid likley wouln't be able to assess subtle symptoms and it may not even be recognized that a reaction was occuring.

[mume2mykidz]

okay I am glad to find this forum,I am racking my brain trying to find out information on med techs,I am an LPN in NJ and work along med techs but I was just told by an RN in another facility that it is out of their scope to give narcs???but they do so I went online looking up the rules but can not find a thing???