Medication Mistake

[buttercup_rn]

This is my first job as a new grad RN. It's a home health job. My client gets all her meds through her tube feeding (she has many meds) and I decided to prepare all the meds in advance for the next nurse coming on.

The next nurse (day) dispassionately stated, "I can't give those meds. It's against policy. You never give meds that another nurse has drawn up." It wasn't until after she said this that it made perfect sense. I was thinking that I was doing her a favor.

I wasn't able to give the meds myself because it was my time to leave. She didn't want to throw them away. She said she would ask the parent to give those meds for the evening if she chose, or she could choose to dispose of them herself. Now I just feel like an idiot, and as though I should have known this. It didn't dawn on me until the other nurse mentioned it that it was wrong.

I did call the clinical supervisor right away to discuss the matter, who said basically take it as a learning experience. but the day nurse acted as though she'd never made a mistake.

Has anyone ever done anything like this?

[nurseclm]

All of you younger nurses please tell me how often new grad RN's are hired to do Home Care.It worries me but I have been a nurse 41 years and worry about you younger nurses. Thank you.

[withasmilelpn]

True - I worked for a home health agency as a private duty nurse. :-)

[Esnooopy, BSN, MSN, DNP, RN, NP]

A very minor mistake! No harm, no foul. While we're learning of course we aren't always going to do everything perfectly - that's the way it goes. As mistakes go this was pretty benign.

And I once handed a nurse an IV bag I'd mixed, and I'd been a nurse for a long time and just wasn't thinking about it.... my reaction was somewhat similar to yours in that I was both surprised and like "oh yeah, of course! that makes sense!". But I certainly didn't think it was a big deal and neither did the nurse who declined to take the bag from me.

Hang in there!

[jme2018, LPN, EMT-P]

Wow, ColleenRN2B, that was really rude. I guess noone realized you are the perfect nurse "2B". You should remember that attitude when you make your first mistake as a new RN and come on here looking for a little support.

[BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN]

Wow, ColleenRN2B, that was really rude. I guess noone realized you are the perfect nurse "2B". You should remember that attitude when you make your first mistake as a new RN and come on here looking for a little support.

Well, first of all, I AM an RN. I've never changed my screen name. So shoot me.

Secondly---she asked if any of us had made an error like that. My respone, "um no". And it's a valid question---how was this not covered during her education?

Never called myself perfect, please point out to me where I have....

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

Well, first of all, I AM an RN. I've never changed my screen name. So shoot me.

Secondly---she asked if any of us had made an error like that. My respone, "um no". And it's a valid question---how was this not covered during her education?

Never called myself perfect, please point out to me where I have....

A traditional nursing school education definitely does not prepare you to work in PDN. HH, maybe, but even agency PDN is a completely different animal with practices that often blatantly go against what we were taught as normal practice in school. As several other posters who have PDN experience have mentioned, doing what the OP did might be allowed or even expected in certain situations.

[Wishinonastar, BSN]

You are completely right about that. Standard practice varies a lot by specialty area. For example, many things done by clean technique in the home are done with sterile technique in the hospital. Home care nurses come to trust each other and depend on each other. It is very different than the paranoid every man for himself hospital environment. I also have seen nurses leave prepoured meds in LTC for the next nurse to give when the shift changes and the patient did not take his/her meds. Nurses can normally recognize the meds so they just look them over and give them. No one makes a big deal about it.

[decembergrad2011, BSN, RN]

Congrats on your first learning experience!

You are not an idiot. :hug:

[nursel56]

We actually did draw up meds for the next shift when I worked nights home care. The day nurse had to go to school right away with our client and did not have time. All were labeled though and had the time of administration. The family also liked having meds ready on the days she didn't have school. They had three other kids and it helped them. Home care can be a very different setting. Don't sweat it.

We actually have had several threads in the PDN forum where a new nurse on a home case found it standard practice for one nurse to draw up or pour meds for the next shift or the next 24 hours and nurses give the newer nurse crap because she wouldn't give them. No, it isn't right but the shock and horror expressed by some here are a bit over the top considering the OP stated "lesson learned" in her first post.

[LJ85, ADN, BSN, CNA, LPN]

Um, no, I've never done anything like this. It's something we learned in nursing school. How was this not covered during your education?

It is something that was learned and it does seem like it should have been common sense, but aren't you being a little harsh? When I first graduated I was so focused on the patient and not killing them that I could have done something silly like this. Not all nursing schools are equal either...

[LJ85, ADN, BSN, CNA, LPN]

By the way, not to nitpick or anything, but home health is not the same as private duty. If you go from house to house you are doing home health. If you stay there for a shift it is private duty.

#1 why is does it matter to differentiate the two and #2 I've never heard of that distinction in my life. I work in home care and private duty and home health are used interchangeably.

[LJ85, ADN, BSN, CNA, LPN]

Well, first of all, I AM an RN. I've never changed my screen name. So shoot me.

Secondly---she asked if any of us had made an error like that. My respone, "um no". And it's a valid question---how was this not covered during her education?

Never called myself perfect, please point out to me where I have....

It was the "um" that was a little insensitive