Moral character

OneDuckyRN · Jun 4, 2016

"Bastardy"?? Good grief. Do people still get upset over that?? [emoji33]

I almost got a chuckle out of that...I wasn't aware anyone was even using that term anymore!

LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN · Jun 4, 2016

"Bastardy"?? Good grief. Do people still get upset over that?? [emoji33]

When people are marrying less these days, they should really throw that one out...

Anonymous865 · Jun 4, 2016

Here's a link to the TN rules and regulations related to the practice of nursing:

1 Tennessee Board of Nursing

I didn't see anything about moral character. They do say that nurses must exhibit ethical behavior.

Here are the instructions for applying for a nursing license. I don't see any requirement to provide affidavits regarding your moral character.

Board of Nursing - TN.Gov

Nurses in TN do have a statutary requirement to notify the appropriate professional board if they know of incompetent, unethical, or illegal practice by any health care provider.

OP it is NOT unethical or illegal to have a disease like HIV, nor is it unethical or illegal to not disclose it to your employer. It would be unethical and/or incompetent if the nurse exposed the patient to a communicable disease through poor practice.

BSN16 · Jun 4, 2016

Actually I do, but I am preparing to submit a complaint against someone working in Tennessee that I feel does NOT have good moral character and shouldn't be working with patients. I'm sure you don't know anyone like that, but unfortunately, they exist and if that person were to transmit a communicable disease which they are desperate to hide from their employer, well, I would feel terrible for not reporting it. Sorry f you don't agree...

I feel sorry for your coworker. She has a disease with a stigma, of course she doesn't want to disclose this information. Nor is she required to by law. Leave it be, if she is providing safe and ethical patient care, I don't see the problem

springchick1, ADN, RN · Jun 4, 2016

You seriously don't think the employer has the right to know that a healthcare worker has a medical condition that could adversely effect patients? That's just ignorant, so I'm going to ignore your suggestion. It must be a sensitive subject for you to respond with such venom! No matter. I think I have everything I need now to proceed with the complaint and feel good about it. I don't require your opinion or approval. I know it's the right thing to do.

No. An employer doesn't have a right to know about the medical conditions of their employees. Why would they? Do you want them knowing everything about you?

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Jun 4, 2016

How is it that an undisclosed medical condition equals some moral fault? About the only way I can see an communicable illness as equating to moral turpitude is if the nurse in question is aware of the condition and purposefully attempting to infect patients. In that case it becomes a legal issue much larger than anything just the BON should be made aware of. While that scenario is not impossible, it does sound like the plot of a Lifetime movie. Not knowing the whole story and realizing that it is pretty improbable that this nurse is trying to infect others with his or her unnamed disease it sounds like you are being a first class a-hole and trying to ruin another nurses career because they have the poor judgement to be ill.

Libby1987 · Jun 4, 2016

I'm trying to think of anything that would fit your description and I'm coming up blank.

Absent convict-able/non compliant behavior, which of course you would have mentioned first off, I cannot think of anything.

And that's the problem with your proposal. Anything not convict-able or not non complaint is just plain self righteous and prejudicial on your part. Now that's morally corrupt.

(Does my post lack tact? My directness can be tactless.)

NotAllWhoWandeRN, ASN, RN · Jun 4, 2016

Since any chronic condition would not put the patient at risk when universal precautions are maintained, I can only guess that OP means to report their coworker to the BON for performing patient care while they have a cold.

ThePsychWhisperer, BSN, MSN, APRN, NP · Jun 4, 2016

I agree with everyone above. Unless the nurse is positive for a communicable disease and is bloodletting all over his or her patients, or has active TB and gets his or her jollies by coughing in patient's faces, let things lie. Sometimes, it's absolutely none of the employer's business what diseases a person has. I know I wouldn't care unless the nurse had unsafe practices that threatened the spread of his or her disease.

allnurses Guide · Jun 4, 2016

I checked the California BON Nurse Practice Act and found that their is a clause requiring a licensee to refrain from acts of moral turpitude. It also states that if a licensee is convicted of a crime of moral turpitude they can have their licese revoked. The following is the legal definition of an act of moralturpitude.

"Turpitude means a corrupt or depraved or degenerate act or practice. Moral turpitude refers generally to conduct that shocks the public conscience. Offenses such as murder, voluntary manslaughter, kidnapping, robbery, and aggravated assaults involve moral turpitude. However, assaults not involving dangerous weapons or evil intent have been held not to involve moral turpitude."

I once had a coworker who revealed to me that they had HIV and Hep C due to a previous hx of IV drug use( but currently sober over 10 years) I am not sure why she told me but I simply congratulated her on her sobriety and continued working as if that was never revealed to me. This person was an excellent nurse and I had no problems working.

Moral character is a tricky thing to define as it is highly subject outside it's legal definition. Some people erroneously believe that one's sexual orientation may involve some kind of moral issue when in fcatit does not.

OP if you are still here I would be very careful in making your complaint. It is likely that it will be determined unfounded - but if the complaint were to be investigated and cause harm to your co-worker you could well find yourself on the wrong end of a libel/slander suit.

Which could end up costing you thousands of dollars to defend and if it does not go you way a judgement against you could cost you your job, and any personal assets you have.

Just saying

Hppy

simbawicz · Jun 4, 2016

I'm trying to think of anything that would fit your description and I'm coming up blank.
Absent convict-able/non compliant behavior, which of course you would have mentioned first off, I cannot think of anything.
And that's the problem with your proposal. Anything not convict-able or not non complaint is just plain self righteous and prejudicial on your part. Now that's morally corrupt.
(Does my post lack tact? My directness can be tactless.)

I think I watched too many episodes of Dark Shadows and X Files and the like. All I could imagine is the offender is an incubus or succubus. I do not know the gender of the OP offender.

cayenne06, MSN, CNM · Jun 4, 2016

You seriously don't think the employer has the right to know that a healthcare worker has a medical condition that could adversely effect patients? That's just ignorant, so I'm going to ignore your suggestion. It must be a sensitive subject for you to respond with such venom! No matter. I think I have everything I need now to proceed with the complaint and feel good about it. I don't require your opinion or approval. I know it's the right thing to do.

Hmmm. So someone with major depressive disorder, well controlled, should be compelled to alert their employer, in case they suffer a severe relapse that affects their patient care? Someone with a remote history of drug addiction should tell every potential employer about their high school narcotic problem, just in case they relapse and harm a patient? What if a nurse knows she carries the parkinson's mutation?

A patient with HIV and an undetectable viral load is orders of magnitude less likely to transmit the virus than a random person who has not had recent confirmation of their negative status. Maybe we should make yearly HIV testing mandatory for health care workers?

If the nurse is practicing in an unsafe manner, that is a separate issue altogether.