Notification of BON investigation?

[nursejjj]

Hi all!

I was wondering if anyone knows when the BON would notify you of an investigation against you? 

Thanks! 

[Gypsiegirl]

7 months for the board of nursing to contact me and tell me that they sent my case to the attorney general’s office. I was then notified a month later with a reprimand and fee to pay. I’ve email them back with my response and plan to call them in the morning to discuss my case. I initially was told this could take up to a year.

[nursejjj]

Hi there, thank you for your reply.

 Did your employer tell you that they were reporting you to the BON? Did you know you were going to be reported?

Thanks! 

 

[Gypsiegirl]

So mine was alittle different. I was up for renewal for my nursing license 1/2021. I later applied for a compact license of which I was asked if I was arrested, found guilty or entered a plea admitting fault for a lesser charge. On my renewal I marked “no” but on the compact I marked “yes” which flagged as I was concealing an arrest. The board sent my application to the general attorneys office for review of which they sent me a formal letter and legal documents to signs basically admitting that I was wrong and I’ll have to pay a fine. They also mentioned reporting me to the nursy as well as they will not grant me a compact. My response was I had no way of knowing about a dismissal nor was I handed a warrant. Due to courts being closed the year of 2020 and the BON working remotely from home, I wasn’t able to question and explain my situation. Basically I marked two different boxes of which appeared to look as though I was hiding. It’s a mess. I was never actually reported by a company nor employer. What were you reported for? 

[nursejjj]

Wow I am sorry you have to go through that! At least you did nothing wrong ethically. 

I had a med error about 5 months ago. I had to write a med variance and was given education by my director. They were very kind to me but I have been paranoid ever since, wondering if they reported me for it. They did not mention reporting me but I am afraid to ask tbh.

[Gypsiegirl]

Girl we’ve all made med errors. Not to mention how many errors took place throughout 2020. When a med error occurs it’s typically written up on a occurrence report which then is sent to the QI department. (Quality control department) They will look to see if they can find any avenues to help better protect the patient and staff. This isn’t a total disaster as you might think. Your director will talk with you, you may have to sign a “write up” which is simply a document that says they counseled you. There has to be a paper trial for the state to follow. They don’t expect every nurse to be perfect and by acknowledging that you made the error that’s pretty much a given that you’re likely not to make the same error in the future. Makes you a more conscientiousness nurse when you’re administering medications. In your written or verbal reprimandation they will acknowledge the counseling as well as what you should expect and and what they expect of you. You pretty much would’ve known then if they are reporting you. Most likely they will not report. This requires a lot of documentation on their end to show you purposely tried to harm a patient. Take a deep breath. A sister facility had a huge med error take place and the state came in and raked them across the coals. Short staffed, lots of overtime, no communication, scanners, and the pixis system often wouldn’t cross patients over. I’m not sure how you’re error took place but nurse fatigue became a real thing for most nurses. We are all guilty of being complacent that’s why most facilities make nurses rotate out and rearrange their daily routine to keep from making errors. If you had done something really bad you would definitely know you’re. Being reported 

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

3 hours ago, nursejjj said:

I had a med error about 5 months ago. I had to write a med variance and was given education by my director. They were very kind to me but I have been paranoid ever since, wondering if they reported me for it. They did not mention reporting me but I am afraid to ask tbh.

Med errors, unless absolutely egregious and/or resulting in serious harm/death are rarely cause for reporting to the BON. If med errors were reported, the BON would be swamped worse than the DMV. I would recommend taking a look at disciplinary actions taken by your state’s BON and seeing what exactly people have licenses sanctioned for. Hint: med errors doesn’t even make top 5. Think drugs/alcohol abuse, criminal activity, failure to complete continuing education, actions taken by other states. 

[Orca, ADN, ASN, RN]

In my state, we are generally notified about 30 days or so after the complaint is filed. I work in corrections, and some inmates see it as great sport to report us to the BON if we say no to them. I have had two complaints filed against me for not doing something that would have been outside my scope of practice. I have yet to have anything happen with a case.