Nurse fired for calling police

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Last year while eating at local restuarant i witnessed an irate customer being removed by police for screaming at the staff. Last month i witness a patient daughter screaming at staff for more than a week , security called almost every day. She was 10 times worse than the restuarant customer. Each day the nurse manager and administration kissed her butt and apologized. She would make a scene , throw things, etc...

Everyday she was given a new nurse. Nurses were calling off like crazy to avoid this unpleaseasble daughter. Finally after multiple problems with this daughter it came to a head. She came into the nursing station and began to throw things. The charge nurse called the police and she had to be removed kicking and screaming. One week later the nurse was fired for not handling it internally!!!

Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
sorry, you can't have me arrested. i didn't slap the idot nurse. i just threat to. and she was an idot. she blew a stick, in the back of my hand, instead of removing the needle, she continued to jab around, underneath my skin, "i know i can find a vein". idot, idot, idot. heaven save me from nurses who will not admit when they have done something wrong. i asked her three times to stop, each time in a louder voice. the last time, i shouted "stop digging in the back of my hand or i will slap you!" she stopped. and i got a er physician and another rn in the room immediately. and a need line in my arm. listen, patients do have rights despite the fact that a great many nurses seem to ignore them. i have the right to refuse procedures, lab draws, iv starts, medications, treatments, even to be ambulated. you have the right to report my refusal to my treating physicians. you do not have any other rights unless i am mentally ill and in danger of harming myself or others, yourselves included. then you may restrain me physically or chemically.

if a family member verbval assualts you, you can report it to security and your supervisor, according to your hospital's policy. if your hospital's policy allows you to call the police, you can do so. if it doesn't and you do, accept your punishment and move on. or don't you believe that anyone who committs a wrong shouldn't have to face action for their wrong doing.

this discussion has gone off, in several different directions. what upsets me the most is the attitude of some nurses that they have rights far and above anyone elses.:banghead: they feel they do not have to follow hospital polciy. they feel they can make decisions independently, on hteir own. if you want hat type of power, please do not work for a facility that has written policies. they have them for aa reason, to protect themselves, protect patients and visitors and to protect you, whatever or not you want to believe it. step outside the guideline and policies, you will pay.

woody:twocents:

when arguing with an "idot", make sure the "idot" isn't doing the same.

Specializes in M/S, dialysis, home health, SNF.

I would get the local news media involved in this story as well as an attorney. That management was entirely out of line.

As for the message it sends to nurses: we don't care about you, you have no rights, not even the right to protection.

The message to the obviously unbalanced daughter: it's okay, honey, you just go ahead and tear the place up and express your feelings any ol' way you want. No need to accept responsibility for your behavior.

What planet is this hospital on?

Specializes in med-surg, psych, ER, school nurse-CRNP.
when arguing with an "idot", make sure the "idot" isn't doing the same.

i wondered if i was the only one that picked that up.

Specializes in M/S, dialysis, home health, SNF.

Nope. Some of us were just using silence to make our statement ;)

Specializes in Rehab, LTC, Peds, Hospice.
Actually, my charge nurse had summoned security, prior to the patient's discharge because we had received a telephone call from his mother, indicating a possible physical confrontation. I was expected to follow the policies of the hospital I was working in. Our policies clearly directed what steps a staff person could take and they did not included calling 911 independently. I might add, the police were called, by our ER resident, when brothers told him they had a gun and were coming to ICU to shoot their sister-in-law because they blamed her for his suicide attempt. Unfortunately, he was one of my two patients. And his brothers showed up before the cops got there, with the gun in one of their hands. I did not panic nor fall to pieces. And a few minutes later the police arrived, took the gun from me, which I had gotten them to hand over and arrested the two of them. So please do not moan and groan about being verbally assaulted. I have had to face a gun and been tossed through a glass room divider. And suffered no ill effects from either incident.

How would you like it, if I had picked up the phone, in my ER room, called 911 and reported I was being assaulted and having battery committed against me by a staff nurse. Judging on the previous responses I've gotten when I posted about this incident, not one little bit. You would have felt I was over reaching, that I could have done something else, that I didn't have to threat to slap her (which is just about what others maintained).

I would think that you had common sense, frankly. This is apples to oranges, she made you uncomfortable inserting an IV, is what I got out of this. You are a nurse, you more than anyone else know how to file a complaint. (By the way, threatening to slap her, is not justifiable in my opinion.)

It sounds like you are demeaning the nurse for calling the police when she had things thrown at her. I mean in comparison to your incident, what is she whining about, right?

Specializes in med-surg, med-psych, psych.

well yikes!

:typinga tab long, but yet a good response to this thread:

shame on the :chair:employer for not having a definitive policy/procedure coupled with office politics to handle the riff/raft and protect the integrity of staff / facility!

painful sorry from me for the consequence of the :bow:champion nurse who took the law in her own hands - so to speak.

take it from a "seasoned" colleaque,your decision to act on an issue like that (no one taking an initiative) should always be based on the value of your job. a termination is forever on your record. and the gap in your income until the next job, is effectively you paying twice for your actions. those in this business long, know most nurses work for employers who consider our integrity last on their list of priorities in decision-making, if at all. our physical safety is only a notch above that. always consider your decision to act out-of-the-box a job risk!

in retrospect, and for the future,for any of your assertive action-takers, ask yourself only one question:

"is what i want to do worth getting fired?"

if yes,

god bless ya! burn the bra (dating myself) and move on! woohoo!

if no,

rub your hands together and start to strategize on the sneaky way to get what you want accomplished with no blood on you. start with getting advice right here at this great site!

for example if you had gotten in the line of fired (oops!) with even a minor injury (little >paper cut) it's off to employee health, workman's comp and a police report in the privacy of your home. a day or 2 off from work, a criminal report for girlfriend-terrorist complete with witnesses, a history of harassment, an arrest... badda-bing, badda-boom! :dyou keep your job complete with mental days off. girlfriend-terrorist got a warrant with a court date and/or a restraining order to legitimately keep her off the unit away from you.

just one thought off the top of my head. :smokin:i don't smoke

:typingok ok... hind-sight is always 20-20. i just wanted you and others to have some wisdom / insight on playing the game of "employer ain't right" in ways that are a win for you

- you always can win!

You know what? You can fire me for calling the police. I could give a crap. I would sue for enabling an unsafe work place. We just had a RN have her finger bit off by a patient. I call the police at least once a week on out of control patients/families.They know if they cant act appropriately they can talk to the police or go to jail. I don't believe its part of my job to have to be placed in an unsafe environment. If it isn't safe, I'm calling the police. I will not lose life or limb, or finger to anyone!

Specializes in CCU & CTICU.
We just had a RN have her finger bit off by a patient.

Good gravy....:no:

I'm sorry, but the stories in this thread are ridiculous! What is wrong w/ people?! If they come to the hospital and throw things at the staff and push them through glass, etc... when something sets them off, I can only imagine how they act at home! :no: I feel for any kids or incapaciated adult stuck w/ a parent or child that exhibits such monsterous behavior.

I see this from both views... Woody's and as a Nurse.

First as a nurse: This was pt family that had police called not the pt. so the nurse did as she was suppose to. I think it should have been security first then the police. This family member showed a pattern of violent behavior and failed to comply with rules that were set in place the several times security was called. She SHOULD have been banned from the facility if her behavior continued long before the incident that led the nurse to call the police. Shame on administration I hope she sues :D and the hospital gets loads of media attention for their error. (Lets face it bad press is worse than anything for hospital).

I agree to some extent with Woody. Altho I think his point was really as a patient being combative us as nurses. We need to evaluate what we are doing sometimes. His example of IV's... I cannot tell you how many nurses I have seen do this with a patient and the patient pleading for them to stop. Technically the nurse is committing assult if the patients asks you to stop and you continue (except in pediatrics and psych world that is different).

I personally had an experience with a nurse where I swatted at her. More in her general direction and I never made contact with her. But she was coming at me with a FHR monitor and I asked for her to give me just a minute. I didn't refuse just asked for a minute to gather myself thru my contraction. She didn't listen to me and kept trying to touch me despite me asking several times different ways for her to wait. I swatted in her direction. It wasn't until she continued after me swatting, that my husband did the same thing and looked at her dead in the eyes and said "She asked you to wait a minute... back off". Yes this nurse was doing her job, and I respect that but for that brief moment she forget about the respect of me as her patient and my request to not be touched for a bried moment. Next contraction she did her thing, I and DH appologized and from that moment on she made sure she had my approval before touching me. I did what I felt I had to do in that moment to defend myself from my nurse. (But in NO way do i feel my actions were appropriate, they were a last resort). Lets face it people in pain don't necessarily handle themselves appropriately, because your consumed at that moment and don't have any coping capabilities to fall back on.

back on topic: I hope this nurse can sue because it sounds like all other resources were exausted before calling the police and it sounds like from what information we have she did the right thing. :yeah:

Sorry, you can't have me arrested. I didn't slap the idot nurse. I just threat to. And she was an idot. She blew a stick, in the back of my hand, instead of removing the needle, she continued to jab around, underneath my skin, "I know I can find a vein". Idot, idot, idot. Heaven save me from nurses who will not admit when they have done something wrong. I asked her three times to stop, each time in a louder voice. The last time, I shouted "Stop digging in the back of my hand or I will slap you!" She stopped. And I got a ER physician and another RN in the room immediately. And a need line in my arm. Listen, patients do have rights despite the fact that a great many nurses seem to ignore them. I have the right to refuse procedures, lab draws, IV starts, medications, treatments, even to be ambulated. You have the right to report my refusal to my treating physicians. You do not have any other rights unless I am mentally ill and in danger of harming myself or others, yourselves included. Then you may restrain me physically or chemically.

If a family member verbval assualts you, you can report it to security and your supervisor, according to your hospital's policy. If your hospital's policy allows you to call the police, you can do so. If it doesn't and you do, accept your punishment and move on. Or don't you believe that anyone who committs a wrong shouldn't have to face action for their wrong doing.

This discussion has gone off, in several different directions. What upsets me the most is the attitude of some nurses that they have rights far and above anyone elses.:banghead: They feel they do not have to follow hospital polciy. They feel they can make decisions independently, on hteir own. If you want hat type of power, please do not work for a facility that has written policies. They have them for aa reason, to protect themselves, protect patients and visitors and to protect YOU, whatever or not you want to believe it. Step outside the guideline and policies, you will pay.

Woody:twocents:

The last guy who threatened to harm a RN in my Dept was not treated. Meaning, there was reasonable fear for any RN to enter his room. Police were called, and no amount of threatening got him his "pain shot" he demanded. So, If I had been your RN I would have refused to treat you, and so would my MD's. Unless you were on a 5150, proven ALOC or your life was in danger. I find it appalling that you as an RN would ever threaten another RN. You can go ahead and not call the police on threatening patients/families and put yourself and innocent people in danger. Get thrown through a partition, have a gun waved in your face. Based on your comments here, I could care less. I do however care about your patients that you put in harms way.

Also, who says that when your life is threatened you have to follow policy's and procedures. I don't believe ANY hospital should tell you (or would tell you) that you cant do as any citizen has a right to do (calling the police).

When I call the police, I get 4-8 officers there with in 5 minutes, or less!

I have seen and heard of way too many bad incidences that are career ending, let alone some things that happened that were fatal. Im not taking my chances. And if someone lays a hand on me to harm me. I certainly will press charges! As I have in the past. I do not go to work every day to have to fight for my life. I'm there to help save lives. But no job is worth my life/limb or my coworkers being unsafe.

I cant believe you would write a letter in defense of some one who came at you with a gun, due to their anguish. I don't care what the circumstances are, there is NO excuse for behaving in this manner. EVER.

If I were you, I wouldn't continue threatening nurses/MD's, and please don't come to my hospital. I will have the police there as soon as you make a threat.

You're right on one account, you can refuse anything you want. I can also refuse to treat you based on threats.

Finally, get spell check. I hope your charting isn't as bad as your post is here.

Good gravy....:no:

I'm sorry, but the stories in this thread are ridiculous! What is wrong w/ people?! If they come to the hospital and throw things at the staff and push them through glass, etc... when something sets them off, I can only imagine how they act at home! :no: I feel for any kids or incapaciated adult stuck w/ a parent or child that exhibits such monsterous behavior.

Whats wrong with people is, people like woody accept this behavior. So these people think they can treat staff poorly. Its unacceptable. And No one should tolerate it.

I cant believe you would write a letter in defense of some one who came at you with a gun, due to their anguish. I don't care what the circumstances are, there is NO excuse for behaving in this manner. EVER.

This is where I will have to disagree. Any infraction of the law should result in an arrest. This is not the time to present any kind of letter. Citizen's have a duty to report crimes. They do not have the legal standing or expertise to determine if something was acceptable or not. Only a District Attorney or Attorney General can make this decision.

If you believe the person was grief stricken or that there were mitigating circumstances, you present the letter or evidence to the DA or police.

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