Other nurses signing my initials

Five&Two Will Do · Apr 7, 2011

Today as I was doing my med pass I noticed 2 separate spaces where someone had filled in my initials for the previous day's meds on the MAR. Isn't this illegal?
I'm usually on top of the MAR, as my facility is very strict on there not being any blanks when we leave our shift, but I'm only human. Also, no matter what the circumstance, you should never fill in another nurse's initials/signature anywhere!
I feel like mentioning this to my supervisor, because it really upsets me, but I work in a place where management isn't on my side. They only care about themselves and not being audited by consultants.
What would you do?

Wow that sounds pretty darn crazy to me!! :down: I would certainly say something. What if there was an error or some patient was hurt by a med and you did not even give it! That is poor practice and it should be stopped!

resumecpr · Apr 7, 2011

It sounds like the person who signed your initials was doing you a favor. Whatever the reason however, it is totally wrong, and unfortunately makes you accountable. I would first speak with the person who signed it for you, and let them know that although their intentions were good, you are uncomfortable with their actions, and that you're sure it is not allowed, and would hate for them to get caught by administration.

Best of luck. Let us know how things turn out.

caliotter3 · Apr 7, 2011

You can write an incident report and turn it in to management. But from what you say of them, that will come back to bite you. However, you should do something in writing to protect yourself. If you report the forgery in writing, then it is on them, should something come of it in the future. Good luck with this.

Emergency RN · Apr 7, 2011

today as i was doing my med pass i noticed 2 separate spaces where someone had filled in my initials for the previous day's meds on the mar. isn't this illegal? i'm usually on top of the mar, as my facility is very strict on there not being any blanks when we leave our shift, but i'm only human. also, no matter what the circumstance, you should never fill in another nurse's initials/signature anywhere! i feel like mentioning this to my supervisor, because it really upsets me, but i work in a place where management isn't on my side. they only care about themselves and not being audited by consultants.
what would you do?

this was the most important part of the whole post:

...but i work in a place where management isn't on my side.

so this is what i suspect would happen: management would fire the person who fraudulently put your initials onto the mar, then suspend you, with contemplation of termination, for failing to properly administer a patient's medication. even if you swear on a stack of bibles that you gave the meds, if it wasn't signed for by you then it wasn't done. so essentially, once you admit that you didn't sign for the meds, then they will take action against you.

so, after both you and your colleague (who was actually trying to save you your job) are both out of work, i wonder what she should say to you if you happen to bump into her on the unemployment line? frankly, the only person you should be upset with is yourself for your forgetfulness in failing to sign off on your meds. but if you don't want your colleagues to cover for you (for the next time that you should make such a mistake), then quietly let that person know that while you appreciate the thoughtful back up, you would rather just take your lumps rather than have something done illegal in your name, even at the expense of getting yourself into trouble.

if nursing was so kind and everyone always did the right thing, we wouldn't be having half the battles that we have on a daily basis. i'm not saying that one needs to lie or cheat in order to be a good nurse; but one has to look at the stakes and learn to pick one's battles. it isn't just black and white simplicity. some things simply are just not worth pursuing, especially since no patient was ever neglected or harmed. :rolleyes:

*** sidebar *** in cases where i've taken report from a previous duty rn who verbally reported to me that a med was given, if i encounter a blank space in the mar, i would print the word given on the top half of the box, leaving a small space below it for the other rn to come back and initial at some later time. that way, any viewer would know that the med was done, and i wouldn't have illegally "signed" for anyone. legally, a nurses' verbal report to another rn is just as binding as their initials.

Barbara Hessinger · Apr 7, 2011

"But I am only human"

Didn't you know that nurses have to be super humans??? LOL.

Isabelle49 · Apr 7, 2011

The nurse who placed your intials on the MAR was trying to do you a favor, but was also falsifying documentation. It would have been best if the nurse would have called you and found that you did give the meds - she could have entered your initials/her initials and documented in her notes that she spoke to you to confirm meds were given. That would be the professional thing to do.

SilentfadesRPA · Apr 7, 2011

Great response !

systoly · Apr 7, 2011

Let's pretend I'm your supervisor. This is what I know:

You failed to initial for Rx administered, opening the door for all kinds of trouble.

While you claim someone else used your initials I don't know this and I now have an investigation on my hands, thanks to you.

Someone needs to be held responsible for this and you're standing in front of me.

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Apr 7, 2011

this was the most important part of the whole post:
...but i work in a place where management isn't on my side.
so this is what i suspect would happen: management would fire the person who fraudulently put your initials onto the mar, then suspend you, with contemplation of termination, for failing to properly administer a patient's medication. even if you swear on a stack of bibles that you gave the meds, if it wasn't signed for by you then it wasn't done. so essentially, once you admit that you didn't sign for the meds, then they will take action against you.
so, after both you and your colleague (who was actually trying to save you your job) are both out of work, i wonder what she should say to you if you happen to bump into her on the unemployment line? frankly, the only person you should be upset with is yourself for your forgetfulness in failing to sign off on your meds. but if you don't want your colleagues to cover for you (for the next time that you should make such a mistake), then quietly let that person know that while you appreciate the thoughtful back up, you would rather just take your lumps rather than have something done illegal in your name, even at the expense of getting yourself into trouble.
if nursing was so kind and everyone always did the right thing, we wouldn't be having half the battles that we have on a daily basis. i'm not saying that one needs to lie or cheat in order to be a good nurse; but one has to look at the stakes and learn to pick one's battles. it isn't just black and white simplicity. some things simply are just not worth pursuing, especially since no patient was ever neglected or harmed.
*** sidebar *** in cases where i've taken report from a previous duty rn who verbally reported to me that a med was given, if i encounter a blank space in the mar, i would print the word given on the top half of the box, leaving a small space below it for the other rn to come back and initial at some later time. that way, any viewer would know that the med was done, and i wouldn't have illegally "signed" for anyone. legally, a nurses' verbal report to another rn is just as binding as their initials.

well said!

stelarRN · Apr 7, 2011

So none of you have ever forgotten to sign for a med in the MAR?

I understand where you're coming from and agree completely. While I feel management isn't on my side, the usual protocol is that they call the nurse and ask them to come sign it, even on their day off if necessary. But they didn't do that, they took it upon themselves to fill in my initials. I use a certain kind of pen, and it's obvious that it wasn't me signing.

I understand that I'm in the wrong for making an error in not signing, but IT HAPPENS. This is LTC with 40+ patients, and a huge workload. No matter how strict my managers are.. it happens because we're not robots.

I still feel it's wrong, but maybe you're right. I'm damned if I do, damned if I don't.

caliotter3 · Apr 7, 2011

If you gave the meds, just go back and line over the other person's writing with your special pen and ask them to stop doing that. Check your MARs at the end of the med pass and at the end of the shift.