Patient Abandonment

[DanT103]

I walked out during my orientation. I was placed with a nurse on a med cart. I came in while she was passing meds. My orientation started an hour after the shift began.  She had the keys and I did not do a change of shift report. She was logged into the system and I was not.  I gave a few medications and took some vitals. I told both the orientating nurse and ADON that I am not interested in working there and walked out. Can I be charged with patient abandonment?

Best,

Dan          

[londonflo]

DanT103 said:

Can I be charged with patient abandonment?

You can be charged with being an unpleasant person. 

Quote

I walked out during my orientation.  I was placed with a nurse on a med cart.   I came in while she was passing meds.  My orientation started an hour after the shift began.  She had the keys and I did not do a change of shift report.   She was logged into the system and I was not.  I gave a few medications and took some vitals.

You gave some "medications' ... that was accepting your role because you acted within your role. What are you playing at?

[toomuchbaloney]

DanT103 said:

I walked out during my orientation.  I was placed with a nurse on a med cart.   I came in while she was passing meds.  My orientation started an hour after the shift began.  She had the keys and I did not do a change of shift report.   She was logged into the system and I was not.  I gave a few medications and took some vitals.  I told both the orientating nurse and ADON that I am not interested in working there and walked out.   Can I be charged with patient abandonment?

I doubt it.  

[JKL33]

londonflo said:

you can be charged with being an unpleasant person. 

What would a pleasant person have done?

[londonflo]

JKL33 said:

What would a pleasant person have done?

toomuchbaloney said:

My orientation started an hour after the shift began.  She had the keys and I did not do a change of shift report.   She was logged into the system and I was not.  I gave a few medications and took some vitals. 

1) Explain to orienting nurse that orientation needed to be done before starting to give medications. 

2) Request a log-on to the system. Explain would not give medications until these things were done. Starting to give medications indicated assignment was accepted.

3) Since it sounds like the ADON was available -  take concerns to them promptly

4) Leave out the drama

[hppygr8ful, ASN, RN, EMT-I]

DanT103 said:

I walked out during my orientation.  I was placed with a nurse on a med cart. My orient I came in while she was passing meds.ation started an hour after the shift began. She had the keys and I did not do a change of shift report. She was logged into the system and I was not.  I gave a few medications and took some vitals.  I told both the orientating nurse and ADON that I am not interested in working there and walked out. Can I be charged with patient abandonment?

Something is missing here.I  believe your question is purposly vague. The way your question is worded it appears you were an hour late (Unacceptable). What apecifically made you want to walk out?

Hppy

[JKL33]

hppygr8ful said:

The way your question is worded it appears you were an hour late (Unacceptable).

Not really. It says the orientation began an hour after the shift had started. I suppose that could be a little ambiguous as written but it can easily be read as the orientation start time was an hour after the shift start time.

londonflo said:

Leave out the drama

I'm pretty sure the poster included the information he did d/t feeling they might be relevant information that people would want in order to try to answer his question.  The information given does go to show that the poster was not the primary nurse of these patients.

Also, it unfortunately is not uncommon to have people arrive for orientation and some other part of the system (IT, pharmacy IT, etc) is not ready for them. Even in hospitals sometimes. Not good, but it is what it is.

I personally don't have much problem if the OP showed up and didn't like the lay of the land and excused himself.

 

[JKL33]

In fact, if a place really seems off kilter I would say the best time to leave is ASAP

[JKL33]

OP, in case this clarification helps:

There is job abandonment and there is patient abandonment.

-Job abandonment usually refers to either walking off the job, not showing up for work (no call, no-show), or some other manner of leaving without following typical resignation procedures. This is not illegal; its just not very professional.

-Patient abandonment is a big deal. It involves having accepted an assignment (which creates a duty to those patients) and then abdicating that assignment without properly seeing to it that the patients are handed off to another nurse qualified to accept the assignment.  A board of nursing (BON) would take a complaint about patient abandonment seriously.

-Job abandonment and patient abandonment can occur simultaneously (e.g. one walks off the job without giving report while in a patient assignment), but job abandonment can also occur without patient abandonment. I personally believe the scenario you posted here is likely the latter.

[OchemNerd, BSN, RN]

JKL33 said:

Not really. It says the orientation began an hour after the shift had started. I suppose that could be a little ambiguous as written but it can easily be read as the orientation start time was an hour after the shift start time.

I'm pretty sure the poster included the information he did d/t feeling they might be relevant information that people would want in order to try to answer his question.  The information given does go to show that the poster was not the primary nurse of these patients.

Also, it unfortunately is not uncommon to have people arrive for orientation and some other part of the system (IT, pharmacy IT, etc) is not ready for them. Even in hospitals sometimes. Not good, but it is what it is.

I personally don't have much problem if the OP showed up and didn't like the lay of the land and excused himself.

It will certainly look great on their resume. 

[toomuchbaloney]

OchemNerd said:

It will certainly look great on their resume. 

That's the sort of stuff that doesn't ever make it to a resume.  Come on now. 

[JKL33]

OchemNerd said:

It will certainly look great on their resume. 

A resume is a personal document which includes information as the writer sees fit. The application is another matter and should include the information requested. Applications sometimes/often ask for reasons for separation from previous employers, which is an opportunity to state that the position was resigned and can be discussed in an interview. I do not think these are matters that would dictate one stay at a place they know does not suit their needs/desires.