Patient is a sex offender with a tracker on his ankle

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smf0903

845 Posts

Would anyone have googled this patient were it not for the tracker on his ankle? Anyone can come through our doors and be a convicted child molester, rapist, killer, you name it. The idea that the sex registry is public therefor we have the right to look up our patients...do you search the names for every person who comes through the door, ankle tracker or not? I'm sure we've had people we've treated who've been convicted of things we'll never know about because we didn't google them and they weren't wearing an ankle monitor that screamed "google me".

This whole thing leaves a very bad taste in my mouth.

Zyprexa

204 Posts

See! This is the problem with the public registry....people fear mongering and creating havoc where there should be none! Everyone deserves the same chances and care, and that includes every human being without judgement!

Hahahaha, no. The general public has the right to know who may or may not molest their children.

Specializes in LTC, home health, critical care, pulmonary nursing.

Check under that anklet for skin breakdown.

KiruEsq

3 Posts

Not entirely true. You should be aware that many states limit the use of the information on sex offender registries. To maintain their civil purpose, they often may only be used for specific reasons and not to discriminate, harass, or otherwise deny services to. Careful with this line of thinking.

In this setting, I would be concerned with legal ramifications for doing what the co-worker did; depending on what state you are in.

Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.

Some of these responses just boggle my mind. Like do you read the stuff you're saying and really think it's appropriate and OK?? Have you learned nothing in school and in policy's and patient rights. We have a van full of Scooby Doo detectives thinking that being a nurse means solving crimes and putting our own opinions into legal patient charts and somehow justifying it. We have someone else that thinks that Googling someone is a HIPAA not HIPPA violation. *PS it's not, although it doesn't mean it's appropriate on company computers and time either* So much cringe worthy stuff said in some of these posts by people with no clear idea of what their scope of practice and role entails. I am very thankful the majority of the people seem to see the clear lines here that are not to be crossed, gives me a little faith.

Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
Lets put aside whether or not it was wrong for the nosy nurse to have googled the patient.

Why on earth would the results of her google detective work have any place in the legal record of the patient's care?

It's such a relief when I read so much absurdity and I read a post that can actually see the real issue here.

"Upon my assessment of the patient I noticed he had an ankle bracelet on. No worries, Googled it and turns out he is a pedophile, wanted to make sure I made that known in his legal medical record as I personally feel it needs to be in here"

Lets see the chart audit on that.

At the VERY MOST. on the assessment it can be stated "Monitoring bracelet on left ankle, pulses intact, no skin breakdown or redness (and let's not forget) will continue to monitor"

nutella, MSN, RN

1 Article; 1,509 Posts

There are circumstances when the nursing supervisor/manager should be informed when a patient who is a sex offender is being admitted. For example - some small facilities have combined pediatric/adult floors in smaller community facilities. This would not be floor to admit. Also, cohorting with another patient may be a problem.

But all of those things would not be documented in the chart. The charting should state facts "ankle bracelet in place, foot warm, pulse +" and so on. The criminal history is typically not documented.

When I received shift report for my very ill, bed-bound patient, the RN giving report pointed out the tracker affixed to his anklet. She had admitted him a few hours earlier and did not know the details and there was nothing noted in his chart. Before she left, she looked online and he is a convicted sex offender (lewd and lascivious with a minor under the age of 14).

Is it appropriate to add this new information (pedophilia) to your shift report? To his chart?

No. You don't know that is why he has the ankle bracelet. If he has the ankle bracelet, the police knows where he is.

GSDlvrRN, MSN

100 Posts

Specializes in Telemetry.
A criminal is still a patient. End of story.

Edit: meaning that, unless they are in jail, it will not affect patient care.

Actually, it should not affect patient care if they are in jail. I don't think that you have taken care of perpetrators of sex crimes in jail...so I find it inappropriate for you to speak of patient care in jail.

GSDlvrRN, MSN

100 Posts

Specializes in Telemetry.

This thread reminds me of when I was on the floor the first time in nursing school and I was shadowing a CNA on day shift. Part of the night shift CNA's report to the day shift CNA was that the patient was gay. I thought "So?????"

canoehead, BSN, RN

6,890 Posts

Specializes in ER.

I would pass on the information in report. He may ask the next nurse "so...do you have any children?"

Specializes in Burn ICU.

If you pass it on in report, it should be only for the safety of nearby pedi patients or underage visitors. But when you say online, do you mean on the MAR? Or do you mean the other nurse googled the patient? That's a difference that is important to distinguish.

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