PROBATION with RESTRICTED RN LICENSE - NOW RN REINSTATEMENT : FORMAL HEARING

[JC4me]

HAS ANYONE EVER BEEN ON PROBATION & HAD A RESTRICTED RN LICENSE?

It's the most humiliating, embarrassing, depressing, angering, situation to be in-- especially when you lose your very first RN job right of school, and you are a person of high integrity and a true passion for nursing in the most safe & professional manner, with your patient being your priority.

It's already been close to 2 years, that I was told "we have to let you go". The 6 most dreaded words anyone wants to hear, especially a brand new nurse!

Dealing with the BON is a nightmare: their hearts are cold as ice & ears are plugged so tight, they lack compassion & listening skills. It is their way,or no way!

I can assure you, no matter if you have an attorney or not, they will NOT listen to your side of the story, PERIOD. They are that closed minded.

I have been sent documents with all of my personal information from the Board of Nursing(BON) several times without the envelopes being sealed!

Is that the way they represent how health professionals are suppose to keep confidential information private?

What about HIPPA? Anyone could have read my entire information, such as a nosey neighbor, or a previous patient. At this point, what I have dealt with these almost 2 years, with BON, I am not impressed with how they do things. They also take a very long time to work your case. Another interesting thing,to add,one of their orders for me, is to grant full permission to allow all BONs to have the right to obtain all of my current, past and future health care records & allow communication with my Healthcare providers!

When I questioned my compliance manager, she said for me "not to worry, they have no need to review my records because I have nothing in my case that would give cause for them to look at them." But it still remains on my orders.

So, I asked, why not remove that? Her answer was, "I think it should be removed, but its one of those generic things that we include." That makes me wonder if that's the reason they used the term: "unsafe nursing practice" in my record.They had no other choice of words in their "generic" vocabulary! You see, I was fired because I gave some late meds!! Do you hear me?

I NEVER came to work enumerated, never took any drugs, or gave any patient the wrong drug, or ever harmed anyone! I GAVE SOME LATE MEDS! On shifts that were crazy busy. Yet I'm labeled for the world to see I'm unsafe. It's on all the data bases! All on the world wide internet. No wonder I have not been able to get hired for a nursing position!

I have applied to over 60 nursing jobs & have hooked 6 interviews.Once they find out I was fired, or have a restricted- on Probation license, I am told , they cannot use me.

I am now very poor. I do not have any insurance, no workman's comp, no medicaid, nothing. I did get a minimum wage job at a local store, & that helps me eat, but in the meantime, I have to live like a bag Lady & stay at relatives houses.

If my nurse manager & DON would have offered me a choice to resign , that would have been better, but they didn't, nor did they want to hear my story regarding my my heavy assignment & what was going on on those shifts. No compassion there either. It's all business: the hospital was preparing to have a safety inspection relating to improvement of their poor past scores, so since I was the new graduate, all eyes were on me. They needed "clean" house, & I was their "dirt!" I sensed that, & it caused me anxiety. The more they watched me, the more anxiety.

*Bottom line: I need a nursing job. I want to do what I've always wanted to do. Be a nurse & use the education, skills & critical thinking I was trained to use, along with the true compassion I have for helping others.

I have to show my potential employer all my BON orders, & have them fill out a form stating what RN, NFP,MD will be in my building, their license number, & what my job description is.

Then they have to fill out an evaluation form every 3 months on how I'm performing.

If I have a good evaluation for 1 full year, my restriction & probation goes away..poof! That easy! The BON tells me they can't understand why I can't get a job. My x-employer tells me the same. Why can't a new nurse get a second chance?

So far, I cant even get a job because of all that mess. The longer I go without a nursing job, the more difficult it will be. All that hard work, financial investment, all to waste.

So much depression & financial burden this whole thing has caused. I'm telling you, the BON is NOT your friend, either is your x-employer.

If I were to do everything all over again, I would not go into nursing. All you students or new grads, like myself, take head to my warning. Healthcare is all business. They only look after their butt.

[caliotter3]

I don't know how you are supposed to prove to the Board that you are a safe nurse if you can't even work as a nurse at present. Catch-22. Have you taken any educational courses to improve your shortfalls? A refresher course? Try to find a LTC facility that is willing to hire you with plenty of support to help you succeed (virtually throw yourself at the mercy of the DON to hire you, telling her you want to use their willingness to give you a chance to present before the Board). I think that is your best bet, "If you will reinstate my license, XYZ facility has offered to hire me with an extensive orientation and a preceptorship to help me get up to speed". You can also use that approach to get on with a home health agency to do extended care. One stable patient with routine care for one shift. Extensive orientation, support. Ask for easy case to start with. Any agency should be willing to hire you if they need warm bodies, especially for respite cases. Good luck.

[spanish]

So you're saying that your Board of Nursing suspended your nursing license for giving a couple meds late? That sounds ridiculous, there must be something missing here.

[sirI, MSN, APRN, NP]

Topics merged for continuity.

[CharleeFoxtrot, BSN, RN]

5 hours ago, spanish said:

So you're saying that your Board of Nursing suspended your nursing license for giving a couple meds late? That sounds ridiculous, there must be something missing here.

I've got to agree, must be more to the story.

[JC4me]

No, I gave apptox 10 meds that were late within a 2 month period, and once I did scan an IV bag, along with the late meds, I never contacted tbe physician. As I think over all of this, I should asked for help when I lnew I was running behind. My time management( as a brand new grad) challenged me immensily. I felt I was being deficient with my responsibilities if I was constantly asking for help. I never caused a pt harm nor did I ever give the wrong med or dose. I never gave meds to the wrong pt either. I was fired, spparently the small hospital I was working at, was in trouble with tbeir safety score, & I found later that soon agter I was let go, they had their safety inspection. I understand letting me go, would make some of the problems go away. I just wish they would have asked me to resign instead of “let go”. Then I wouldnt be in tbe drawn out situation with the BON & I may have been able to have obtained another nurse position. All my background checks came back good & I am “not” a drug user or alcohol abuser. —-

To not draw out this story anymore, I only am asking if someone could give me advice on how to present myself in front of the BON about my request for reinstatement & how do I demonstrate I have learned from my errors & now I am a safe nurse?

Keep in mind, I hVe not been hired as nurse since originally I was on probation for 1 yr with restrictions & had to be evaluated by another RN every 3 months. The BON mNdatorily suspended my license because I failed my probation( because I never got a job).

[Lunah, MSN, RN]

Why were you supposed to contact the physician? Something is still not adding up.

[Daisy4RN]

Maybe she should have contacted the MD bc the meds/IV were late, just to let them know.

OP, i am sorry for your situation. Because you already have a few strikes against you, and bc you want to continue to work, I would at least pay for a consultation with an attorney who specializes in these situations so you will be prepared. There is also an ask an attorney on this website that may provide some insight. I hope it works out well for you!!

[LovingLife123]

Here are my questions. How late exactly were the meds? Did they run into the next dose? Did you reschedule the next dose, or did these patients get double dosed?

Theres more to this story whether you like to see it or not. If you double doses patients by not rescheduling the meds, that can be a safety issue.

You have to be able to recognize why what you did was unsafe. You have to recognize that when going before the BON.

[LovingLife123]

What I’m thinking what happened is day a 0900 beta blocker got given 4 hours late due to being busy and the next dose was given on time. So now you have heart rate and BP issues.

And being a new grad the OP is not grasping these consequences yet. I just had this very conversation with my orientee 3 days ago. I was explaining the importance of having some sense of urgency so your meds can be passed on time. But if you can’t, then, you need to reschedule future doses. I’m not so worried about a Pepcid, but insulin, heart meds, BP meds, and anticoagulants need to be done on time.