R.N.Sandra

So, do we advocate for an alcoholic to be able to get drunk? Its legal, its their right, whats the difference?

How in the world is this nurse putting her needs before the patients? Smoking causes horrid health problems, if anything she is advocating for her patients health. Its legal to drink alcohol, so why dont we just let the alcoholics have bottles of vodka? Same exact scenerio. Just because its legal, and its a right does not mean that we do it because it is not in the patients best interest?

You are absolutely correct, we are here to promote health and well being. I would refuse to hold someone cigerette while they smoked as well.

As healthcare professionals we deprive patients of those things that harm their health. For instance, if an obese patient comes into the hospital we put them on a proper diet, we dont give them junk food and 6000 calories because it is our job to protect their health. Not to mention that it is our oath to not do harm to any patient, ever. Not to mention the legal liability that exists when someone gets lung cancer and their defense is that this "nurse" helped me smoke or allowed it or what not. At our facility, we had one patient that came and wanted to smoke and administration said that the nurses were to escort her out to smoke every such and such hour. Including the staff that smoked, we all refused to do so and that was the end of that. Hello, we are supposed to be making people better not helping them harm themselves.

How in the world are we promoting sustaining a greater health status for our patients if we are allowing them to harm themselves? Secondly, in regard to the patient you were asked to assist with smoking??????? Really? I dont know if I am correct but I mean what if one day that patient gets cancer or the other million things that can happen from smoking and blames you the nurse who helped her smoke because she was so physically ill that she could not hold her own cigerette. File that complaint, you should never be asked to harm a patient. What happened to do no harm? Is that not part of our oath.

Nursing homes with long term care are usually always looking for LPN's, and are usually always understaffed. I don't think that if you get proactive and get out there and apply from 8 am to 5 pm everyday that you will have a job by the end of the week.