Question about a student reporting RN mistakes

[dolphinbeauty09]

Deleted.

[caliotter3]

You should have brought it to the attention of the assigned nurse first.

[dolphinbeauty09]

Yeah, I can understand that I probably should have. However, the one time I did try to talk to her, she brushed me off and told me she had it handled. We are also under direction of the instructor to NOT approach the nurses in regards to the care until our second semester. It was the fact that my instructor just sort of took off that make me a bit frantic as to what to do, since we had never been instructed what to do if we couldn't find her.

[MadNursePa]

This was your patient assignment? Why didn't you put the band on and put the hat in the bathroom? If I was the RN on the floor and a student had that patient, I would assume that the student did that. After the student left, I would have checked.

For future reference, always talk to the nurse first. You'll be eaten alive while in school and after you graduate. Good Luck

[dolphinbeauty09]

I should also mention that when I approached the nurse manager, it was more that I told him "I can't find my instructor and I noticed this pt needs an armband and to have output measured." And he told me he would handle it. I never mentioned anything about the RN directly, more that I wasn't sure what to do and that my instructor wasn't available.

[SwimRN10]

You really should have made the RN aware because basically what you did was go over the assigned nurses head to tattle...basically from what you are saying that if this same nurse observes you caring out a order or procedure incorrectly that she shouldn't bother to help you or guide you, she should just go straight to your instructor and tell her that you're not doing your job as a student correctly...

[dolphinbeauty09]

The patient was technically not my "assignment". We were paired up with two students per patient and all we were doing was PA and VS. We haven't learned anything about doing armbands and we aren't allowed to do anything without an instructor present at the moment other than talk with the patient.

[GLG78]

Wow...you reported this after only 45 minutes of a patient's return to the floor? And to a supervisor? You should have just approached the RN for the patient and asked if you could help her out by placing an armband on the patient and placing a hat in the toilet. It would have taken you 2 minutes and solved all the problems you were concerned about.

When an RN is busy, the first priority may not be measuring output or putting an armband on the patient. Perhaps she had someone with chest pain? Perhaps she had someone who couldn't breathe? How would you prioritize?

No, you should not have gone to the supervisor. You should have offered assistance to the RN if you were concerned. That is the best way to handle the situation. Nursing is about being a team player. Offer assistance. Don't tell on somebody.

[Orange Tree]

While I would take care to make sure a post-op patient was urinating, making sure they had a hat and an exact "number" would not be a top priority to me. And a fall risk bracelet won't stop someone from falling, either. I wouldn't even consider these things mistakes. A mistake is when you bottom someones blood pressure out by giving them a triple dose of lopressor.

[dolphinbeauty09]

I appreciate all the advice. My objective was certainly NOT to tattle, I had only been in the hospital for a day and really still don't know much. I will definitely be sure to go straight to the assigned nurse from now on before anyone else if I have a question about their patient.

[dolphinbeauty09]

Wow...you reported this after only 45 minutes of a patient's return to the floor? And to a supervisor? You should have just approached the RN for the patient and asked if you could help her out by placing an armband on the patient and placing a hat in the toilet. It would have taken you 2 minutes and solved all the problems you were concerned about.

When an RN is busy, the first priority may not be measuring output or putting an armband on the patient. Perhaps she had someone with chest pain? Perhaps she had someone who couldn't breathe? How would you prioritize?

No, you should not have gone to the supervisor. You should have offered assistance to the RN if you were concerned. That is the best way to handle the situation. Nursing is about being a team player. Offer assistance. Don't tell on somebody.

The patient was 1 day post-op, not 45 minutes. And as I said, it wasn't that I was trying to "report' anyone, it was that I felt it was important for me to tell someone. Through the advice given, I understand I should talk to the assigned nurse first instead of the manager. I just started out and am still learning how to handle everything, which is why I am seeking advice.I appreciate everyone giving it.

[APRN., DNP, RN, APRN, NP]

If you want to sign your own "death warrant" for continuing on as a student nurse at that facility/that floor, then by all means, continue with antagonistic behavior. Do you not think that you will not be pointed out as "that student" in the future when returning to that floor?