reported a nurse stealing narcs and not giving meds, shes friends with the DON :(

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HI I'm fairly new at the SNF I'm currently working at.. (Less then two weeks to be exact) and in the past week the nurse I follow (she works days and I work evening shift) she was constantly leaving me in a hot mess and not wanting to count narcs until it was 30 to 40 minutes after the time I had clocked in for my shift. I started noticing medications that are due 4 times a day that I give twice at night and she gives twice during the day where on the same count that I had left it at the night before and she was signing she gave them (this would be blood pressure meds to be exact). On these same patients she was signing out routine narcotics and prn narcotics as soon as she could sign them out. I kept up with her pattern. She had picked out four people who get routine hydrocodone or oxycodone that also have PRN orders to go with it. I pointed this out to the preceptor I had during my orientation and she reported it to the DON immediately. Both her and I found shortly after that she is neighbors/best friends of the DON :( nothing was done about it and the situation has become worse. 20 PATIENTS are being affected.

The facility I'm at has a corporate number to leave tips anonymously about whats going on there. Both the preceptor and I called the line and the state has been called. We have copied the med cards and are dated and stamped of when the cards came in. There is patients that have been there for a week to two weeks and most hadn't got their blood pressure meds but their narcotics are being signed out. A patient was recently put on antibiotics and out of the past 5 days that patient has only gotten one dose of the medication.

I truly feel my job within the facility is at risk now cause this so called nurse stealing drugs is best friends with DON who is doing nothing about it. Is there anything I can do? Do I fall within the whistleblower act? I'm so lost and astonished of what I'm seeing, but I know I can't continue to work there knowing these patients lives are in jeopardy and possible hurting cause they are not getting their medicine!! Its so bad that the patients that are alert and aware of whats going on are complaining and have went to administration but nothing has been done. We called the ombudsmen for one that is alert enough to explain.

Im just truly astonished and this week has been so stressful.

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Specializes in Public Health.

Have you spoken to her regarding the meds that haven't been given?

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Specializes in Home Care.

I think I'd get out while the getting is good.

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I have, she gets majorly defensive and yells at the nurses station that she gives her meds. But the card packets of new admissions that have been there for days and the cards for dayshift haven't been touched state otherwise.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Education.

You're doing exactly what you should. It takes courage to do the right thing rather than the easy thing. Another avenue for your concerns may be your state Ombudsman program for LTC. They maintain confidentiality.

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And this is how diverting continues.. You did the right thing. Your DON did not. Your job might be at risk, but I wouldn't be too keen on working for a DON like that anyway. Most likely things are going to get ugly for your facility, esp. if they can prove that the DON knew and did nothing about it. Good luck, and at the end of the day know that you did right by your patients who have no one else to stand up and protect them.

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Specializes in HH, Peds, Rehab, Clinical.

OK, call me incredibly naïve, but how do you know that she's not giving the narcs to the residents that they are prescribed for? The failure to give other medications is horrendous enough, but I'm just not sure how you can be certain that she's diverting "the good stuff"? Are the resident's she's "targeted" able to reliably report whether or not they've been receiving their scheduled/PRN pain medications?

I guess go ahead and flame away, but I'm missing in your post the evidence that she's taking these meds for her own personal use

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OK, call me incredibly naïve, but how do you know that she's not giving the narcs to the residents that they are prescribed for? The failure to give other medications is horrendous enough, but I'm just not sure how you can be certain that she's diverting "the good stuff"? Are the resident's she's "targeted" able to reliably report whether or not they've been receiving their scheduled/PRN pain medications?

I guess go ahead and flame away, but I'm missing in your post the evidence that she's taking these meds for her own personal use

They are failing to give scheduled medications, but are giving the PRN Narcs every chance possible.. Now it's getting worse.. HUGE red flags.

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Specializes in HH, Peds, Rehab, Clinical.
They are failing to give scheduled medications, but are giving the PRN Narcs every chance possible.. Now it's getting worse.. HUGE red flags.

I don't doubt that diversion is happening but the only proof is that she is failing to give other meds, right?

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You say the patients are alert and oriented, are they saying they are not getting their pain medication? Or any medication at all? You'd think it'd be really hard to disregard all those patient complaints. Maybe the DON is in it with her as well?

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I think I'd get out while the getting is good.

I am surprised you haven't been terminated already. You need to get a move-on.

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When I was in a similar situation, after they fired me, I wrote everything all up and made a report to the police department. I received a copy of the report designation and kept that. I luckily had no problem obtaining my next job.

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