Secretly breaking contract

[lorias]

Hello,

I would like this blog member's opinion. One of my classmates, like me, signed a 5 year contract to work at the hospital that is paying for our nursing education. Now my classmate is going to break her contract because she wants to work in a bigger hospital, However, she is not telling the administration at our hospital until she has the money to pay back the contract. I think this is dishonest. What does everyone else think?

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

7 hours ago, lorias said:

Well I guess I've been put in my place by others on this blog. Kind of surprising that no one can see this from another point of view. But on the other hand not surprising since honesty is in short supply these days.

It's not that no one can see the other side. However, what many of us see is a potential act. Until the day she decides to break the contract (and by planning to pay the reimbursement, she is planning to deal with those consequences), then there's nothing to report. It would be like sending someone to jail because they "might" commit a crime.

[turtlesRcool]

11 hours ago, lorias said:

Well I guess I've been put in my place by others on this blog. Kind of surprising that no one can see this from another point of view. But on the other hand not surprising since honesty is in short supply these days.

Tone can be difficult to read on the internet, so I want to preface this by saying I'm not trying to "put you in your place," here. I'm trying to get you to think on others with less judgment.

When you write about honesty being in short supply, think about the honesty of your actions as a nurse. At what point would you do something that is morally questionable? What circumstances would lead you to be less than truthful? How much compassion would you like to receive?

Last June, you made a post about being pressed for time in clinical, and falsely entering heart rates that you did not, in fact, obtain. You later went back, and corrected the record. But right then, in the moment, you falsified a patient's medical record for no other reason than you didn't want your instructor to see that you failed to check HR when doing orthostats.

People told you to learn from your mistake, and never do that again. They showed grace and compassion. You stated you didn't tell your instructor, and feared being kicked out of the program if she knew, and people told you to keep your mouth shut and move on. Did you? Or did you decide on total honesty, no matter the consequences, and risk dismissal from your program?

In your post last year, I saw an uncertain student looking for reassurance that she could still be a good nurse. That she didn't need to end her career before it even started over a moment of dishonesty. She seemed to hope that she could move on and do better, but without being held accountable for her first reaction, which was to lie to cover her behind.

Now you have a colleague who is thinking she might "buy out" her 5-year contract rather than work it out. She's not even actively lying; she's just keeping her mouth shut while she keeps her options open. You consider this dishonest, and seem to want us to nod our heads and tell you, yes, she's a terrible person, you should totally tell the hospital what she's planning...or... something.

But we're not going to do that. Why? Because we're the same community that looked at you last year with eyes of compassion. We're the same people who said you don't have to tell all you know, especially when no one got hurt, and the consequences will likely be out of proportion to the error committed.

So what do you think, OP? Can you extend to your colleague the kind of grace this board previously extended to you? Or do you feel like your hospital NEEDS to know RIGHT NOW about your classmate's plan to take option B (repay the hospital for tuition) of the contract rather than option A (work there for 5 years)? What harm would come from telling vs what good, realistically, could come from it? Are they in proportion to each other? From my perspective, I don't see how telling is going to help anyone, but could really hurt your classmate. What do you want to see happen here, and why? Anyway, something to think about.

[Caprica6]

22 hours ago, lorias said:

Well I guess I've been put in my place by others on this blog. Kind of surprising that no one can see this from another point of view. But on the other hand not surprising since honesty is in short supply these days. 

I've always wondered how expensive having a horse is, can you tell me how much your horse costs or would the number be skewed as yours is a very high horse?

[lorias]

I don't have a problem with her breaking the contract by paying the money up front rather than working off the contract. I think some on this forum have misunderstood my point. My problem, and I'm not the only one who knows my classmate who feels this way, is how she's going about it. I don't care what she does with her life, but we are a small hospital and everyone here thinks she will be working here after graduation. I just think the honest and up front way to handle the situation would have been to be honest with the powers at our hospital as soon as she got a,different job which she got a few weeks ago. That way our hospital can know what the situation is.

[Mercymercy]

It's her decision on when she determines the right time to tell them. She still has time to weigh her options. Now, she actually HAS options to choose from. And it's her business alone. I think what she did wrong was to entrust her secret to you.

[rnhopeful82, ASN, RN]

36 minutes ago, lorias said:

I don't have a problem with her breaking the contract by paying the money up front rather than working off the contract. I think some on this forum have misunderstood my point. My problem, and I'm not the only one who knows my classmate who feels this way, is how she's going about it. I don't care what she does with her life, but we are a small hospital and everyone here thinks she will be working here after graduation. I just think the honest and up front way to handle the situation would have been to be honest with the powers at our hospital as soon as she got a,different job which she got a few weeks ago. That way our hospital can know what the situation is.

But WHY does your hospital need to know now? I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that almost every place of employment has at least ONE person looking to jump ship. Every time I have changed jobs, I have not told my current employer until I had the signed offer letter and I gave 2 weeks. With the very much one time exception of the job I have now. I am finishing school in August and hoping to find a job for when I graduate. I kept mum about even going to school until I needed to let them know that my clinical pick might cause me to use PTO. That was 2 years after my pre-reqs started.Luckily, my job is super supportive and wishing me luck, but they know I will be looking to leave. Any other employer ever? Nope. Not their business until I will be leaving.

[Kaisu]

I'm just waiting for the flounce...

[tining, BSN, RN]

I have never seen - 5 likes for a poster.

Be at peace Lorias, everyone chooses their own path, who are we to judge?

[MJB2010]

It has nothing to do with honesty. It’s none of your business. Getting in other’s business is not a good quality when you work on the floor. Stay out of the drama and mind your own. I promise you’ll get much farther.

[ThatChickOmi, ADN, RN]

6 hours ago, rnhopeful82 said:

I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that almost every place of employment has at least ONE person looking to jump ship.

Seriously.

[ThatChickOmi, ADN, RN]

I'm quite sure there are other RN's that could quite rapidly fill up her spot once she does leave.

[Thanksforthedonuts, MSN, APRN]

Sooo how many of your coworkers did you already share this info with? I have a feeling you told others at your super small hospital and it ended up spreading like wildfire and now she is mad at you so you're here trying to justify yourself.