terminated, am I blacklisted from mental health?

[felixfelix]

I was involved in a restraint yesterday (yea, I know, the mhp's should have been doing it) and while seated, I put my hand too close to the kids face to block the big spitwad he was getting ready to launch my way. someone shifted, and his nose touched my hand, and he said I hit him. The supervisor was the other party in the restraint. Our policy is termination for this, even though other witnesses weren't interviewed and the video wasn't reviewed. They said they wouldn't file a cps report as that would tie up my license. I hope I can get unemployment in this tight job market. Are my days in mental health over now? Any advice?

[caliotter3]

That would depend on what the former employer tells prospective employers either on the record or off the record. Only way you will find this out is if someone says something to you or if you use a reference checking company. I would think that the termination would almost speak for itself. They certainly aren't going to tell anyone that you were laid off due to lack of work. If it were me I would look for a different type of work.

[elkpark]

What are "mhps"? I've been restraining clients throughout my entire career in psychiatric nursing, and I've never heard anyone suggest that isn't the proper role of psychiatric RNs (in fact, just the opposite).

Since I imagine that the position of the hospital is that you were terminated "for cause," I would be surprised if you're eligible for unemployment benefits. But I'm certainly no expert in that area.

Is it possible for you to insist on some kind of investigation and review of the evidence and witnesses to determine (officially) what actually happened, even if you can't get your job back at the facility? However, I wouldn't think that an unconfirmed single allegation by a kid would have much impact on your career over time. I would not want to work at a facility that fires people over allegations without even conducting any investigation or considering your "side" of the story -- I've never encountered that (or even heard of it!) in 25 years of psychiatric nursing. I would think, though, that that situation in itself is to your advantage in future job-hunting (it's v. different from if the facility had done a thorough investigation and come to the official conclusion that you did strike a client -- this is just "he said/she said" stuff).

Best wishes!

[felixfelix]

Thanks for the replies. The ref checking is a good idea. The MHP's are mental health partners, who were just watching when they should have done the restraint so I could go get the prn. I can't really blame them, I suppose, no one wants to get hit, etc. Yea, they made the decision to terminate before the video review and w/o interviewing the mhp's, who were witnesses, but we'll see what happens. Yea, I really hope I can get unemployment in this job market, not looking fwd to the job search, I suppose I should consider other lines of work, too.

[Music in My Heart]

Sorry to tell you this but terminated-for-cause means no unemployment insurance.

If your termination was legit then you're probably out of luck in terms of UI.

[On The Way]

You can dispute the termination-for-cause issue with the unemployment department. File, and when they call you, just tell your side of the story. If what you said in your post is true, there is a reasonable chance you'll still get unemployment. In addition to your description of the sequence of events, mention that you had no verbal or written warnings and that your employers didn't review the tapes or interview witnesses.

[armywifeRN]

WOW. I work at an inpatient psych hospital and I am going to have to check our policy on theraperutic holds. If I have to be concerned with termination when I am attempting to protect an out of control patient (and the people around him/her) I may have to duck behind my desk instead!! (just kiding)

At our hospital we call a code so that other staff are available to help. We are told to never attempt a hold alone and we utilize verbal deesculation first. But, when you have 6 year olds, and only 2 staff members on the unit, sometimes we have to do the best we can. Luckily we have supervisors who listen and would definately review the tapes before firing any of us. It sounds like your work environment was NOT as supportive as it should have been. Good luck in your new job search and if you like Psych nursing do not give up on it.

Best of luck to you.

[kiwipsychnurse]

You didnt hit him, his nose was pushed into your hand as a result of some kind of restraint.

Are you guys not union? Sounds like no proper investigation took place.

I feel sorry for you.

[felixfelix]

from what I've gleaned so far, it would seem I have a good shot at UI, so we'll see....of course, the other thing is that patients rights could get involved at some point....I called NSO ins. and hopefully they'll call me back with the next step, which just may be wait and see....

You can dispute the termination-for-cause issue with the unemployment department. File, and when they call you, just tell your side of the story. If what you said in your post is true, there is a reasonable chance you'll still get unemployment. In addition to your description of the sequence of events, mention that you had no verbal or written warnings and that your employers didn't review the tapes or interview witnesses.

[rn4ever?]

If they are going to "touch" your license, I would say lawyer up before it's too late! Also, if you know that you didn't hit him and the videotape could prove it, I would contest and fight it-----since it's possible that later on, this claim could haunt you. What if the facility doesn't file a report but the parents of the child does? Also, don't fail to document everything in the chart and fill-out an incident report-----make sure your witnesses sign it.

[Jules A, MSN]

I'm shocked and frustrated to read about what happened to you. I also participate in many holds and would be furious if my administration didn't investigate fully before firing me. If I was sure I didn't strike the kid on purpose I'd fight their accusations although I don't think I would return to that facility to work. If you have a good record with them I would have expected them to back you up until proved otherwise. Good luck.

[aloevera]

I don't understand your situation at all...........we have many codes at our facility and yes, usually the techs do the restraint while the nurse gets the order and the med but sometimes we are involved in the restraint........

How can you possibly be fired on the word of one pt???? Surely you filed an incident report and had witnesses to sign on your behalf............

was the pt. injured?????????? or just stated you hit him???

something wrong with this picture.????????