i was so frustrated the other night i couldn't see straight. a pt, who is an illegal immagrant, went off in our triage are because they didn't like the triage process. when our nurse tech went over to try to calm the pt., they went off on him, grabbing areas that are painful on males, hiting him, kneeing him, scratching him. after a long night with the pt. a detective comes and looks at the tape of the incident and says , it wasn't assult, (because the tech walked into the situation. )and ! , it was unlawful restraint of a pt. all he was trying to do was calm the pt. he did place his hands on the pt's sholders but, he in no way used restraint.. it wasn't until the pt let loose on him that he defended himself. now he has to have hiv testing and has to worry about law suit because the family is now talking, latino lawers. the detective said we should have waited on the police. (what a load of bull *(#!#####&*^#!) since when are medical personel not allowed to take control of situations that can be a danger to other pt's and staff. there were other pt's sitting near, including children. if something happened to them we would have been liable too. i don't understand. :smiley_ab
I'd still like to know how the OP knows that the patient was an illegal immigrant. Is a patient required to disclose that status when receiving treatment? It was clearly significant to the OP.
Uhh, they don't try to hide their illegal status. I've been told by each pt when they were illegal.
This poor tech that just went out to calm the pt down, what has happened to him? Is the hospital supporting him??
Specializes in Critical Care, Pediatrics, Geriatrics.
one, with any assult, a form is filed with risk management ie. harm to worker claim form, what ever your facility calls it.
two, in every ER, the management of security and the sheriff on guard, is tenuous, not all partake in take downs.... fill out the form
three, a worker injury occurred, a comp. claim for the worker to be seen and evaluated in the ER form is now generated.
four, regardless of a potential lawsuit, the patients behavior needed to be adequately documented as well as offers to a non biased hospital interperter offered to ensure the pt. had adequate understanding of the process.
five-for what ever you legit reasons, social work needed to be consulted for the lack of access to a continium of care.
six- INS needs to be notified of such a suspected illegeal immigrant.
seven- a formal sheriff dept. complaint needs to be filled out for the assult of the patient upon the staff member and formal charges filed.
from here- the hoe-down on risk management- the sheriff office and the offended and injured employee occurs - he MUST lodge a formal complaint, follow up with employee health, go downtown and file a complaint and insure INS has been called.
If you want to stand up for yourself, follow your LEGAL rights, do NOT count on administration to make it so., experience shows me you'll be appologising in spanish before the day is through.... use the LAW to protect you, It will still become quite the battle. make sure your chart has demonstrated attempts at communication to clarify your position as a health care provider.
it's a long process and much beating your head against the wall, but protects you in the end. Unfortunately, this is common from the ER's I've come from.... stay the course and do the process. don't forget the INS
Fantastic points! yes, yes, yes...
After the assault, was everything properly documented? This tech's case can be rock solid if the appropriate actions as listed above were followed!
As for this detective, he's right! It's not assault...it's battery, which is even worse! What a moron! During his 'investigation' did he take statements from other eyewitnesses, both employees and non-employees? If he did not follow the correct procedures of an investigation that could also strengthen your co-worker's case.
A word of caution...(hubby works in law enforcement) corrupt detectives usually come from corrupt departments...sad but true...they have been in the game for awhile and know what they can get away with. However, I don't understand what motivation he would have for siding with an illegal immigrant. Usually, law enforcement officers are more than happy to detain these guys, especially if they are causing trouble, and hold them for INS. Sounds a little fishy...
Worst case scenario, if this detective is not on the up and up, proper documentation and follow through as described in the referenced post will fall heavily on your co-workers side.
cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN
4,106 Posts
Uhh, they don't try to hide their illegal status. I've been told by each pt when they were illegal.
This poor tech that just went out to calm the pt down, what has happened to him? Is the hospital supporting him??