Very scared

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Hello, I am just so worried and nervous and would like input from other nurses in this situation. I am a new grad and was recommended for a director position in a memory care facility. I was grossly misled with what this job consisted of and what I needed to do. I started mid November and am just now fully realizing what a mess this place is. I put my two weeks in yesterday, but I am discovering med errors left and right that I wasn't aware of. The meds are passed by "caregivers" in the state of Az. I'm terrified of what sort of legal action could happen. There was a warfarin med error which is obviously a big deal but with no injury. I'm worried about the consistently late medication administration because our med techs are over worked. What do I do???

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Specializes in Med-Surg.

You've already put your two weeks notice in (good). Sounds like they hired you to specifically to have a warm body in an empty seat. New grads, with very little exception, have zero place working in these types of positions. You don't have the experience necessary to stand a chance. They know that when they hire you, and are taking advantage of you.

Other nurses hopefully will chime in other more detailed advice.

Glad you are leaving though, sounds like you walked into a hot mess.

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I'm wondering if it is even worth finishing my two weeks...

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Specializes in Vascular Access.

As I see it, yes, you should complete the two weeks IF you are planning on posting this job as part of your experience on your resume. You do not want to burn bridges in the situation when a new, prospective employer contacts this current employer and asks, " Would you rehire her" and they say NO..Because you have burned them. Don't risk that. Do the right thing for them and you.

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No. You do the right thing for You, forget about them. Don't worry one bit about being ineligible for rehire, you most likely would be ineligible anyway, even if you worked out your notice.

By putting a new grad in a directors position, it shows that this dump probably has a staffing/retention issue. That employer certainly doesn't have your interest at heart (and ultimately not the residents', either). Now, they gotta wait for the next sucker to come along.

You, however do bear some responsibility yourself in that you should have never taken on such a position (but, I see you realize this now). Get out today.

In your next interview, just be candid and honest. An employer who wouldn't appreciate that explanation is someone you wouldn't want to work for anyway.

Good luck.

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Specializes in retired LTC.

Even though it was only for a short time, you were TOP NURSE. If you have , you may want to touch base with them for any suggestions. Finish out your 2 weeks as suggested by PPs, BUT ... make sure you've can demonstrate that you've made some efforts to investigate and correct problems.

State Dept of Health surveyors and BONs are not nurse-friendly. They are there to protect the public. What have you done (or could begin to do) to improve med administration? You need to show you've reacted other than just resigning. You can't be expected to fix (or have fixed) all the problems, but you can demonstrate that you've initiated some kid of remedial measures for the next DON. Do something quickly and insure that you have all the appropriate supporting documentation in place to demonstrate that you've taken responsible QI actions. Just to CYA that you did something.

It is so sad that you were taken advantage of. This is part of why so many experienced COBs CAUTION new grads or other nurses (without strong experience) to be verrrry careful when considering new, upwardly admin/supervisory positions. This applies to psych, HH, MCH, LTC or any other new endeavor.

Good luck to you.

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Just to follow up...I had this conversation with a nurse practitioner that comes to the facility and she told me to tough it out. The next day she saw the craziness in full swing and said "you need to get out of here. Listen to me. Call the board of nursing and check on abandonment issues first thing in the morning." I did. Got the ok because I don't provide direct patient care. I revised my resignation. Today was my last day. Thank you for your comments and well wishes!

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Specializes in retired LTC.

Good luck to you.

TY for giving us the info on how you decided.

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