What would you do?

DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN · Feb 4, 2006

I would lie, without reservations, to keep myself out of trouble. I would not regard it as lying, more as just keeping my mouth shut. If I didn't actively participate in helping this person miss class then I sure as heck would not feel responsible to take any of the blame. I cannot imagine an instructor asking who knew about it for purposes of reprecussion! IMO that's unrealistic. :twocents:

DaFreak71 · Feb 4, 2006

The school I attend has a very strict attendance policy. Last week, one of my classmates was absent. However, I noticed that his girlfriend signed him in. During class the teacher noticed that he was missing, and his girlfriend stated that he was in the restroom. This was not true, as he was gone the entire day, and I know for a fact that she signed him in.
If this were you, would you inform the dean? I mean it is not fair for one student to get credit, while the rest of us walk on pins and needles hoping we don't ever have a legitimate reason to be gone.

What are the possible outcomes?

1. You don't say anything and learn to deal with your frustration quietly.

2. You don't say anything and get angry about it.

3. You tell the Dean and this person is punished (you aren't identified as the one who told).

4. You tell the Dean and this person is not punished (you aren't identified).

5. You tell the Dean, person is punished, you are identified.

6. You tell the Dean, person not punished, you are identified.

In the above scenarios, numbers one and three would meet your need for feeling a sense of justice about someone getting credit for work they didn't do. Under scenarios one and two (where you don't say anything) there is a fifty percent chance of you meeting your needs. Under scenarios 3-6 you have a twenty five percent chance of meeting your needs.

I'd play the numbers and stick with option 1. Maybe learn that policing your classmates is the instructors job and not yours. Nobody likes a tattletale. Now if he was doing something illegal or something that could hurt someone..different story. The guy missed class. Perhaps he had a good reason, perhaps not. How does this affect you aside from making you a bit angry that he got away with something? Let it go would be my advice.

Adri

**canoehead, BSN, RN** · Feb 4, 2006

Strict policy- Don't lie, but don't deliberately get others in trouble.

If they ask why you didn't say anything just say no one asked you. This situation in particular is not important enough to make yourself look like a rat and earn the mistrust of your fellow students.

Volunteer information when a patient's life is in danger- and I don't mean just a break in sterile technique. Comment on it 1-1 for something like that. If it's not important enough to speak to someone personally then it's not worth commenting on at all. You want people to know that you will go to them personally if you have a problem. If you have a solid reputation for not being a gossip then when it really matters- like a life is in danger- then people will take you seriously.

For class attendance- it wouldn't be important enough for me to go to the person involved, so I would definitely not go to the instructor. Really, who cares? Just remember not to lend your notes to them at exam time.

DaFreak71 · Feb 4, 2006

Speaking of strict attendence policies, my school is notorious for them. This policy includes ALL students, not just those in the nursing program.

During the course of the semester, if you are absent more times than the class meets per week, you get FA'd. (Failure due to absences). If you missed due to being sick, you must provide proof in the form of a letter from your doctor. If you missed due to attending a funeral (and it has to be a death in the immediate family only, no friends or distant relatives) you must bring a letter from the funeral director...not an obituary listing.

If you are tardy (in the nursing program this means ONE MINUTE LATE) three times, it equals an absence. If you are more than 15 minutes late, it's an absence.

If you get FA'd, you can appeal it, but you had better either be a straight A student or you have got to show proof that your absences were legitimate, in the form of doctors notes.

Fun huh?

Adri

LydiaNN · Feb 4, 2006

I wouldn't do anything about it, either. I am of the school of thought that if you give someone enough rope, eventually they'll hang themselves anyway, and you won't be labeled a tattletale.

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Feb 4, 2006

.

LydiaNN · Feb 4, 2006

Then again, how many other people are going to be hurt by this person before they hang themselves?
And knowing that all of this is going on, and notdoing anything about it, even reporting it, isn't that wrong in itself?

In my opinion, no. I kind of fashion my reporting after the 911 rationale, I only report when life, limb or property are at risk.

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · Feb 4, 2006

In my opinion, no. I kind of fashion my reporting after the 911 rationale, I only report when life, limb or property are at risk.

I edited my post. That reply was intended for another thread with the exact same title.

grannynurse FNP student · Feb 4, 2006

You have a choice, report or not. I suggest you pick your battles carefully. In all likelyhood the instructor is aware of his absence. If it continues and nothing is done, I would consider reporting him and his girl friend. They are being dishonest and it generally says a great deal about their chacter(?).

Grannynurse:balloons:

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Feb 4, 2006

Attendance is a big problem with employers. I was a manager, I know. One of the things your nursing instructors are going to be asked when they give you a reference for your first jobs is going to be what your attendance record was like while you were a student. I said this before in other posts and I think it bears repeating. You should consider your role as a student just as if it were a job. You are constantly being evaluated by instructors and whatever records of performance you rack up are going to end up hurting or helping you when job time comes around. I keep a list of interview questions that might be asked and there are different forms of the question "what would you do if you saw another employee violating one of the companies policies?" I doubt that most of you would want a prospective employer to think you would poo-poo serious rule breaking to someone with the power to hire you. I think that if most of you put yourself in the position of being the owner of a business your response to this poster's question would be quite different. Of course you would want to know if one of your employee's was cheating you in some way. If this young man had been on a job and his friend clocked him in and out when he wasn't actually there, he would be fired, and rightly so. The only difference I see here, is that he and his girlfriend are not getting a money paycheck. Or, are they in the form of an education? Think about that.

soliant12 · Feb 4, 2006

Unbelievable the amount of people that say to mind your own business. Unless your spineless like a lot on this thread seem to be. I would let the instructor know. If it he/she is willing to do something like this then can they be trusted with narcotic logs, being alone with a patient etc. When people do dishonest things it is not a one time or even isolated incident. I would definitely report them. Integrity is the hallmark of nursing/health care.

fergus51 · Feb 4, 2006

There is a difference between being spineless and minding your own business. The instructor clearly noticed him not being there, I'm sure the instructor can deal with it. As a student, you are there to get an education not to monitor your fellow students. That's a job for the instructor.