When does duty to a patient begins?

[rn2hope]

can anyone answer this question? when does duty to a patient begins? if you are working in the ed and assigned to certain rooms and the tech just drop a patient to one of your assigned bed, do you have a legal obligation to that patient even thought you have not laid eyes on them?

[canoehead, BSN, RN]

When you get report. If you don't get report you can write "pt received in room 2 at 1300 hours." It's up to the person handing the patient to you to notify you and give report.

[JStyles1]

When you get report. If you don't get report you can write "pt received in room 2 at 1300 hours." It's up to the person handing the patient to you to notify you and give report.

This. I would even go one step further as to say when you first go in and lay eyes on the patient. If a tech puts a patient in the room b/c they are complaining about waiting in the waiting room too long, and you're slammed with someone else that is really sick, then you may not get a free minute to go see that patient for quite awhile. Just make sure you chart that the patient was placed in the room by your tech at XX:XX then you assumed care for this patient at XX:XX. I don't know about you guys but a tech gets a chewing if they put a patient in one of my rooms when I'm not ready for them.

[April, RN, BSN, RN]

Like the above poster said, if you already got report and your shift has started, then the patient is your responsibility even if you have not seen them yet. It wouldn't be the responsibility of the off-going nurse who went home already. It's just like if the patient rings their call light complaining of new-onset chest pain before you've been in to see them... of course it would be your duty to go see them.

[canoehead, BSN, RN]

In the ED when a triage nurse can bring a patient to a room without the assigned nurse knowing it is still on triage to give report to someone and make an official handoff.

[Spacklehead, MSN, NP]

In the ED when a triage nurse can bring a patient to a room without the assigned nurse knowing it is still on triage to give report to someone and make an official handoff.

This, exactly. If the triage RN does not give report to the RN assigned to that room, the patient is still technically the triage nurse's responsiblity. That's why as triage RN, I always documented that I gave report to nurse so-and-so at whatever time; and also charted what time I received report when I was the staff RN in the ED. That way, it was documented and it never became a "he said, she said" type situation if something wasn't done in a timely fashion. This also ensured that my triage nurses would be sure to come and find me to give me a quick heads up.