Where has nurse accountability gone?

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Specializes in STICU, CVICU, Flight.

I'm so frustrated with the lack of accountability shown by nurses! For example, isn't it a nurse's responsibility to maintain their licensure and certification?! I use an excel program that I use to track license, TB, CPR, and ACLS dates of my staff. Six months before expiration, I send a friendly reminder e-mail (which I think is pretty nice of me to do.) Last month I sent two ICU nurses home because of lapsed licensing, and they were mad at me for not re-reminding them! And they think it is unfair to not let them work on a lapsed BLS or ACLS card! I find this unbelievable...

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Specializes in ICU, Surgery.

We have a grid with all of our license, BLS, TB and ACLS expiration dates posted on the bulletin board by our timeclock. It stares us in the face every day, lol. NO ONE works expired!

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.

I wouldn't call that nurse accountability. I call it personal accountability. I don't receive any notice that my driver's license is about to expire. I don't receive any notice that my mortage payment is due. And i know when my nursing license is due for renewal, it's not up to my employer to remind me to step up to my responsibilities. Sounds like a big case of lazy to me.

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That is their responsibility to be current with licenses and certifications, not yours. You are nice enough to remind them, but if they do not have it, then they cannot work and it is good that you are enforcing it.

If these nurses do not take responsibility for this, what else are they forgetting to do?

Sorry, but shame on them. And perhaps you should post a list so that everyone reads it every day, but just do it once a year and do not bother with the e-mails. That way everyone knows when they screwed up and you do not need to take the blame for it. And with a note that they cannot work if they are out of date on the required items.

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

I'm with you, cvicugirl. I spent about 2 hours over the last 2 days trying to help a nursing student who had a problem with the paperwork required for her clinical rotation. I had to really spend some time and make some sacrifices to help her.

Not only did she not seem grateful for the fact that I saved her a**, she seemed to expect me and my collegues to fix things for her -- and refused (even when pressured by me to do so) to acknowledge that her failure to complete her paperwork was in any way her fault. To top it off, after it was all over, she told me that she really had the proper paperwork, she just hadn't wanted to be bothered trying to find it at home. If the solution I worked out for her today causes her any delay in her clinical experience, she'll just bring HER copies of her paperwork in from home!

Some people DESERVE to be fired. If you are doing the right thing, you have no reason to feel guilty.

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