Who can administer medications in Michigan?

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So I've been searching through the Public Health Code and have yet to find any information on who is authorized to administer medications in MI. I know RN's and LPN's can, but I was wondering what the legalities are for CNA's/PCT's/Medical Assistants.

If anyone can shed some light on this, please let me know. Dorsey School commercials have disturbed me. They have commercials that show PCT's having medication administration responsibilities? They make it appear in the commercials almost as if they are training people to be RN's! They didn't explicitly say it but, hmm.

Another disturbing Dorsey commercial, is that they show a PCT standing behind a beautiful home and what appears to be a GMC Envoy? lol..... I don't know... any difference between a PCT and a CNA?

Let me know if you know anything about this

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.

PCTs/CNAs cannot give meds. I'm assuming a medical assistant cannot give meds other than in the office setting but I could be wrong. LPNs can give meds. The scope of practice is rather vague.

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So I've been searching through the Public Health Code and have yet to find any information on who is authorized to administer medications in MI. I know RN's and LPN's can, but I was wondering what the legalities are for CNA's/PCT's/Medical Assistants.

If anyone can shed some light on this, please let me know. Dorsey School commercials have disturbed me. They have commercials that show PCT's having medication administration responsibilities? They make it appear in the commercials almost as if they are training people to be RN's! They didn't explicitly say it but, hmm.

Another disturbing Dorsey commercial, is that they show a PCT standing behind a beautiful home and what appears to be a GMC Envoy? lol..... I don't know... any difference between a PCT and a CNA?

Let me know if you know anything about this

REPLY:

I know you are a 25 year old nursing student, but I don't know what degree you are seeking, or where you are in school, or how far you are in the nursing school training, or if you are working yet. Students will be covering this question in most nursing schools, as I did in my nursing labs. You will also be trained in nursing school on how to administer shots and medications.

Regarding your question on the difference between a CNA or a PCA/PCT - you can contact the American Red Cross and get the difference between the two on their program, or you can contact other programs in Michigan and ask them that question.

If you are seeking a CNA or PCT, I can tell you from personal EXPERIENCE as a CNA in Michigan who spent almost $1,000 for the American Red Cross course and has passed the two State Prometric/Chauncey CNA Exams and who is on the CNA Registry in good standing, that CNAs are NOT trained to distribute medications.

I can also tell you from personal EXPERIENCE working in some nursing homes, that RNs and LPNs FREQUENTLY ask CNAs to distribute some medications such as lotions or creams (NOT pills or shots).

As far as I am concerned I will NOT administer medications UNTIL I am a LICENSED LPN and RN. As a CNA, I am NOT the one who has access to the complete patient chart, nor am I the one who is responsible for confirming and charting the drug, dose, date, time, patient, physician order, adverse effects, complications, and patient response in the patient chart. I am also not the one who has the extensive training needed to ensure that the patient is not killed or harmed by medications given that are the WRONG drug, WRONG dose, WRONG date, WRONG time, WRONG patient, WRONG physician order!

We are dealing with a person's life and death!

My rule is the GOLDEN RULE!

Would I want an unlicensed, untrained CNA, PCA, PCT giving me, or my husband, or my child, or my parent, potentially fatal drugs in pill or shot forms? Simply... NO!

I recently read about a lawsuit against Wal-Mart by the family of a woman who was KILLED by a young girl who was an unlicensed, minimally trained pharmacy technician at Wal-Mart who administered to the woman a 10mg instead of a 1mg of medication that caused massive brain hemorrhage. We all learn in nursing school that even RNs and LPNs make mistakes in giving wrong drugs and wrong doses if they are not careful because of similarities in drugs names and appearances.

In nursing school, you will learn that if you give a shot it MUST be given accurately or you can cause permanent damage and disability in the patient if you hit a nerve, bone, or muscle in the wrong way. You will also learn how to administer medications in a proper and "clean" manner to avoid nosocomial infections.

There are states that have licensed and trained medication aides. Michigan is not on that list. However, some Michigan nursing homes I have worked at and interviewed with PERSONALLY train "medication techs" to distribute meds and those people are NOT even certified or trained as CNAs!

Ultimately, wherever you choose to work is where you will be given the parameters if responsibilities for your position and you should ask this question to your employer.

Sadly, you will find (as in every profession and every type of work) people who will cut corners, not follow proper procedures, and take risks. For me, it is a personal choice and personal decision that I make on what responsibilities I perform and how perfectly I perform them. Not everyone will choose that course of action. It takes strength and commitment and ethics to do what is right.

If you go to google and type in various forms of the words you will pull up information.

You can also go to the MDCH main home page at http://www.michigan.gov/mdch and type in "medication" in the search box to pull up many sources of information.

You can also go to the US Dept of Health and Human Services to obtain some accurate answers right from the federal source.

I found the following website links that will give you some accurate answers right from the state and federal sources. Note the links on the side of all of these main pages as well for more information.

http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/reports/nursing/lpn/b.htm

http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/reports/nursing/nurseaides/appf.htm

http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/reports/nursinghomeaid/appf.htm

http://www.michigan.gov/mdch

http://www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,1607,7-132----S,00.html

http://www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,1607,7-132----S,00.html

Have a safe and wonderful life! :wink2:

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Specializes in ICU/Critical Care.

I'm guessing the Pharmacy tech gave the woman 10mg of Coumadin instead of 1mg thus the massive brain hemorrhage.

As a PCT or CNA, you don't want to do anything that is out of your scope of practice. And RNs or LPNs should not be asking you to administer meds. Applying cream such as skin protectants is fine but TAO is not.

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I can also tell you from personal EXPERIENCE working in some nursing homes, that RNs and LPNs FREQUENTLY ask CNAs to distribute some medications such as lotions or creams (NOT pills or shots).

I hear about this kind of stuff all the time but I've never read someone's personal experience with it before - let alone in MI. That's scary - especially since I was just recently a patient! :eek:

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I hear about this kind of stuff all the time but I've never read someone's personal experience with it before - let alone in MI. That's scary - especially since I was just recently a patient! :eek:

Last year, in my first clinical rotation, there were two students that worked in a nursing home that routinely passed out meds. My clinical instructor nearly had a stroke when they told her.

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Last year, in my first clinical rotation, there were two students that worked in a nursing home that routinely passed out meds. My clinical instructor nearly had a stroke when they told her.

Oh my, that's REALLY bad news. That nursing home is lucky that they didn't get sued!

Are the nurses the ones who tell the CNAs, etc to pass out the meds? If so, why? Are the nurses too busy? Did they forget what they learned in school? Do they not care? I can't seem to wrap my brain around this.

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well now that the question is answered

how does dorsey schools get away with advertising a pct commercial in which you learn "procedures for administering medications".

ok - you can learn them, but that's not what you'd do in practice.

this is directly from their website:

[color=#ffffff]patient care techniciantraining in this program includes:

  • medical-photo2.jpglearning medical terminology and anatomy and physiology with the highly effective dean-vaughn audio/visual system
  • clinical training takes place in dorsey’s own medical labs
  • taking and recording patient vital signs and health histories; studying concepts of infection control, pharmacology, and procedures for administering medications
  • specimen collection procedures related to urinalysis, hematology, and chemistry in the physician's office
  • anatomy and physiology includes structures of the body, common diseases, treatment, and laboratory testing
  • externship with a local hospital, physician's office, or clinic enabling you to gain real work experience and develop confidence in your skills and abilities
  • graduates of this program are eligible to challenge the patient care technician certification exam offered by the national center for competency certification.

for more information, call 888-422-1188 or contact us.

fact: with the national shortage of nurses, opportunities for patient care technicians expand everyday.

fact: the patient care technician is viewed as a universal health care provider.

fact: opportunities in the medical field will continue to expand for many years to come.

- u.s. bureau of labor statistics

classes start soon -- call now to register!

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REPLY:

I know you are a 25 year old nursing student, but I don't know what degree you are seeking, or where you are in school, or how far you are in the nursing school training, or if you are working yet. Students will be covering this question in most nursing schools, as I did in my nursing labs. You will also be trained in nursing school on how to administer shots and medications.

Regarding your question on the difference between a CNA or a PCA/PCT - you can contact the American Red Cross and get the difference between the two on their program, or you can contact other programs in Michigan and ask them that question.

If you are seeking a CNA or PCT, I can tell you from personal EXPERIENCE as a CNA in Michigan who spent almost $1,000 for the American Red Cross course and has passed the two State Prometric/Chauncey CNA Exams and who is on the CNA Registry in good standing, that CNAs are NOT trained to distribute medications.

I can also tell you from personal EXPERIENCE working in some nursing homes, that RNs and LPNs FREQUENTLY ask CNAs to distribute some medications such as lotions or creams (NOT pills or shots).

As far as I am concerned I will NOT administer medications UNTIL I am a LICENSED LPN and RN. As a CNA, I am NOT the one who has access to the complete patient chart, nor am I the one who is responsible for confirming and charting the drug, dose, date, time, patient, physician order, adverse effects, complications, and patient response in the patient chart. I am also not the one who has the extensive training needed to ensure that the patient is not killed or harmed by medications given that are the WRONG drug, WRONG dose, WRONG date, WRONG time, WRONG patient, WRONG physician order!

We are dealing with a person's life and death!

My rule is the GOLDEN RULE!

Would I want an unlicensed, untrained CNA, PCA, PCT giving me, or my husband, or my child, or my parent, potentially fatal drugs in pill or shot forms? Simply... NO!

I recently read about a lawsuit against Wal-Mart by the family of a woman who was KILLED by a young girl who was an unlicensed, minimally trained pharmacy technician at Wal-Mart who administered to the woman a 10mg instead of a 1mg of medication that caused massive brain hemorrhage. We all learn in nursing school that even RNs and LPNs make mistakes in giving wrong drugs and wrong doses if they are not careful because of similarities in drugs names and appearances.

In nursing school, you will learn that if you give a shot it MUST be given accurately or you can cause permanent damage and disability in the patient if you hit a nerve, bone, or muscle in the wrong way. You will also learn how to administer medications in a proper and "clean" manner to avoid nosocomial infections.

There are states that have licensed and trained medication aides. Michigan is not on that list. However, some Michigan nursing homes I have worked at and interviewed with PERSONALLY train "medication techs" to distribute meds and those people are NOT even certified or trained as CNAs!

Ultimately, wherever you choose to work is where you will be given the parameters if responsibilities for your position and you should ask this question to your employer.

Sadly, you will find (as in every profession and every type of work) people who will cut corners, not follow proper procedures, and take risks. For me, it is a personal choice and personal decision that I make on what responsibilities I perform and how perfectly I perform them. Not everyone will choose that course of action. It takes strength and commitment and ethics to do what is right.

If you go to google and type in various forms of the words you will pull up information.

You can also go to the MDCH main home page at http://www.michigan.gov/mdch and type in "medication" in the search box to pull up many sources of information.

You can also go to the US Dept of Health and Human Services to obtain some accurate answers right from the federal source.

I found the following website links that will give you some accurate answers right from the state and federal sources. Note the links on the side of all of these main pages as well for more information.

http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/reports/nursing/lpn/b.htm

http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/reports/nursing/nurseaides/appf.htm

http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/reports/nursinghomeaid/appf.htm

http://www.michigan.gov/mdch

http://www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,1607,7-132----S,00.html

http://www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,1607,7-132----S,00.html

Have a safe and wonderful life! :wink2:

Thanks for the post! Lots of good information. I am a senior BSN student, I just felt like the profession is being threatened with overpriced trade schools are making it appear as if they have some type of nursing program.

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Perhaps I shouldn't post, but I am going to explain how this works for everyones benefit. It is not about licensure per say. It is about the authority of delegation. If a qualified medical professional issues instructions, virtually anyone in the state of michigan can administer care and or meds, it is not limited to nurses in any way, shape, or form.

CNA's routinely administer meds. I was trained by our county and we were indeed instructed on delivering meds and documenting that administration. This requires two sets of initials. One belong to the deliverer, one the witness, who is there to double check dosing.

60% of the schools in the state of Michigan do not have school nurses. Michigan is fourth in our country to have the fewest school nurses. So, a child is diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. She needs all of the staff trained in basic care and two identified aides, one of which must be on campus to administer insulin, I to C ratio, Correction factors, carb counting, tx. for highs and lows, understand the in's and out's of ketoacidosis, basals, bolus, pumps, infusion sites, and what the differences are with all of it. Mom and dad are freaking out because there is not a school nurse and their child is unsafe, school refuses to hire one because it's not in the budget, what happens to the child?

She must be accomodated. She is covered under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. School still will not hire a nurse. Should the child be denied the benefit of a free appropriate public education as afforded her by law? Not on any level. It's bad enough she is afflicted with a relentless chronic disease, for her to be isolated would lead to depression, already common with this disease, and it is just not right.

What's the answer? It would be great if school nurses were on campus at every school but it will never happen. So here is what happens. The doctor writes a DMMP with explicit instructions. If the child's parents know enough about the law, they end up having to force the school to accomodate their daughter by filing with the OCR or pushing for a Section 504 until all parties are in agreement. Then the school is responsible for making sure they are trained regularly, and that the TDP's are adequately trained for all situations and will accompany the child on fieldtrips and to extracurricular activities as well.

The child gets to go to school, parents don't have to sit in the office every day, all day, to ensure their childs safety, the school doesn't have to spend any money, everyone is happy.

I would love to see school nurses in every school and on campus for all of our kids. These administrators will not do it.

With appropriately trained staff, and a system in place, it is a safe protocol. Not the best protocol, but safe. So, if the doctor, nurse, trained health care proffesional says you can, you can.

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Interesting. What is a TDP?

I was thinking about that, too - who is responsible for the diabetic kids in school? Isn't the school secretary the one to pass out the Ritalin to the kids?

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A TDP is a trained diabetic proffesional. This is not a certification. This is a person who has been specifically trained in managing all aspects of the childs diabetes care. Often times the secretaries are handing out meds. In the case of a child with type 1 it is just not suitable. There has to be management, protocol, and follow up.

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