Would you prepour meds for nursing assistant to admin later??

[Kashia, ASN, LVN]

An assisted living facility I know of asks nurses to prepour medications and leave them for a nursing assistant to admin later. They ( the facility) states it is legal for nurse to prepour and leave med's but not for the NA to pour herself. So my question concerns the legality for the lic nurses ( RN or LVN) I told my nurse friend think it is illegal but asking the minds here on Allnurses..

thank you

Recent post:

Thank all of you for these replies- I omitted information this was an assisted living facility but many of you picked up on that anyways. I have opted to not work at this facility any longer because I simply do not feel comfortable leaving meds up in a cupboard for CNA to dispense in morning. I figure they can make another arrangment or provide additional training to the CNA's...so it is legal and I am not responsible for the medications being given. I am not the only nurse to have left for this reason.

[NicoleRN07, RN]

I would NOT pre pour meds for NAs to administer. How do you know she's not going to admnister it to the wrong patient who may have an allergy to that med.....if you want to protect your license...you'll do it yourself!!

[RN BSN 2009]

No way!

CNA's are not licensed to assess the patient and they are not licensed to pass meds...

[PANurseRN1]

You need to check what your SBON states. I wouldn't feel comfortable with it, myself.

[caroladybelle, BSN, RN]

You cannot safely/ethically prepour meds for another nurse to administer, much less an unlicensed assistant.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

If I didn't personally set up the medications, then I would never administer them. It is as simple as that. In addition, I wouldn't set up medications with the reasonable expectation that a coworker would actually give them to the patients.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

CNA's are not licensed to assess the patient and they are not licensed to pass meds...

Actually, many states certify CNAs to pass medications. Once they earn this certification they are now referred to as 'medication aides' or 'medication technicians', depending on the state's title. I am in Texas, one of the numerous states where medication aides are utilized.

In addition, I was working as an unlicensed, uncertified direct care staff member at a group home for developmentally disabled adults 6 years ago. I was paid a whopping $8 hourly to pass medications to the patients such as Haldol, Zyprexa, Premarin, and so forth. I can now look back at the situation and realize how scary it was since I knew nothing about pharmacology.

[jimthorp]

No way!

I would not even think of administering meds another nurse poured and would never ask one to administer meds I poured, let alone unlicensed staff.

[SCRN1]

I would not even think of administering meds another nurse poured and would never ask one to administer meds I poured, let alone unlicensed staff.

Same here! That's about the same as signing off on a med and leaving it with a patient without watching them take it.

[Mags4711, RN]

Absolutely NOT.

[jo272wv]

no, no, no...... The only worker other than a lpn or rn able to pass medication in a long term facility (depends on state) that I know of is a AMAP (assistive medication administation personel). They attend classes and take a test in order to be certified. I was one before I became an RN. At that level I would not have passed a med I did not draw up myself the same as I would not as a RN either.

[CritterLover, BSN, RN]

how is it being done?

[color=#483d8b]

[color=#483d8b]when i was in school, i worked at an alf where each individual patient had a pill box (28 slot -- am, noon, pm, hs for each day) in their apt.

[color=#483d8b]

[color=#483d8b]at the begining of the week, the nurse (lpn) would fill the pill box. then it was the na's responsibility to "remind" the patient to take the meds at the correct time. usually that reminder was just that -- a knock on the door, "hey, ms. smith, it is time to take your breakfast pills. let me get you some water." sometimes we had to take the pills out of the correct slot and hand them to the patient, but that was about as much "hands on" as we got.

[color=#483d8b]

[color=#483d8b]if this is what they are calling "pre-pouring," then it really is ok. since the pill boxes are in the patient's apartments, there isn't any confusing what pills belong to what patient. it is very similar to the hh nurse setting up a pill box for the home health patient to take for the week.