My wife is an RN for 25 years now. Today, she was written up for the first time in her career as a nurse for standing up for what she believe is right. Observing HIPPA law and safety in her workplace. She is Charge and at the same time, floor nurse in her unit. There is not much patient privacy inside a dialysis clinic. Approx. 20 patients sitting right next to each other during treatments. No room for visitor to sit at chair side during treatment (3-4 hrs). Only exemption she will do sometimes is if the patient need a translator. Otherwise, she always advise the visitors or companions to please wait outside at the waiting lounge. This is also to protect patient's privacy under the HIPPA law (as much as possible, given there are other patients who are siting in nearby).

Few weeks ago, she had a patient who is normally getting treatment later of the day, with different RN and techs. This patient have a companion who WANT to sit at chair side. My wife asked the companion politely to please wait outside as visitors/companions are not allowed bedside during treatment, unless the patient need a translator (patient don't need one). Visitor insisted on staying as the "other" group of RNs and techs on the later shift let him stay. My wife informed the patient that she don't know why they are letting him stay. But she have to ask him to wait outside for patient privacy. Visitor got agitated and said something that got my wife worried for her safety, and the rest of the people in the unit. (I have always instructed my wife to take workplace violence threats very seriously. I told her to call the police if she have to). After observing that the visitor's demeanor changed, she informed the visitor that if he don't leave, she will call the police. He complied and waited outside, still very upset.

Last week, my wife's manager asked her to write an incident report. The patient apparently requested to be transferred to a different clinic location after that incident. She wrote her incident report.

Today, my wife was written up by her manager. The Director came by and said she should have just let him stayed that could have avoided the patient transfer. Especially the patient was a "commercial" patient (which translates to the patient having a GOOD insurance). WTF?

A nurse with 25 years experience, never written up, loved by her patients, truly care for her patients, was WRITTEN up for being a patient advocate and for doing what she thought was right for her other patients and for the safety of everyone.

Management people sometimes are ass****s. They are not on the floor majority of the time and have no clue of the day to day operation.

If something bad happen because someone is sitting chair side (visitor), who will they blame? Yup! The charge RN.

Unfortunately….Welcome to the world of Corporate Medicine. Administrations are more worried about the $$$$ than they are the patient. And by the way, the staff is dead last in their list.

Sad but true.


Andrew

Ethics do not exist in corporations and Safety Department exist to cover up the evidence. In my experience

Is it now policy that all patients may have 1 or 2 or 3 persons with them during their treatment?

Tell your wife to ask for the new written 'policy' of allowing visitors with patients.

I guess I am not following...

Did the patient WANT their guest to be present? If so what is the problem?

If the problem is the proximity of other patients in a cattle car setting for treatment, it doesn’t sound like HIPPA or privacy is a real concern. If it is ok to breach patient privacy for other patients in close quarters environment what harm is done for a guest at the patient’s request being allowed to be present?

Micro-management trying to justify their position.

quote:

Originally posted by RHINOWSO:
Tell your wife to ask for the new written 'policy' of allowing visitors with patients.

Policies are merely suggestions nowadays.

It sounds to me like the OPs wife is on her way out. I suspect that next she'll be told that she's not a "team player". It's all downhill from there.

Yeah, I was about to add a second line to my response that I recommend the OPs wife dust off her resume and start looking for a new job with a different company. Nail down a position then hit them with the "I'm outta here" with minimal notice.

My wife just made a move in the medical field and was able to score a better position, making more money with better benefits 10 minutes from home (her previous drive varied between 25-55 min depending on traffic). She's been grinning ear to ear for months now.

Not having visitors in Dialysis units and Chemotherapy units is pretty standard just like ICU. I would look at other opportunites where Administration did not call all the shots.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
Not having visitors in Dialysis units and Chemotherapy units is pretty standard just like ICU. I would look at other opportunites where Administration did not call all the shots.

The Cancer Treatment Center that I went to encouraged visitors to stay with patients if they so desired. They made sure that extra chairs were available and left room between treatment chairs for them. I think your example may be an exception and not the rule.

quote:

The Cancer Treatment Center that I went to encouraged visitors to stay with patients if they so desired. They made sure that extra chairs were available and left room between treatment chairs for them. I think your example may be an exception and not the rule.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
It depends on who is in charge of the Unit. There are a lot of people who invite their entire family to hang out and partake of the snacks that are in every Chemo unit. Some folks cannot behave.

quote:

Originally posted by RHINOWSO:
Tell your wife to ask for the new written 'policy' of allowing visitors with patients.

This

I work in the nursing field too. Dialysis, Chemo patients and ICU patients are mostly (if not all) Immuno-compromised patients. Extra precaution must be taken not to expose them to potential infection. That includes fellow patients and visitors. Unfortunately for dialysis (unlike ICU), they all share the same treatment room. I am not sure about chemotheraphy set-up. Patient exposure to another patient cannot be avoided in case of dialysis. For the HIPPA issue I mentioned, while it cannot be entirely avoided (because other patients are around), wouldn’t it be lesser evil not to have anybody around that is not a patient or staff? Maybe it is a good thing to have family support nearby during treatment. But given the way how dialysis treatment centers are set up, there is simply not enough room to have someone around. Unless really necessary. Imagine 20 patiens having 20 vistors at bedside. There are some patients want to sleep during their 3 hour treatment. Some family members or visitors can be loud and simply cannot behave. So who would decide on who should leave and who get to stay?

The manager and director CONFIRMED that the policy is No Visitor allowed at bedside during treatment. She was written up for not using her judgement and for not letting the visitor stay, which could have avoided the transfer. I asked my wife to ask her manager to write up the evening crew as well since they are the one who has been violating the No Visitor Policy.

Is this a union position? Nurse’s union should be advocating for her if so.
Seems to me that it’s very important to clarify policy; if she was following it and others were not, how can they write her up?

BTW as a physician I loathe HIPPA. It has created bureaucracy, rigid rules, tension, and loss of trust where before the situation could be dealt with by common sense. The occasional lapses could also be dealt with with a verbal reminder.

Now as a retiree of our medical group I no longer have access to the in-group e-mail system.

Computer security I agree with 100%, but the whole thing has been blown completely out of proportion to the problem IMO.

Unfortunately management in healthcare is now putting customer satisfaction in priority above all else. I can empathize with your wife's situation. She was following policy, a visitor got upset, the concern now if she fights management on it, she may be labeled as a non-team player and face further write ups.

quote:

Originally posted by 2000Z-71:
Unfortunately management in healthcare is now putting customer satisfaction in priority above all else. ...

Next there will be support turkeys in the OR...


Those of you in the medical profession, thank you for what you do and what you put up with.

When I was still working at a VA outpatient clinic, we have a patient that brings in 2 birds inside a cage when he goes in for his appointment. Doc always instruct me to have him put down the cage outside his door and shut the door. Those birds surely do make a lot of noise. It got other vets upset. But it was the patient's support birds. Doc and clinic manager never asked the patient to leave the birds at home.

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
Next there will be support turkeys in the OR...

Those of you in the medical profession, thank you for what you do and what you put up with.

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:

quote:

Originally posted by 2000Z-71:
Unfortunately management in healthcare is now putting customer satisfaction in priority above all else. ...

Next there will be support turkeys in the OR...


Those of you in the medical profession, thank you for what you do and what you put up with.

Hey..why not? Especially around the Thanksgiving Holiday. After all, turkey's need love also

I sympathize and agree with your wife.

However I'm reminded of the old saying about you can't fight all the battles, and to pick your battles and leave the others alone.