Today was interesting. I was taking care of a one year old baby who was brought to us because he had a brain tumor and hydrocephalus. We have invested a lot of time and money into this child to hopefully make him better. While I was doing my daily cares, one of them being a dressing change on his skull, I noticed the bandage was dated 3 Jan. The tech I happened to be working with said he and the another nurse changed that on the morning of 3 Jan. These dressing changes are supposed to happen each shift! I looked at the MAR and three nurses charted they had done this dressing change! I brought this up to Col McNeill and she let me know she was pissed, not at me but at the nurses who fraudulently charted.
I am now the outcast. My fellow nurses feel I should have gone to each one of them individually and let them know. I disagree. What I did is advocate for my patient. This baby isn't as pretty as the other one so I think some people tend to ignore him. I didn't falsify my charting, I just didn't check the tube feed pump to ensure it was on (and yes, I took my licks for that). It seems some of these people have forgotten what it means to be a nurse. We are supposed to advocate for our patient, tell the docs when they're wrong and try to help this patient get whatever it is they need. It took me all of two minutes to change this dressing, why lie about it? Please remember Kerrie, it's the patient you are working for, not yourself.
Whoa. I'm glad there are some decent nurses left in the military community! Your stories joined with personal experience is making me lose faith in the military AND in healthcare.
ReplyDeleteKerrie - I just read your blog. As I said in my email to you, you are doing amazing things. I am envious, and can't wait to hear more. But fear not! We have a couple of these lazy and incompetent nurses at our hospital too! And they are not working with a one year old child! Shame on them! Good work!
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