10 Mistakes Nurses Need to Avoid

By Jordie Papa

Image courtesy Public Domain Pictures

Being a nurse means never having to say you’re sorry.  That’s Job #1, which consists of providing TLC to every patient you meet.  Like it or not, your patients sometimes put their lives into your loving hands.  This is a lot of responsibility, since nurses are people too.  They have lives to live and emotions to deal with.  And like everyone else, from time to time they make mistakes.  To make sure all you nurses out there get a little education that doesn’t come from a textbook, I decided to point out the top-10 mistakes that have been known to derail nurses from time to time.

      1.      The Medicine Mix-up – One of the most serious infraction that can be made by any medical professional is to either administer the wrong medication to a patient, or to administer the wrong dose of the correct medication.  This is all too easy to do when you consider that many medicines look alarmingly alike, especially the injectable kind.  That’s why nurses need to make like carpenters when it comes to dispensing meds.  Measure twice and dose once.

      2.      Please Pass the Pathogen – This is another avoidable case of too much of a good thing.  The good thing is for nurses to minister to as many patients as possible in any given shift.  The bad thing is this can result in cross-contamination which can pass pathogens from patient to patient if you aren’t careful.  While nurses know to don gloves and masks whenever they come into contact with any patient who has a communicable disease, sometimes germs can hitch a ride on uniforms and instruments like stethoscopes.  This little problem can cause big problems for patients.  In the US alone, more than 99,000 deaths occur each year from hospital acquired infections, according to the CDC.  While nurses can’t sterilize themselves every time they see a patient, they can take precautions to minimize the spread of infection by doing such things as washing their hands between patients, to changing and laundering their scrubs daily.   

     

Image courtesy flickr

3.      Chalk it up to Charts – Just as in any business, when it comes to nursing, the job isn’t done until the paperwork is completed.  The problem is, hospital charts are sometimes ignored, incorrectly filled out or even misleading.  Since a patient’s chart contains vital information concerning medication prescribed and administered, to patient prognosis and known allergies, staying on top of charts can be a matter of life and death.  Most important of all, if you see something on a chart that you disagree with or don’t understand, it’s your duty to consult with other nurses and/or physicians who have had contact with the patient before you take any action that you could later come to regret.

      4.      Unhappy Landings – Another problem that occurs  in hospitals, clinics and even private practices are slip and falls by patients.  Aside from risking additional injury, if a patient falls off a bed, examination table or even while simply walking down the hall, this could potentially result in legal consequences for the facility and the nurse.  To begin with, some patients feel awkward about asking a nurse for assistance to stand, reach for something in the room, or use the restroom.  The solution for this is to explain to each and every patient that you are there to assist them, as well as frequently monitoring patients to keep them out of harm’s way.

      5.      Falling Down on the Job – Patients aren’t the only ones who can take a spill.  So too can their caregivers.  Whether it’s the ER, the OR, a treatment room or a ward, anywhere people are treated for wounds and illness, numerous hazards abound.  Everything from dropped instruments and bandages to errant equipment and IV stands can trip up medical professionals in a heartbeat if they aren’t wary.

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      6.      Needling a Nurse – I know it sounds like a pun, but needling a nurse is no laughing matter.  Tens of thousands of healthcare professionals report being accidentally stuck by needles in the US every year.  This can lead to serious infection or even deadly diseases such as hepatitis and HIV.  What’s even worse is that many of these accidental punctures can be prevented.  The best way to prevent an accidental stick is to use safety needles that automatically retract once the injection is given.  Another sound piece of advice is to never recap a used needle, since it’s all too easy to miss the cap and stick yourself.  Above all, if you do stick yourself, don’t hide the fact, report it to your supervisor right away.

      7.      Wake up and Smell the Coffee – Quite possibly, the single biggest blunder that results in the most serious problems for nurses is to find themselves fighting fatigue.  A tired nurse is more prone to errors that can affect patient well-being.  Especially if you find yourself pulling an extra long shift or a double, make sure you don’t wind up looking like an extra from a George Romero movie.  Plan ahead, make sure you are well rested and keep moving to stave off fatigue. 

      8.      Don’t be afraid to say, “I don’t know.” – Working in a modern medical environment means nobody knows everything.  While you may have graduated at the top of your class in nursing school, that doesn’t mean you know as much as the doctors around you.  Even doctors don’t know everything.  That’s why they refer patients to specialists.  If a doctor, a supervisor, a patient or another nurse asks you to do something you aren’t comfortable with, don’t be afraid to ask for help.

      9.      A Rose by any Other Name – While calling a patient by the wrong name isn’t likely to put anything but your dignity at risk, it still isn’t something that’s likely to make your job of caring for patients any easier.  Especially if you work in the ER or a busy clinic where you’re required to deal with many patients during any given shift, your best bet is to take the time to look at a patient’s chart or the assignment board to get names straight.

      10.  Dealing with Death – Working in healthcare means occasionally losing a patient.  That’s a given.  What’s even worse is the fact that a patient may succumb to injuries right in front of you and their family.  How you deal with death is one of the things that will determine how far you go in the medical profession.  More importantly, dealing with death with dignity will help you bring closure to a late patient’s loved ones who more than ever need your support to deal with their loss. 

Jordie Papa is owner of Uniform Destination with four locations in North Florida offers scrubs and medical accessories, including stethoscopes.