Losing your license may greatly affect your future career and reputation as a nurse, but only if you failed to hire a nurse attorney for the case. There are some RNs and LVNs who missed their chances to get their license saved from revocation just because they weren’t able to hire any nurse attorney to defend them. Unfortunately, an incident happened in Galveston, Texas and an RN happens to be involved.
At the time of the initial incident, an RN was employed as an Infusion Nurse at a hospital in Galveston, Texas, and had been in that position for two (2) years and two (2) months.
An incident happened on or about August 16, 2017, while employed as an Infusion Nurse at the same facility, the RN failed to ensure that the port-a-cath tubing was secured to the patient’s chest per protocol. The patient was receiving chemotherapy via a home infusion pump connected to the port-a-cath. Subsequently, the patient returned to the clinic on August 18, 2018, with her port-a-cath needle dislodged. The RN conduct unnecessarily exposed the patient to the risk of harm from potentially toxic exposure to a chemotherapy medication from the dislodged port-a-cath needle whose tubing had been improperly secured.
On or about February 19, 2018, the RN failed to administer Cisplatin, a chemotherapy medication to a patient, as ordered, in that the RN administered the infusion in one (1) hour, instead of two (2) hours. Subsequently, the patient required observation for an additional hour. The RN’s conduct was likely to injure the patient from potentially adverse complications related to incorrectly administered chemotherapy medication.
In response to the incident, the RN states that she was the nurse who had attached the patient to the home infusion pump. The RN states that she remembered the patient had been waiting to be changed from receiving medication via the infusion pump mounted to the IV pole to the home infusion pump so
that she could more easily get up to the bathroom. She also states that the patient was eager to leave the clinic that day. And when the patient returned from the bathroom, she quickly packed up her things and left. The RN also states that she believed she had secured the tubing properly before the patient left. The RN states that she has modified her practice since this incident.
In addition, the RN states that the incident occurred, she promptly reported it, informed the patient’s physician, and monitored the patient for over two (2) hours following the incident during which time the patient remained stable. The RN states that she takes responsibility for this medication error. She also states that it was an error that the two (2) person check was supposed to prevent by the second registered nurse personally starting the pump once the RN had set the rate and volume. The RN states that although they verbally reviewed the ordered rate, that did not prevent the RN from unintentionally and inadvertently setting the pump incorrectly, which she truly regrets.
Unfortunately, with the lack of an effective nurse attorney to defend her case, the Texas Board of Nursing decided to take disciplinary action against the RN. The evidence gathered after the investigation was received by the Board was sufficient in cause pursuant to Section 301.452(b)(10)&(13) of the Texas Occupations Code.
Losing your nurse license can compromise your career. However, a skilled nurse attorney can greatly help you in major cases such as this. For assistance regarding your nurse license case, it’s best to contact Nurse Attorney Yong J. An by contacting him at (832) 428-5679.