A disciplinary proceeding that involves the acts or omissions of an RN or LVN nurse is under the jurisdiction of the Texas Board of Nursing (BON). Any party who wants to file a case against the nurse has the duty to present the necessary evidence to prove his allegations with the help of a nurse attorney. In the absence of the required proof, the Texas Board of Nursing (BON) may rule in favor of the nurse. Once a case has been filed, it is important that the defendant must be served with written notice of the facts and conduct alleged to warrant adverse licensure action to the RN or LVN nurse.
At the time of the initial incident, an LVN was employed as a Licensed Vocational Nurse at a hospital in Midland, Texas, and had been in that position for three (3) months.
On or about October 13, 2018, while employed as a Licensed Vocational Nurse, the LVN failed to crush Trazodone, Melatonin, and Depakote and mix them in peanut butter as ordered by the physician, prior to administering them to a patient, who was on suicide watch. The LVN inappropriately administered the mediations whole but failed to look inside of the juvenile’s mouth after the administration of the medications to verify that the medications had been swallowed. Subsequently, the patient crushed and snorted the medications, became unconscious, and was required transport to the emergency room for evaluation.
In response, the LVN admits that she did not crush the medications as ordered or check the juvenile’s mouth after administering the medications due to being distracted. The LVN’s conduct was likely to injure the patient in that administration via inhalation instead of orally resulting in medication being available more rapidly throughout the body and could have resulted in symptoms of overdose including respiratory depression.
The Board found him guilty of the misconduct that she did. Although the order was only for a suspension for a short period of time, it still affected the nurse’s employment. For the period of suspension, she was not allowed to engage in any nursing care jobs. Because of this, she lost a lot of potential income. This happens to the LVN because she failed to seek the help of an expert nurse attorney for her case which leads to the decision of the Board.
Make sure that you will not make the same mistake that the LVN did in her case. Contact a Texas nurse attorney who can provide you with a confidential consultation and evaluate your case and counsel you on the best steps to take. Contact Nurse Attorney Yong J. An by calling or texting him 24/7 directly at (832) 428-5679.