As a nurse are you obligated to give a medication if you think it's going t!


Question: As a nurse are you obligated to give a medication if you think it's going to harm the pt?
If giving a medication is dependent on a lab value and the lab value is where you are not supposed to give the medication and you have double checked with the doctor and he tells you to give it. Are you obligated to give it even if you think it will harm the patient or will you get fired if you don't?

Answers:

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

I always go over the doctors head if after an explaination I'm not satisfied. If this is an intern, go to the resident, and even to the attending. Check with other nurses (the more experienced ones) or call pharmacy. If all of them agree, then I would give it. However, if they all agree to give it, and you still don't like it you can always write a note in the chart with your concerns, or just have the MD actually give it :).

ICU RN.



hi
you can always hold the medicine
occasionally you may actually be benefititng the patient
but remember some medications have dual role.
what i mean is that the dr may have prescribed them for some other reason
besides, sometimes the benefit expected outweighs the damage caused
but otherwise
if the dr confirms, after you express your doubts, that the medication is to be given i would suggest you give it



i would politely ask the doctor for an explanation as to why give if lab values are off -- this scenario is dependent on what the med is and what the lab value is for example i absolutely would not give someone coumadin ( warfarin) if their pt inr was hi despite what medical doctor said i am not going to purposely harm a patient i would ask doctor if they read the results correctly but no good honest reliable doctor is not going to harm a person on purpose - ALL PEOPLE MAKE MISTAKES and maybe the doctor misread the lab info




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