Why do nurses blame being tired on making mistakes?

As you point out, not all nurses use this excuse.

There simply is no correct answer to the question, "Why did you kill (or almost kill) my child?" Incidents like this are investigated to determine if and how they can be prevented in the future, and sometimes we find better policies, procedures, methods or tools. Sadly, though, we all know deep down, that mistakes, sometimes tragic mistakes, will be made by even the most conscientious and dedicated people.

There are never any good excuses for making a medication error, but try walking in a nurses shoes for a while before you start slinging stuff. In many hospitals, nurses work nearly every shift shorthanded. And while you managed to do a good job dosing your son and working four jobs- try nursing several- up to a dozen sometimes, all taking various types of medications, at different dosages, at different times, in different ways. Plus answer all the call bells, do the chartwork, count the medications for the paperwork, and answer all the questions the relatives put on you. Oh, and be very sensitive to every word that comes out of your mouth in the meantime. And be sure you educate your patients and their families, plus be sensitive to their emotional needs. Do that for 12 hours or so. Do it for 12 hours or so for three or four days in a row. And while you are doing that, be sure you juggle all the other mom/wife duties you have. And be absolutely certain you don't make one single mistake, anywhere, with anything. Yeah, you are right- mistakes shouldn't be made. But everyone is human. Nurses for the most part do a lot of work every single day without making an error. It's all fine and good to say they shouldn't ever make mistakes, and to spout off with your personal thoughts about why it shouldn't happen and how it should be prevented in the future. But until you walk in a nurses shoes for a while, you have no clue how demanding the job can get. It's not just one patient, it's not even a dozen patients. It's the administration, the families, your family, and everything else on top of it. If you ever were hospitalized and lived to tell the tale, chances are that it was because a nurse did her job. Did you tell her thank you? Probably not, most people don't. They don't say thanks for doing a good job or a great job, but they sure are in line to sling when a mistake is made by a fallable human being. No wonder malpractice is so high, and so many nurses burn out.

Some people just tend to be lazy and not want to double check with other people. But then again, being tired could have an affect on someone's ability to give the correct meds. Most nurses are really good about giving the right meds, they have to be, they could kill someone. But you have to remember how many people a nurse has to deal with in a shift, and how long nurses work. Some work well over 10 hours a day/night! Could you imagine how many people could come into the hospital in those 10 hours that a nurse would have to deal with? Being deprived of sleep is common in the lives of some nurses, where they are constantly tired. It's very easy to make a mistake when you are tired, your brain is not working to it's full potential. But it goes back to the point of...some people just make mistakes, we all make mistakes. It is inevitable! But most nurses do blame their mistakes on being tired because it's the most common reason.

Wow back up there a bit woman. Nursing is an exhaustive, thankless job and you have no idea what they go through every day on the job to take care of people. Nurses are in charge of caring for many, many people and have a lot of responsibility on their hands. They usually work incredibly long shifts with little help. Try doing what they do in a day and see how you feel before you start passing judgements.

Nurses are humans, they make mistakes just like everyone else. They work incredibly long hours for little pay. If they wanted to get another job, they probably could but that would be a waste of the money they spent on nursing school in the first place, and most of the nurses I know really enjoy what they do and love their jobs, just not the hours part of it. Everybody has a part of their job that they don't like or have trouble with, but they tolerate it becase they love what they do. Like everyone else, nurses can only be worked for so long and, like everyone else, they make mistakes too. The difference is their mistakes sometimes put a person's health at risk. Yes, it is a serious problem, and yes nurses and doctors should be held accountable for mistakes, but nobody has the right to point a finger at them until they've walked a day in their shoes. How would you feel if you accidentally given your son the wrong dose of his medication and people starting bashing you and questioning your competance as a mother? Nurses, like mothers, have to put up with a lot of crap for low pay and even less gratitude.

Well the problem is, you're associating a rare event to nurses everywhere.

Think about what nurses have to do. Unlike when you give your child medicine, they have to do the calculations themselves. Iv's don't come with stickers telling a dosage amount. And yes, nurses typically regulate this, not doctors (though they have a say).

So as a nurse, who has several patients (which in an Intensive Care Unit, can be a lot to handle, and even more so in a neo-natal unit, where his kids were) not to mention plenty of personal problems of their own, is bound to occasionally make a mistake.

The thing is, they will very likely catch it, and it can be reversed. They are humans, they make mistakes. But they also typically have the power to reverse it.

In 20 years as a Critical Care Registered Nurse, I'm sure my mother made misjudgments in dosage, but I guarantee they didn't stand long. There's a check and recheck system in health care, that catches things like that.

Being overly tired effects all aspects of our lives. When you are pulling double shifts for more money and have a family you may have to support--thinking and action become askued.

There is such a nursing shortage that nurses need to take action, make vital decsions and who knows, maybe a very tired doc told this nurse to administer the wrong meds.

america is another continent,you must not judge,there and here.

i have been a patient in london hospitals for 6 years with lots of better not to mention, chelsea&westminster,hammersmith,have

exellant nurses,who are all very over worked,they do check medications with other staff our doctors,nurses,do not get enough recogniction for the jobs they do.

I HAVE JUST HAD A LIVER TRANSPLANT.

kings college hospital has exemplary staff i owe my life to them.

god bless.

They are highly trained and overworked. They don't like making mistakes. The system is taking advantage of them and they are greatly disappointed.

"Why do nurses blame making mistakes on being tired?"

Because they're human and overworked!