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Chen Li, 08338514
Facts
The Member admitted that she engaged in professional misconduct. While caring for a patient on a night shift in December 2018, the Member failed to turn on a bed exit alarm even though she had assessed the patient as a “high risk” for falls. The patient was discovered in the early morning laying on the floor beside their bed, covered in stool. The patient had also suffered injuries because of the fall. The Member conducted and documented some assessments after the fall but did not document all the required post-fall assessments.
In March 2019, the Member was assigned to care for a different patient on the night shift. The Member did not perform or document any nursing assessments or interventions when the patient exhibited signs of deteriorating health and did not notify a physician. The Member did not conduct the required assessments during her shift and did not enter any documentation in the patient’s chart for seven hours. She then falsely documented completing several assessments in the early morning, despite not having entered the patient’s room for several hours.
Discipline Committee’s Findings
Based on the Member’s admissions, a panel of the Discipline Committee of the College of Nurses of Ontario (the “Panel”) found that the Member:
- contravened a standard of practice of the profession or failed to meet the standards of practice of the profession;
- failed to keep records as required;
- falsified a record relating to the member’s practice; and
- engaged in conduct or performed an act, relevant to the practice of nursing, that, having regard to all the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as dishonourable and unprofessional.
Discipline Committee’s Order
The College of Nurses of Ontario (“CNO”) and the Member presented the Panel with a Joint Submission on Order requesting that the Panel make an order that included the following:
- an oral reprimand;
- a 3-month suspension; and
- terms, conditions and limitations including:
- attending at least 2 meetings with a Regulatory Expert;
- employer notification for 18 months; and
- documentation audits for 12 months.
The Panel accepted the Joint Submission on Order, concluding that the proposed order was reasonable and in the public interest. The Panel noted that the Member cooperated with the CNO and accepted responsibility by agreeing to the facts and a proposed order.
