Question:

Dear Donna,

I am writing on behalf of my ex-wife. She has 18 years of experience as an RN. Her employer fired her yesterday for committing a med error. Unfortunately, she was on probation for a similar offense less than six months ago. She would like to know if she has any kind of a defense and what to do if we cannot afford another attorney.

Secondly, what are the career options for an unemployed nurse with a new BA degree?

Ed

Dear Donna replies:

Dear Ed,

It is always challenging to respond to this type of inquiry without knowing all the details. If your wife believes she did not make a med error or was not treated or terminated according to company policy, she should file a formal grievance with the employer following their established policy. If her license is intact, she certainly has many career options and probably should look for something outside of the patient care arena — at least for the time being.

Please read “Picking Up the Pieces of Your Career” at www.dcardillo.com/articles.html and “Coming Back From the Brink” at www.dcardillo.com/articles/fromthebrink.html. Take the advice in both articles. Her options are broad and almost too many to go into here. Also, she will have to address the termination on a job interview. For help with this, there is considerable information and advice in “The ULTIMATE Career Guide for Nurses: Practical Advice for Thriving at Every Stage of Your Career” (www.nurse.com/ce/7050).

Best wishes to you both,
Donna