Directive to all Nurses in all grades for nurses

Working in Mental Health Services.

Nurses are to refrain from leaving their place of work to file a police report in any police station regarding patients who are sent on leave. This is not acceptable for MUMN. This issue is not just a matter of leaving the ward unattended but also has legal responsibilities and repercussions that as nurses are beyond our call of duties.

 

A simple case scenario is that of, if a patient does not return from his/her leave. In this case nurses are to inform the doctors on call and nursing management. Then it is the Consultants choice to inform the police authorities or not.

 

MUMN is in fact offering legal backing by issuing a directive to all nurses including SNM’s and MNS not to file any police reports or attend to any police stations to report any missing persons. Ultimately it is the Consultant’s and not the nurse’s responsibilities to send patients on VL so while a patient is not an inpatient anymore, the nurses on the ward are certainly not to be held accountable nor shoulder any responsibility for the patient who is not in a ward.

 

Such directive is with immediate effect.

 

The directive on the conveyance order is still in force.

 

In the meantime, the directive for nurses to come in plain cloths is be withdrawn.

 

 

Paul Pace

MUMN President

08/11/2019