A staff nurse suspects that a newly licensed nurse is chemically impaired. Which of the following actions should the staff nurse take?

The State Board of Nursing is responsible for regulating the practice of nursing within a specific state. It establishes the scope of practice for LPNs and sets the standards for their education, licensure, and practice. Therefore, the State Board of Nursing would be the best source of information regarding the roles of an LPN in a med-surg setting.

The other options may provide some information about the roles of an LPN in a med-surg setting, but they are not the primary source. The facility Human Resources Department [a] may have information about job descriptions and responsibilities specific to that facility. Nursing textbooks [c] may provide general information about the roles of LPNs. Coworkers on your unit [d] may have personal experience and knowledge about the roles of LPNs in that specific unit, but their information may not be comprehensive or up-to-date.

An incident report should be filed whenever an unexpected event occurs. The rule of thumb is that any time a patient makes a complaint, a medication error occurs, a medical device malfunctions, or anyone— patient, staff member, or visitor—is injured or involved in a situation with the potential for injury, an incident report is required ⁴. In this case, the client's missing dentures would be considered a complaint and would require the nurse to complete an incident report.

The other options do not require an incident report. Disagreeing with the nurse manager about inadequate staffing [a], a staff member not arriving at the facility to work an assigned shift [b], and discovering that the client does not have advanced directives [d] are not situations that would require an incident report according to the information provided in my sources.