Christina Rafano covers four things RNs cannot do: alter physician medication orders, delegate patient assessments to LPNs or CNAs, dilute medications, or obtain informed surgical consent. On the NCLEX, avoid answers suggesting you change a doctor's order.
Must know nclex tip number two is to know the RN scope of practice. So you have to know these things for your nursing exam. And of course when you go to clinical and work on the floor, you cannot change a doctor's prescription for medications. So whatever the doctor prescribed, that is what you need to give. So when you are taking your nursing school exam, make sure that you are not trying to change. You don't select an answer that is like change the doctor's order or anything like that. Then you cannot delegate patient assessments to an LPN or a DNA. You cannot dilute medications. And then you cannot get informed consent from the patient before surgery. That is the doctor's job or the surgeon's job. It is the RN job to witness and verify that consent was given for your patient, but you cannot actually get that informed consent yourself. Now a note for not changing a doctor's prescription. Of course you can't change it, but you can contest it. You can obviously ask questions to the doctor if you ever have a concern.
