[roxannekkb]

There was a study out of the University of Maryland that surveyed 4-5000 nurses (don't remember the exact number) and 32% reported using prescription drugs non-medically, using illicit drugs, smoking or binge drinking within the last year. The rates are similar to substance use in the general population, but the researchers say they found a correlation between the substances nurses use and their practice specialty. The study was published a few years ago in the American Journal of Public Health.

So yes, it is a problem. High stress levels and easy access to drugs certainly compound it.

[shinninginthelight]

some of you "nurses" should be ashamed of yourselves. substance abuse is a disease and should be treated as such. nurses today are under tremendouse amounts of stress at work and the supply is so readily available some people just arent strong enough to stop themselves... these nurses need help not jail time! education should be done to prevent abuse. it is less costly and effiecant. if that doesnt work they should be treated. and slowly placed back into the work place starting with a low case load and then working back to there normal case load.

remember most of us became nurses to help people
arent nurses people too............?

[teeituptom]

Shininginthelight, Im not disagreeing with you that it is a disease process. but
Stealing drugs is theft and is illegal
Fraud in forging scripts is illegal
Illegal possession of drugs is a felony
selling stolen drugs is highly illegal
driving under the influence is illegal and very dangerous to self and others.
The law is the Law and justice isnt blind, maybe put them in prison and let them be prison nurses. But keep them away from hosps and away from patients.

[Squeeta2]

Unfortunately I have seen this happen to a few of my co-workers. It's sad that we are in the profession of helping others but when we as nurses have a problem..pain..addiction..etc.. we are almost forced to keep it to ourselves for fear of being labelled for life how do you ask for help when you know that confidentiality is a joke among your peers?
I had the pleasure of working with a very well educated detail oriented nurse.She had a MS04 addiction. When questioned she pointed the finger at me..Unfortunately for her I have a very well documented anaphylatic reaction to MS04..I get scared drawing it up when I'm tired or in a rush. I begged for a drug screen. After hearing that she said well maybe she took it home for someone else. I was mortified!! She is currently in rehab program & I believe doing well.
She is a great nurse who had an unresolved chronic pain management issue.
Would I work with her again today? Absolutely! Would I do the narc count with her? I feel the hairs rising on the back of my neck thinking about it...but to be fair & hold true to MY own beliefs..I would hafta say yes...BUT I would be Oh so carefull!!

[Boop]

I'm new to this sight and have just read all the post's. Is this just a place where all the old post's are kept? Please let me know (someone) because I would like to tell my story if possible
Thanks

[DnThomts]

Originally Posted by luanne101

Am I that nieve?? A nurse on my unit was arrested for"drug diversion" Is this rampant among us?? I know we have all taken the occasional tylenol from work, but controlled substances ??

Yes. Keep in mind that nurses are are just regular old people with the faults of anyone. It's a stressful job and unfortunately like people from all walks of life, some will turn to the drus for relief. But unlike most people, keep in mind that next to the pharmacist, nurses have more direct contact and access to narcotics than anyone else. And for nurses prone to drug abuse or seeking drugs for what ever reason, it's right there in your face everyday at work. But be warned, you would be amazed at the little ways, secrets, wierd underground scientific ways the hospital and pharmacies have of monitoring narcotic distibution, who's taking what , when , where, how often and why. It's like a NASA project.

[vanillaskye]

A fellow nurse that I had worked with passed away last spring. It turns out that she had been caught diverting at the hospital that we worked at. She had chronic pain issues and was put on Employee Assistance. I never suspected her of having a problem. No physical indicators, no meds missing. She transferred to another workplace and was diverting again, never got caught. If she had been caught, her life might have been saved. Its a very sad tragedy that a woman in her early 30's with two small children dies. I could understand how she could have gotten away with it. There are often times in places where I've worked that drugs are "wasted" without another nurse present. My state board has an area on its website where you can read disciplinary reports. Most of the reports have to do with diverting.
About 7 years ago, I worked in a long term care facility. I worked night shift.
The 3-11 nurse kept dodging me when it came time to count at the end of his shift. Frequently, meds were being "dropped on the floor" and contaminated so that they were "destroyed" and another pill was given. One night, a 60 count bottle of Tylenol #3 had gone missing. Myself and the other nurse searched high and low. It could not be found. We called the nurse at home and he came in to help us search for the med, lo and behold, the entire bottle turned up in the bottom drawer of the med cart. Patients were complaining of pain and saying that they had not remembered getting their pain medication, although it was documented that the med was given. Nothing was done to confront this nurse about his suspected problem.

[Trauma-tizedRN]

I have worked with 2 nurses that were caught diverting drugs. It happened on 2 different units. Very sad, but it really made it stressful for everyone because they BOTH tried to make it look like someone else was doing it. They too accused others. We were all under suspicion until they got nabbed. No way to work, feeling scared to death you might forget to chart a med or make an error of any sort and have the finger pointed at you.

[boulergirl]

I made a very dumb mistake two years ago as a med tech. During my shift I let one of my co-workers (not a med tech) take my keys to open the cleaning cart. Then I was busy with residents and saw my keys sitting on the front desk later that shift. (There were three of us working 11-7, and both my co-workers were new aides. Neither one struck me as being entirely trustworthy.)

Anyway, that morning during the narc count about 50 Darvocets turned up missing. Although my boss believed in my innocence without a doubt, I was written up and suspended indefinitely pending investigation (policy required this). A week later my boss called me back to work. Never told me if I was cleared or not. The other two aides didn't last long.

Do I hand over my keys to just anyone now? HECK no!!! I learned my lesson: Don't hand the keys over to anyone but another med tech, and make sure the med cart and the med room door are locked when you're not there. I'm very cautious about this now.

[BeccaRN]

I worked with a nurse who we found out was documenting giving pain meds and taking them herself. When confronted by our floor manager, she admitted she had a problem, they helped her get in to rehab and gave her a nice day job with weekends off in the OR. I've been bugging everyone I can think of to get in the OR. I guess I should just tell them I have a drug problem and then they'll do it.