Pot Smoking and Nursing

[MrsNurseCA]

Im angry.

I work for a small clinic in Northern CA. There are three RN's on staff at all time. Recently our Office Manager decided to start drug testing of all staff including Doctors. Well, one of the Nurses I work with came back positive for marijuana use. My thought was "Well she should not be doing it anyways" I was actually glad to see her get in trouble.

After discusing it with the Doctors they came up with a new unwritten policy. They will overlook marijuana. Basiclly, you can smoke all the pot you want but just on the weekends not during "on call" days. I questioned one of the Doctors about it and his response was to "chill"

Does this seem wrong to anybody else? Do Nurses really smoke pot on there days off?

[hapeewendy]

mcl4 , well apparently the ones mentioned in the posters original post do find it okay

since they arent taking action and all :)

[thisnurse]

this thread has gone so many different ways its hard to remember what the original topic was...lol

but ive really enjoyed the discussion (s)

[sandygator, BSN, RN]

Well....I'm wondering after reading all these posts...whom are we concerned about here?? Co-workers? Patients? Ourselves? No wonder subatance abuse is so rampant in our profession. I think the clinic you work for should be shut down and the office manager who anyone else looking the other way arrested.

[winterbot428]

I really don't have a dog in this fight but did a small research paper on MJ and I went from being anti to ambivolent. Both sides makes outrageous claims about the use of MJ. The governments argument seems very disengenous (sp).

[CRNI-ICU20]

and so what happens when the malpractice attny. comes along and subpeona's everyone's drug screen tests in the office after his/her client was injured, maimed, or maltreated by the dr./office staff in question?? is the doctor going to say, "just Chill.." then????

This isn't Haight-Ashbury/Woodstock anymore.....and what once grew in the '60's is much different weed now....the THC content is exponentially higher....as health care providers we need to be examples of health to those we care for....THIS isn't it. crni

[CRNI-ICU20]

here's another point I thought of:

when you work for a business, like a bank for instance, where you are handling large sums of money....a background check is part and parcel of employment. When you work around children, ie a school, a background check is part and parcel of the employement with that place....it is expected that IF you work in that sort of environment, that you UPHOLD certain ideals, expectations, and work ethics.....

why should nurses and doctors get a pass because it's "just a little weed" on week=ends?

When patients come into a health care setting, they assume those who care for them are in control of their faculties and they assume that when those dr.s and nurses are caring for them they are providing SAFE care....cannibis has been tested for years by the govt' as well as other groups....bottom line, if there is even a QUESTION that it could impair judgement, WHY

[CRNI-ICU20]

here's another point I thought of:

when you work for a business, like a bank for instance, where you are handling large sums of money....a background check is part and parcel of employment. There is a battery of testing, that people have to go through in order to be imployed with a bank or armored vehicle company. Peeing in front of someone is miniscule when compared to the psychological testing and background checks that include who you ate dinner with the second Tuesday May 2004! :trout:When you work around children, ie a school, a background check is part and parcel of the employement with that place....it is expected that IF you work in that sort of environment, that you UPHOLD certain ideals, expectations, and work ethics.....I don't think kiddie Media is part of equation in this profession....just a guess!

why should nurses and doctors get a pass because it's "just a little weed" on week=ends?

When patients come into a health care setting, they assume those who care for them are in control of their faculties and they assume that when those dr.s and nurses are caring for them they are providing SAFE care....cannibis has been tested for years by the govt' as well as other groups....bottom line, if there is even a QUESTION that it could impair judgement, WHY WOULD YOU EVEN GO THERE??

We, both drs. and nurses, have an obligation to not place ourselves in a compromising position not just for ourselves, but mostly for our patients....that is why there is a NURSE PRACTICE ACT in every state, that clearly spells out and defines our practice and expected behaviour. Until the BON says it's okay for me, or my coworkers to smoke pot while practicing medications, I am going to err on the side of caution, and assume that they mean it when they say "DRUG FREE ENVIRONMENT".

I wonder how many of you would feel comfortable having a frequent user making judgements concerning your mother or your child? What if those same people were writing prescriptions of highly powerful or life altering medications, and they made a grievious error that caused you or your loved one harm? Would you then just say, "what I do on my week-end is MY business?"

It's no longer YOUR business when your impaired judgement now involves a vulnerable patient.....now it's EVERYONE"S business....

crni

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

I don't understand. If they test positive how can they prove it was done on free time? If you are positive you are impaired. Period.

In fact, if you are willing to risk MY life over your habit you are impaired mentally.

[Jedi of Zen]

If I'm not mistaken the state of California has had a history of working to legitimize medical marijuana use. Perhaps some of the staff at your clinic has been toking some medical-grade weed.

Which, with the state of technology today, I've always thought that surely there are other methods or medications out there that can provide whatever medical benefits pot-smoking provides for certain conditions, but without the toxic effects of pot-smoking. However, I'm not an expert on this subject, but I've always wondered about that.

I don't think it's a habit that should be encouraged in the medical field. It has nothing to do with getting on a moral high horse; it's just a matter of plain facts: frequent use leads to lethargy, depression, and lowering of testosterone. I used to smoke pot every day for nearly a year, and eventually it just became a thing that was totally pointless. If an otherwise competent individual smokes pot...live and let live. But if you test positive, I don't see it as being unfair in our profession to have that as grounds for being fired. We need to stay sharp and on the ball, both mentally and physically, and if random/regular testing helps encourage that, I say more power to it. Call me a square; maybe I'm just not up with the times these days, but yeah, that's my opinion.

[iheartyou]

and i think what PEOPLE do outside of the work place is none of YOUR business.

so long as they are not impaired on the job or smoking (or drinking) at work, i have to agree with the doc...just CHILL.

you talk about the airline pilots that USED marijuana...how much did they use? a joint? an ounce? did they smoke from a pipe? did they use a bong? all of these things have an impact.

you can make studies say anything you want to.

i know that when i used to go out and get drunk i was impaired the next day as well.

and no im not a smoker,(i have the most boring urine in the world) but it does bother me that others are so quick to judge a pot smoker as they sip on their drinks. one is no better than the other.

The difference is that pot is illegal and alcoohol is not. Your right, it's not anyone's business what people do on their days off; but if they get caught doing something illegal, why are you excusing their behavior? Does that mean that it's okay for nurses to abuse other illegal drugs on their days off? Percocet...morphine...etc.? Any nurse who tests positive for pot should recieve the same punishment for the other nurses who test positive for other illegal drugs. I'm not at all against using marijuanna for medical purposes such as MS and glaucoma (and I'm sure many others), but using it recreationally is still against the law.

[iheartyou]

But on the other hand, suppose there is an employee just returning from vacation or extended time away from work-who happens to be back at work the day drug testing is done. A positive test for MJ use comes back and the employee ends up loosing their job or even worse their entire working or education privilidges? How fair is that?

Laws are still laws whether someone is on vacation or not. Any nurse knows what is at stake and it would be ridiculous to take such a chance.

[iheartyou]

are you all trying to tell me that marijuana is still illegal??

pfffftt..*cough...cough...(bummer man!)

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:lol!!!!!!