What do you think of this?

[Coloradogrl]

Tonight on the news there was a women on there that son passed away. He was under the care of a doctor that was under investigation. She was able to get lawmakers to pass a Medical Transparency act. Well she is going now to get it expanded to dentist, nurses, and other medical professionals. One of thing that she was quoted saying was, "If there's a nurse out there with a drug problem, that's been disciplined, you'll be able to see that," Skolnik said.

What do you think about this. I personally have never had any issues with any drugs and hopefully I never do. It did make me think wondered about other people. I know of a nurse who is in her 50's who has been a nurse for almost 30 years. When she was in her 20's she had a problem with drugs and got help and has not had an issue with it since. Would this affect her and maybe even end her career?

I can see how this would be useful but I guess I can see how it could also be a problem. I mean if a nurse has been disciplined, gotten helped, and did any resitution that was ordered what would this law do to them.

Here is the link to the story

http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-skolnik-malpractice-021010,0,2754817.story

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I know of a person who became licensed as an RN for the very first time in 2007. This person has never had any addictions or issues with alcohol or drug abuse. However, a DWI charge from 1991 came back to haunt this person during the process of applying for nursing licensure.

To make a long story short, this nurse was forced to enroll in the state's peer assistance program for nurses with addictions to alcohol and/or drugs as a result of having this old DWI on his record. Keep in mind that he practices in one of the states that has a strict BON.

Therefore, this new law would be traveling down a slippery slope. I agree with transparency, but the story on paper is often missing too many details. I wouldn't want the public to mistrust caregivers based on incomplete, faulty, or erroneous information.

[Coloradogrl]

Commuter that is exactly what I felt with the slippery slope. I just could see it hurting nurses harder then most doctor's I don't know why but I really do.

[diane227, LPN, RN]

I am not sure exactly how I feel about this. I would have to study on this for a while. You can find out now if someone has had an action taken aginst his/ her license. I know two doctors in Texas who lost their license and all I had to do was look their names up on the board of medicine site and all the actions were outlined there. I believe that if someone got a DUI 20 years ago it is not relivant now, but is someone is getting drunk and driving now, are they safe to give care? I don't know. Those of us who are in charge of the care and safety of others (doctors, nurses, pilots, bus drivers, babysitters, policemen, air traffic controllers, etc) have to be held to a higher standard, if we like it or not. I don't want a drunk pilot or a drunk surgeon. I don't want a nurse who is psychotic or an air traffic controller high on cocaine. So it cannot stop with just nurses and doctors.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I'd be more comfortable with a Transparency Act only if time limits were imposed on all reportable information. For instance, the 45 year old nurse who was convicted for arson at 16 years of age is not a threat to his/her patients if he/she has been living a law-abiding lifestyle during the nearly 30 years that have elapsed since the incident.

Patient safety is important, but it is also unfair to penalize healthcare workers who are also perfectly safe just because they were involved in an indiscretion in their youth.