Drug Abuse Among Us??

Nurses Safety

Published

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 ??

Stating that one takes medication on a daily basis does not automatically mean that this information is being witheld from the appropriate people.

Some of us are responsible.

mattsmom: Kudos to you for having a compassionate and informed approach to pain mgmt.

Gosh, I was searching for this very thread and Iam so grateful to have found it. Well, I see exactly in you guys as the rest of the world is: some judgemental, some not. My motto is, try not to judge anybody until you've been there and done that! I too was an impaired nurse. I worked on a med-surg floor and orthopedic floor for 3 years all the while diverting pain meds. It started out P.O. meds but as my addiction escalated I went on to the IM's such as Demeral and such and then on to IV. When I was intervened upon, (thank God, none of my patients had been hurt while I worked under the influence: though in the beginning I didn't) the hospital I worked at didn't press charges, and I was taking enough to be selling the stuff to be honest. Anyway, I refused to go to tx for the first 3 mo, and was buying Oxycontin off the street to feed my addiction. I finally went to tx in 1999-2000 for a total of 7 mo. I have been clean for 3 years and have a good recovery program and I'm being monitored by the state through drug screens and other recovery things. I haven't went back to nursing yet. Right now, I am trying to get a job, but I have to tell my potiential employer about my drug addiction and once they hear that, they can't seem to get past that, so I have been like so so down about this job thing. So, guys when you hear of addiction in patients or even co-workers have a little compassion. I have learned to think of it as a cancer. It will kill you if it isn't taken care of. And by all means, if you suspect a co-worker, REPORT them. If the DON doesn't do anything then go higher. You can go on line to your state board site and there is a site for impaired nurses. Did you know that you could get into trouble with your license if you know that someone is working under the influence and you don't report them? Thanks guys!

I think any nurse who gives a patient NS instead of the actual analgesic should lose her licence, period. Diverting narcotics is one thing...diverting narcotics at the expense of your patients' well-being is downright evil.

I worked at a veterinary clinic where one of the techs was actually doing IM Demerol, plus buprenorphine, injectable oxycodone and Ketamine, a tranquiliser. She would replace the drug with sterile water. Record-keeping isn't as strict at vet clinics, and there's no Pyxis system, plus most drugs are in multiple-dose vials. It took us almost a year to figure out that the drugs had been diverted...dogs screaming in pain even after 3 or 4x the normal dose of oxycodone (sterile water) and dogs that stayed wide awake even after dosing with tranquilisers (sterile water). She put her co-workers in jeopardy--a fractious, biting dog that can't be sedated is a danger to everyone. Eventually, we bought a clue and she left before we could do anything like report her.

Anyway, since I'm still a student, I can't imagine a nurse doing that to a HUMAN patient. I think, though, that nurses who just divert 'waste' meds should definitely be given multiple chances to rehab.

I, like everyone else in this forum, oppose diversion of narcs from patients but possibly contrary to some in this forum, I don find anything immoral with pocketing wasted meds. It is the equivilant to saying that dumpster diving is unethical. With that said, it should be known that I realize that there is a difference between CNS stimulants/depressants and an old couch. I would like to pose a question though: Which nurse would be more damaging, the exhausted, overworked one with a splitting headache and an inability to concentrate adequately or that same nurse w/o pain but with a slight euphoria as a result of hydrocodone? I don't think there is a clear-cut answer to that question but feel it should be left up to those health professionals that have the ethical means (diversion of waste) to obtain those meds. After all, either way it is that person's license on the line, not yours. Oh, I am aware of the patient's life that is subject to the care of that professional but I must refer you back to my previous question regarding which of the two nurses would be more effective btw the one with the ha and stress or the relaxed euphoric one, like I said b4 I don't think there is a clear-cut answer.

Chicoborja you scare the h*** out of me.

In case you have some doubts, euphoria, whether drug induced or not, is a state of impaired judgement. A nurse with impaired judgement is a nurse without judgement and one who has no business taking care of anyone.

There really are clear cut answers. A nurse who is unable to safely perform the duties of his or her job, has no business being at work. A reasonable prudent nurse and his or her supervisor will get him or her out of the clinical area. Reasonable and prudent coworkers will understand and cope.

While legal and moral are not necessarily equivalent. We are bound by the law.

Yeah- Let's read between the lines here. One of the consequences of using is impaired judgemnt, right ?

The user's feels fine , thinks they are working at optimal power, all four burners. Wrong.

We are a dynamic system folks- Any change- allegra, caffeine withdrawal, ETOH, flexeril, ( I could go on and on) will influence the system. It's a fact. That there is no exact measurement for the change nor any way to predict how much of a change will occur is irrelevant.

Two of the biggest drugs of abuse that will truly STRING YOU OUT are soma and ultram, neither of which is a controlled substance.

I tend to agree, morally, with chicoborja...but I wouldn't do it. You'd have to lie and say you 'wasted' the meds, right? And the lying is what gets me hung up.

As far as being impaired, I think it's an individual thing. I take Zyrtec, Zoloft and Wellbutrin every single day, no side effects. However, if I take a single dose of Flexeril, I end up flat on my back--literally. Same with most narcotics--30 mgs of codeine (the equivalent of one Tylenol 3 tablet) and I'm not only impaired, I'm totally useless. So, I don't take the Flexeril unless I have back pain so bad that I wouldn't go in to work anyway; and narcotics I just avoid unless I know I'm not working for at least 12 hours.

I'm sure, however, that there are lots of people out there who could take four Flexeril, wash it down with some hydrocodone sirop, and still be relatively lucid and competent.

Specializes in ORTHOPAEDICS-CERTIFIED SINCE 89.
...but I must refer you back to my previous question regarding which of the two nurses would be more effective btw the one with the ha and stress or the relaxed euphoric one, like I said b4 I don't think there is a clear-cut answer.

GASP...!!! I can't believe I just read this! The ONE CLEAR-CUT ANSWER is that nurse needs to go get some Tylenol or Advil and WASTE the med as the law mandates!!!

Stealing drugs is not equivalent to dumpster diving in any way shape or form.

And BTW dumpster-diving is dangerous and illegal!

Specializes in ER, ICU, L&D, OR.

Howdy ya'll

from deep in the heart of Texas

I am haveing a little difficulty understanding some of the views posted here. The bottom line is you do not misappropiate drugs at work under any condition. Whether it is waste or not. Itis still stealing and abusing drugs. And you are in violation of the law. The board of nursing rules and guidlines in whatever state you work. Except maybe that newest state, EUPHORIA.

I do not condone or excuse the theft of drugs, in any fashion.

Also, I do not condone or excuse those that work while impaired from prescription drugs usage. If your are hurting bad enough to require using narcotics, muscle relaxers, or other mind or mood altering substances Then you do not need to be doing patient care. You do not need to be behind the wheel of a car. Read the law, read your PDR, Read the board of nursing guidelines. It is spelled out in black and white. You do not go to work impaired from the influence of medication.

Now if the level of pain you are experiencing is enough to impair your judgement then you need to stay home. If the pain you are having can only be controlled with narcotics, then you need to saty home or find a job away from patient care. This is black and white legalities. This is very simple. I have 3 bad discs in my lower back and a left knee that is in terrible shape. I HURT all the time. I woulf never take narcotics and muscle relaxers in any shape or form and go to work. This simply isnt proper,legally and morally and responsibly. It just isnt to be done.

Someone talked about umpairment level due to meds ia an individual based response. that may be. However you do not need to work in nursing patient care if you are under the influence of medications, Im not talking tylenol and motrin here.

This again is the plain unadulterated truth to the matter.

Someone discussed earlier which is better impairment from being in pain so bad you cant function, or walking around pain free and in a state of euphoria and feeling better. Niether is preferable, and niether should occur.

For those nurses and I have seen more than a few in my life who can't work in nursing without taking numerous psychotropic medications, then you are a impaired nurse. And if nursing is what is making you so unhappy then pills are not the answer. You need to get out of nursing and patient care. And again you shouldnt even be behind the wheel of a car. Find yourself another job. I dont want you taking care of my family if they are ever unfortunate enough to be under your care. I can understand a little prozac or wellbutrin or something mild. But when you are taking benzodiazipines and sedatives then you need to look elsewhere for work and again dont get behind the wheel of a car.

Someone was talking about the right to pain control and managemnet of pain. I have no issues with this. Except while you are at work and under their influence and taking care of patients. This is something that cant be resolved in any aspect that I can see.

I have worked with a number of nurses who succumbed to drug

use while at work. Then were caught and went through rehabilitation. They came back and apologized to us and cried and stuff. We witnessed their wasteages and all also. Out all that I have seen only one has remained straight. The rest all failed in their recovery. Yes we have a shortage in nursing but filling it with impaired nurses is not the answer. I can see being given one chance, so make the best of it. But 2 or 3 or 4 chances, I think is wrong. Go find another job.

A little about my self I am 50 years old and holding. I am a recovering alcoholic who has not failed in his recovery. I am a ER nurse of many years and some of beliefs are fostered by not only what I belive but from what I have seen occur while at work. And the consequences that occur from those who work while impaired. And if I can see any one thing that is a constant. That is any rationalization that you use to justify your continued use of some of these meds and continue to work, is just that a rationalization. So if you are using these meds and taking care of patients then do what you have been trained to do since nursing school, be good to your patient and go do some other form of non patient care work.

sincerely

Specializes in MS Home Health.

Afraid so. I know several nurses with this problem.

renerian

An interesting topic, with many differing points of view. I first started nursing in Australia in the late 70s ... back in the good ol' days of in hospital training... all narcs had to be counted with 2 persons... one of whom had to be an RN... 2nd could be a student. Drugs such as Tyl 3s also had to be counted by 2, but both counters could be students. I'm not sure if it's still that way today... it's been 20 years since I worked there, and there have been sooooo many changes all around. I realize that using 2 people to count is quite impractical these days, but hey... it sure did make it difficult to divert any wasteage. I remember being dumbfounded when I first came to Canada, and discovering narcs only needed 1 person to count.... it really is a recipe for disaster. I wonder, that if in-hospital training were brought back, there would be a steady supply of students, making it easier to do a 2 person count... just a thought...

+ Add a Comment