Almost had a coronary..

Published

OMG..my first week on my new job and my first day of having my own patient to care for.. after 3 years of fighting with the BON, thousands of dollars spent, a trip through Hell and back, and a board order to allow me to work with stips for a year (my stips are different than most in that I must give narcotics in my job as part of my agreed order)..I had to give my first narcotic. I was like.."OK girl..you have a firm grip on your recovery..you do not want to use..you are fine." I punched in my ID into the pyxis, counted the narcs, withdrew my patient's dose, and logged out..and BOOM..the pixus said it had a discrepancy!!! :redlight::eek::redlight: I almost peed my pants..I called my preceptor in and showed her what had happened.. and it was an honest mistake..those little sealed bags that have a note on them saying "10" well..there were only 9 narcs in one of the bags. It took me an hour to quit shaking.

I finally went in to my bosses office..(she knows my whole story) and said..I don't know if I can do this..I am so afraid of something coming up missing and being accused of it. She said to take a deep breath and remember, I am the most closely monitored nurse she has and discrepancies happen all the time and are easily corrected. She told me she would not have hired me if she was not very comfortable with my recovery and gave me a big heartfelt hug. :hug:

Lesson learned..do not trust the little sealed bags to have the correct number of narcs in them. Count each and every one of them. Thank God for recovery. :heartbeat:nurse::heartbeat

Specializes in u name it.

Interesting..Well here in Texas the computerized Pyxis system is pretty standard in one form or another..but it is not fool proof. I know of a hospital that has a fingerprint scan and one that is looking at an iris scan for identification..pretty high tech stuff. But I liked the system I was raised on with 2 nurses counting every shift.

Congratulations backtowork. In the hospital setting that I am currently working in Penang, we will need 2 RN's to count any narcotic drugs together and verify it before leaving the Pyxis sytem. Discrepancies often happen, but as long as you are doing your job correctly, you have nothing to be afraid of my dear.

Take care & God bless.

Specializes in u name it.

Thank you sweet lady.

Specializes in Methadone dispensing.
OMG..my first week on my new job and my first day of having my own patient to care for.. after 3 years of fighting with the BON, thousands of dollars spent, a trip through Hell and back, and a board order to allow me to work with stips for a year (my stips are different than most in that I must give narcotics in my job as part of my agreed order)..I had to give my first narcotic. I was like.."OK girl..you have a firm grip on your recovery..you do not want to use..you are fine." I punched in my ID into the pyxis, counted the narcs, withdrew my patient's dose, and logged out..and BOOM..the pixus said it had a discrepancy!!! :redlight::eek::redlight: I almost peed my pants..I called my preceptor in and showed her what had happened.. and it was an honest mistake..those little sealed bags that have a note on them saying "10" well..there were only 9 narcs in one of the bags. It took me an hour to quit shaking.

I finally went in to my bosses office..(she knows my whole story) and said..I don't know if I can do this..I am so afraid of something coming up missing and being accused of it. She said to take a deep breath and remember, I am the most closely monitored nurse she has and discrepancies happen all the time and are easily corrected. She told me she would not have hired me if she was not very comfortable with my recovery and gave me a big heartfelt hug. :hug:

Lesson learned..do not trust the little sealed bags to have the correct number of narcs in them. Count each and every one of them. Thank God for recovery. :heartbeat:nurse::heartbeat

I had to hold in my laughter when I read your post. I'm sitting with a patient in a lock up unit. the two flashing lights with the big eyes caught me completely off guard, you really know how to express yourself. LOL!! I'm glad everything worked out for you and you have a great boss to confide in. I wish you the best in your recovery.

Specializes in u name it.

Hey Vernon42..ya..it was like too crazy for words..like a twilight zone episode when the aliens come and take you away ..crazy. But I guess we all have to be a little crazy to go down the road of addiction and find our way back from the fog..Glad a I gave you a smile..you gave me one too. :loveya:

Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

:hug: How scary! Just remember count your narcs! You have fought a long hard battle....and won. You deserve a second chance. I have worked with other nurses in recovery and they have done well.....but don't stress yourself so much to make it all that much harder on you. Take a deep breath and take one day at a time. Congratulations on your recovery and my prayers for your daily battle..:hug:

Specializes in u name it.

Thank you Esme12 (I love your dog, reminds me of my old Weim Shultz!!) It will just take some getting used to..I so much appreciate your support and kind words..great advice.. manually count count count

backtowork- you handled this magnificently!! first crisis had occurred & handled like the professional your are! big high fives & huge hugs to you!! :w00t:

Specializes in u name it.

Thanks TXRN2 friend..your next..can't wait to hear of your successes :hrnsmlys:..we are on our way. Thank you for al your support and kind words. :loveya:

+ Join the Discussion