Anyone been caught for diversion of non narcotics?

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Sep 26, 2016

Diversion is still theft, whether it's a lowly aspirin or the big guns of Dilaudid. And theft is not without consequences.

It depends on whether your employer plans to report it to the authorities and/or the BON. They may decide not to: in that case, you dodged a bullet, a lesson (hopefully) was learned, and you move onto the next job. Unfortunately you may have to address this during your job hunt though...

If they do report it...lawyer up ASAP. You don't want a criminal charges and/or BON discipline on your record. While having a lawyer doesn't mean you'll get off scot free, a lawyer could help mitigate the damage.

Also, if you diverted these for your own use, you may want to address that too.

Best of luck.

Cruise123 · Sep 26, 2016

Thank you, I appreciate your advise

Rosa09 · Sep 26, 2016

You lost your job. Where you drug tested? I left my job after I was sent for a drug test, I didn't wait for the result and I panicked and resigned. I spent days thinking the police would come knocking at my door, but thanks God it didn't. A month later I got a letter from my employer saying I needed to report to my state's nursing monitoring agency or they would report me to the BON. I self reported, and my journey began. It's been 6 months since I self reported and after getting a psych evaluation with a doctor 300 miles from my house, been sent to inpatient rehab, daily AA/NA meetings, Nurse Support meetings, random urine drug testing, I have been clear to go back to work with narcotic restrictions. My advised to you is, If you get ask to self report to your state's nursing monitoring agency, be careful with what you say to them, tell them the truth, be concise and don't run your mouth saying too much. They are not your friends, their purpose is to protect the public and deal with nurses like us. There is so much else I can tell but I don't want to overwhelm you. For know find someone to talk to, find support in your church, family, friends. I know that not knowing what to expect can drive you crazy, many of us have experienced the same. Stay strong.

Cruise123 · Sep 26, 2016

I was not asked to take a drug test. My manager and a pharmacist asked me some questions about my Omnicell activities. Then she said I would be suspended for two days while they investigated further. Then four days later I tried to log in to the company's employee portal and could not gain access. I assumed I was terminated without being contacted to tell me.

Rosa09 · Sep 26, 2016

I would first find my employment status, and go from there.

Omaapecm, ASN, RN · Sep 26, 2016

You received great advice from meriwhen, she is pretty much spot on. hopefully they don't report this and you can just move on.

SororAKS, ADN, RN · Sep 27, 2016

I was not asked to take a drug test. My manager and a pharmacist asked me some questions about my Omnicell activities. Then she said I would be suspended for two days while they investigated further. Then four days later I tried to log in to the company's employee portal and could not gain access. I assumed I was terminated without being contacted to tell me.

Perhaps this is due to the suspension. I'd find out my employment status and take it from there. The fact that they haven't asked you to test nor given you a termination notice says they're still investigating.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Oct 3, 2016

My advised to you is, If you get ask to self report to your state's nursing monitoring agency, be careful with what you say to them, tell them the truth, be concise and don't run your mouth saying too much. They are not your friends, their purpose is to protect the public and deal with nurses like us.

I second this. Think of it like dealing with JCAHO when they visit: answer the questions asked, but keep the explanations brief and don't volunteer any information that they didn't ask for.

Also, I won't tell you to self-report or not self-report as only you can make that decision, and each decision has positives and negatives that you need to weigh out.

I will tell you to talk to legal counsel, especially one versed in nursing matters and dealing with BONs (you can find one here: TAANA Executive Office - Home) before you make that decision...and especially if you decide to self-report. You need to protect yourself, and it's not unheard of for BONs and these programs to set stipulations that a nurse may find almost impossible to meet. They don't do it intentionally, but it does happen more than you think. You don't want to agree to anything the BON offers without having a lawyer go over it with you first.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Oct 4, 2016

You need to protect yourself, and it's not unheard of for BONs and these programs to set stipulations that a nurse may find almost impossible to meet. They don't do it intentionally, but it does happen more than you think. You don't want to agree to anything the BON offers without having a lawyer go over it with you first.

For the record, I don't believe BONs/diversion programs are intentionally setting nurses up to fail. But I do believe the BON/program isn't always grounded in reality when determining the stipulations the nurse has to follow. And a lot of nurses are just so happy to be catching any form of break that they'll agree to anything without first really going over what the BON/program is asking from them.

SororAKS, ADN, RN · Oct 4, 2016

For the record, I don't believe BONs/diversion programs are intentionally setting nurses up to fail. But I do believe the BON/program isn't always grounded in reality when determining the stipulations the nurse has to follow. And a lot of nurses are just so happy to be catching any form of break that they'll agree to anything without first really going over what the BON/program is asking from them.

Most times, nurses don't think they have any alternatives but to follow it hook and line, and or are afraid to question anything.

allnurses Guide · Oct 4, 2016

You don't have to answer this question and probably shouldn't on a public four, - bu "Did you do it? Enquiring Minds want to know?

Hppy