Binge Drinking

thisnurse · Jan 31, 2002

prn, all i am saying is that MADD does not directly save lives. im not trying to debate their worthiness.

i was out of work. i was counting pennies. i get a call from a rep of MADD asking for a donation. i explain that i agree with their cause but i just cant do it at that time. this jerk goes on and on and on about my not being able to donate to such a good organization. he tries to "shame me" into donating "something". finally, i hang up. he calls back and starts yelling at me. i hang up again and he calls me back. i hang up again, the phone rings and i dont answer it. it rings and rings and rings. finally i pick it up and leave it off the hook. harassment leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

as for the ANA's code of ethics...im sorry but those are ridiculous. why are we expected to be more ethical than the general population?

i chain smoke and its unethical? if i get drunk i am unethical?

every year i get the publication from the state nursing board and i see all of the disciplinary actions taken against nurses. how many professions do this?

consider bill clinton. as president he is expected to set an example for all americans. the president represents our people to the world. so he cheats on his wife and then lies to the world but he is still president. what would the consequences have been if mr. clinton was a nurse?

MollyJ · Jan 31, 2002

Well, regarding all *negative health behaviors* be they eating the wrong foods, smoking and drinking, particularly drinking to excess...

This is the point at which we as nurses get to experience the real problems our clients experience. If we've ever just shook our head over the CHF'er that ate dill pickles OR the diabetic that comes in with a bs of 800 because they've been screwing around with their diet and then got sick and waited way too long to come in OR the COPD'er that smokes, this is where we see that we are like them.

Isn't it interesting that knowledge isn't sufficient to change behavior?

I have never been anything but a whimpy drinker by any one's standards, but I don't drink in public at all and I drink very occasionally (0-2 times per month) and never more than a drink or two because the "kids" are watching---mine and the kids in the school I serve.

Nurses and all HCP's have a real obligation to model good health behaviors and to learn from those we struggle with.

Of course, alcohol as I tell my kids, is something we all get lots of mixed messages about. I suspect marijuana is falling into this classification, too. Officially the message is don't do it; on the side the adults give the big wink, do it and provide it to teens.

Bottom line, nurses: what we live, we model to those around us and if it is inconsistent with what we would recommend to our patients, it deserves a second (or third, fourth or fifth) look by us.

Nurses, the "binge drinking" question is aimed mostly at teens and college students and studies of teens show that something like 35 to 40% of teens engage in binge drinking. Know also that a NIAAA study showed that teens that start to drink before the age of 15 (which is incredibly common) have a 4x greater risk of drinking addictively in their lifetime and a 2x greater risk of drinking abusively in their lifetime.

As many of you know, I am an old ED nurse. I wish I had had some of this addiction info when I worked the ED. I remember Friday nights and some Saturdays as a blur of drunk teens in with 10-48's, mostly minor injury accidents but not all (most of which barfed their obligatory pizza and beer stomach contents into or onto some surface I then had to clean). Some of these kids saw this is an alpha experience and changed what they did; some saw it as simply the price of having fun.

Most of us experience alcohol as a transient phase in our lives which we then grow out of. For some it is the doorway to addiction. Ohbet writes like someone who has worked with an impaired nurse or nurses who don't understand that what they do is part of their health message. We cannot be like baseball or football stars and say, "Look, I didn't sign up for this part." Well, we got it. Since most of us will fall short of being models of perfect health, we must be at least aware of the discrepancies in our message and use that strength to improve our practice (AA slogan like this is Progress not Perfection).

BTW, it concerns me how many nurses smoke. Docs rate of smoking fell as knowledge about smoking increased; nurses (and women's rate of smoking) increased. And ladies we're attaining equality in the Lung Cancer rates (male v female). Nurses need to be concerned about that. And I am not trying to hammer on the heads of nurses who smoke and try to quit but cannot, but I think nursing (like medicine) should do a better job of creating a non-smoking culture.

Examine the parallels between nicotine addiction and alcohol addiction; they're fascinating.

thisnurse · Jan 31, 2002

i strongly disagree with you. nursing is a profession, not a life style.

ohbet · Jan 31, 2002

Yes,nursing is a profession,not a lifesyle,but what we owe to our patients we our to ourselves

thisnurse · Jan 31, 2002

i give my patients all of myself while they are in my care. the emphasis being on care. when my shift is over its over.i am not willing to be a living example for anyone other than my children. i owe my patients nothing.

semstr · Jan 31, 2002

What b...s..t!

I am one unethical, smoking, drinking, having a active sexlife nurse! ROFLMAO

But since I do all of the above in my private time and not in front of my patients, so what?

Keep it on, Renee

kewlnurse · Jan 31, 2002

So bangin a med student/intern in her sleeping area would be unethical, but going back to her dorm would be ok?

prn nurse · Jan 31, 2002

since you received the phone call fromm the pushy MADD fundraiser....I would suggest phoning your local MADD office and reporting it. That is absolutely/definitely not their corporate style. MADD is a class act all the way down the line and it would be a shame to allow one person to mar their image. MADD would never tolerate anyone representing them in this manner. I have never even known of a MADD fundraiser. Most of their funds come from victim's families and corporations.

thisnurse · Feb 1, 2002

been way too many years now prn. i never forgot it tho

kewl...yes thats right.

can you imagine if politicians had to live by the same set of "standards" we do (are supposed to) and were held to them...like we are...who would run the country?

if i wanted to be a nun, i would have joined a convent.

ohbet · Feb 1, 2002

I think it would be helpful to clarify what standards we are talking about.

1. THE LEGAL STANDARD:Legally,a nurse,after her/his shift,can go home,consume any quantity of alcohol she/he chooses to,as long as they are not impaired on the job. Legally she/he can eat till he/she pukes their guts out,as long as they are not impaired on the job. Legally she/he can smoke cigarettes until they become COPDers ,as long as they are not impaired on the job.

2.THE ETHICAL STANDARD:Ethically,a nurse would be behaving in an unethical manner if he/she drank more than what is considered mod. drinking or eating more than is considered healthy or smoking at all. The basis for this lies in the "Code of Ethicis for Nurses with Interpretive statements" which reads "Moral respect accords moral worth and dignity to all human beings irrespective of their personal attributes or life situation . Such respect extends to one self as well; the same duties that we owe to others we owe to ourselves." see 5.1 Moral self-respect in the Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Standards.

So what the above ethical standard is saying is that since a nurse wouldnt tell patients to drink immoderately,eat immoderately or smoke cigarrettes because its risky behavior,then he/she ,ethically,should not engage in those behaviors.

Its a distinction bet/ the legal standard and the ethical standard.

See the difference? There is a difference bet/ legality and ethics.

I hope this helps. God bless,if thats appropriate.

nurs4kids · Feb 2, 2002

Originally posted by ohbet
Interpreted by the ANA,in "The code of ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements,5.1 Moral Self-respect:Moral respect accords moral worth and dignity to all human beings irrespective of their personal attributes or life situation. Such respect extends to oneself as well; the same duties that we owe to ohers we owe to ourselves."
Based on that statement made by the ANA,we wouldnt tell our patients to drink 4 to 5 alcoholic drinks regularly,therefore,we would not do that ourselves as nurses,hence a nurse that drinks 4 to 5 alcoholic drinks regularly is acting unethically.

Hell, we need to just revoke the license of over half all nurses. I, personally, binge eat and binge smoke. I'm no drinker, but if it has no influence on one's job, it isn't the ANA or anyone else's business what anyone is doing in their OWN time. Most everyone has some type "unhealthy" vice. Some drink, some smoke, some eat, some have unprotected/multiple sex partners, some drive w/o seat belts, some ride bikes w/o helments, some don't brush their teeth TID, some don't drink 8-10 glasses of H20 daily, some abuse their spouse/kids, some don't clean their homes....you get the picture? That's complete BS!!!!

get a life!

nurs4kids · Feb 2, 2002

Prn,

On another thread you complained over the gov'ts regulation of seat belts, littering and other common laws. Which way do you want it? You don't want the gov't to enforce common sense laws, but you want the nursing profession to mandate how I live the few hours I'm granted AWAY from work??? :rolleyes:

Ever researched how many animals are killed from litter thrown on the roads? The little celephane (sp?) wrappers from cigs kills birds, the cig butts kills birds. If the law doesn't mandate seat belts, then some idiot parent allows their 12 yr old to fly through a car window....

I really don't understand your views.

tracy