Co-worker stole my ID

Nurses General Nursing

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did you ever use someone elses idenity to steel narcotics form an acudose machine? How did it make you feel when you had to work with that nurse again that you stole her idenity from?

These are very comforting words!! Thank you for your input.

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I know from personal experience: being turned in to the BON will be the best thing that happens to her.

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Specializes in ER, TRAUMA, MED-SURG.

To the OP - please listen to the advice given per Tazzi. She hit the nail on the head. You do have the responsibility to this nurse, your (and other nurses) patients, and anyone that may pass this nurse on the road while she is driving impaired to report them to the BON. Because I can almost guarantee that this nurse was driving to or from work under the influence, as well as any children they may have to say the least.

I can tell you this because just like some of the other posters, I am an RNC, been a nurse for 16 years and have been a recovering addict for 6 years. It is more prevelant than you may think, and I know it is hard to turn someone you are friends with in for this but you may be saving his or her life.

Also, I can not end the posting without a comment to Tom. I was saddened to see the comment you made that we should all lose our licenses forever. In my opinion, and this is only MY opinion, it makes me wonder that maybe this subject hits you closer to home than you admit. That kind of closed mind thinking from some nurses is one thing that prevents some nurses actively diverting drugs from getting the help they need and may lead to their demise for fear of "the scarlet letter treatment".

From what I have learned about my addiction, it is a disease. Do you also think that all diabetics should never work again after being diagnosed with that disease? I pray that someone somewhere soon helps to open your eyes to this .:angryfire Anne, RNC

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Please read my last post. If you say nothing and it is found out that you have unaccounted medication then you will be the one accused and charged and possibly losing your licence or at least losing your job. Saying it then will be useless.

In my opinion any one who is drug addicted and steals your identity to get drugs should be prosecuted and lose her liscence forever. There is no forgiveness for identity left to commit a crime friend or not.

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Please read my last post. If you say nothing and it is found out that you have unaccounted medication then you will be the one accused and charged and possibly losing your licence or at least losing your job. Saying it then will be useless.

In my opinion any one who is drug addicted and steals your identity to get drugs should be prosecuted and lose her liscence forever. There is no forgiveness for identity left to commit a crime friend or not.

The OP said management has already dealt with the employee.

As for your second paragraph, I will repeat what I said to Teeituptom: if every nurse who has a chemical dependency loses his/her license, the nursing shortage would be even worse than it is and you would never see the inside of your house as a result of all the overtime. Why? Because there are WAY more of us than you think. With your statement you took my 13 years of hard-earned sobriety and slapped me with it, saying it means nothing. It's sad that you have no understanding of chemical dependency. Would you also want to prosecute a person with a brain tumor that makes him do things he wouldn't normally do, like steal?

Nurses in recovery, just like any other person in recovery, have turned their lives around and paid their penance. If we make things right we deserve the same chances as those from any other walk of life.

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Specializes in Lie detection.
Would you also want to prosecute a person with a brain tumor that makes him do things he wouldn't normally do, like steal?

Nurses in recovery, just like any other person in recovery, have turned their lives around and paid their penance. If we make things right we deserve the same chances as those from any other walk of life.

Nicely said Tazzi. I often say "Would you blame an Alzheimer's pt for things they say". NO because they have a disease!

But it's painfully obvious that many health professionals still do not recognize addiction as a disease.

Why of course that darn thieving nurse can stop and should stop. And since she isn't, lock her up, take her livelihood away forever n ever!!! (TIC).

I seriously hope anyone that thinks like that never , ever has addiction touch their life personally. I too always though "never me". Well, it id happen and as Tazzi said, there are a LOT of us out there. The majority of you are working with someone right now who is in recovery and you don't even know it. Now go to work, look at your coworkers and try to figure out which one it is. You won't be able to because we are all the same. We are nurses.

*DISCLAIMER* above is not in reference to those in active addiction.

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I worked for a DON who was diverting drugs for her own use with the knowledge and assistance of subordinates. You can imagine what a hellhole this person, under the influence, was running. As others have stated, you are only putting yourself at risk, if you do not report this person. And I highly suggest that you make an anonymous report to the board as you can expect that the employer may not do anything. The board may not do anything without a law enforcement conviction, but at least, you will have complied with your responsibility in the matter. Keep a dated copy of your complaint in your file, in case you ever need to defend your actions.

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Specializes in Critical Care.

This is all so easy to deal with - without have to take people's licenses away, forever and ever, amen.

First, random drug tests: roll 3 ten sided dice each month. Whatever numbers come up, if the last digit of your social is one of them: go pee in a bottle. If that's too much a violation of your personal liberty, then being a nurse is too much of a violation: find a different profession. With rights come responsibilities. The right to handle narcs must be matched with the responsibility to prove being clean.

2nd: it's an easy proposition to develop a standard deviation model to monitor controlled access machines. Within a week of diverting, the spike in drug withdrawals would register well out of the bell curve and could be fully investigated. It could be monitored from 2 angles: a nurse being initially outside the bell curve upon hire with narc withdrawals, and sudden changes to a nurse's normal position on the bell curve. (the second one would have immediately accounted for someone using your ID to take drugs - your monitored position on the bell curve would register outside of normal range usage and trigger a flag). Such technology is simply a matter of minor software adjustments.

3rd: Place a video camera at all controlled access stations. Make it common knowledge that all transactions will be video-taped. Shoot, I already assume that to be the case, anyway. I am always careful not to pick my nose near the machine.

All of these solutions are easy. But, as Tazzi says, there are many more nurses currently or formerly impaired out there than most people realize. And adminstration. . . well, they just don't want to know. That's obvious. If they wanted to know: the information is quite easily available to them.

And you have to think that it's just plain scary that such a concept is so commonplace, that administration thinks it's better to let the issue lay than to have to actually deal with it.

~faith,

Timothy.

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All of these solutions are easy. But, as Tazzi says, there are many more nurses currently or formerly impaired out there than most people realize.

When I first went into recovery I was amazed at how many fellow nurses from my hospital I saw at meetings. Several years later I was asked to attend a meeting I don't normally attend as the guest speaker to share my story. I recognized two nurses there, and when the floor was opened after I spoke, there were an additional handful plus two physicians from other facilities. Early on I was off work for 6 months to get clean, and on returning to work I had to follow strict guidelines set by a diversion program. My manager tried to work with me and commented that she didn't know anyone other than me and one other ER nurse in recovery. I said, "Yes, you do, you just don't know who they are."

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Specializes in ER, TRAUMA, MED-SURG.

Kudos to both of you, Cattitude and Tazzi!!! YOU GUYS ARE GREAT!!

As I have said before, as a recovering nurse, it is wonderful to feel the support you both provide, almost oozing through my laptop screen. My husband (also a recovering nurse) and I love your posts.

Also to Jessica, I sounded a lot like your postngs 16 years ago when I was in nursing school, and yes, NOT AN ADDICT. I was ignorant enough to say, "That wont happen to me!!!" Well, guess what? It happened to me. And I didn't just wake up one day and say, "Well, maybe today I'll start stealing every ampule of _________ (us addicts can enter our drug of choice when we were using here) that the pyxis or Accudose can hold." Some of us starts taking prescribed pain/anxiety medicine for a disorder or injury, and yes, it can go from taking meds as prescribed to using and abusing and doctor hopping and shopping and forging and stealing, ect.

And I thank God every day that I did not end up to that point before I entered recovery, but it happens. And I don't think people don't plan to do that. I know I didn't.

The next time you are in the cafeteria waiting on a lunch tray or in a staff elevator with other nurses, look around. there are lots more "of us" than you think. You can't "catch it" by being near us. We don't wear a sign.

Your line of thinking that my husband and I, along with every other nurse that is an addict should never work again is closedminded, but when I go to sleep tonight I will pray for you, that maybe one day you will come to realize that we can still be productive functioning nurses and provide excellent care to our patients, and that you will never be faced with this DISEASE, because that is what we have. Because if we aren't worthy of our licenses, someone could also lump in groups that like was earlier posted brain tumor patients, what about a person that is a diabetic and has a sugar of 25 or 900? Should they not be able to work after they are treated???

Anne, RNC

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You go, Anne!

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Unreal! I can't believe that this would happen! I would definitely report this before you are the one to be blamed! Good luck with this!!!!

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