drug diversion investigation

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Help! I have been an RN in an SICU now for 12 years and am highly respected by my peers and physicians. I recently was told that I am being investigated for narcotic diversion. I am innocent. They have a lot of records generated by the pharmacy for a drug called fentanyl and have shown that I have failed to sign out several doses. They told me that a drug screen was not necessary and wouldn't help. I am now being turned in to the Board of Nursing and am scared to death that I am going to lose my liscence. I am trying to get legal counsel but it seems as if my superiors are out to get me. They have made it sound very enticing to turn myself in and get help and they will bend over backwards to get me back into my job. A couple of years ago a nurse was found stealing fentanyl and admitted to it. He went through the therapy for a couple of weeks and then returned to the sicu. He was caught again and then fired. Do I have any chance of a good outcome here?

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Your thread will likely be closed rather quickly. Getting a lawyer familiar with the nursing board is a must. Admit nothing, agree to nothing, and hire a lawyer today. Yes it will be expensive but it is honestly your only chance.

Also after this is over, if everything goes your way please look at using the legal system to recover the damages to your reputation, financial losses and mental stress.

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Does your hospital not use Pyxus or Omnicell to check out drugs? If so the records should be there for all medications you have checked out, wasted, removed, or returned.

Of course you will be considered "guilty" even if proven otherwise. I agree with Noryn. Get a good attorney NOW and once it is all over with a nice big fat juicy lawsuit against the hospital to recover damages if you are truly innocent and did follow the hospital policies would be in order.

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Specializes in OB, M/S, HH, Medical Imaging RN.
Help! I have been an RN in an SICU now for 12 years and am highly respected by my peers and physicians. I recently was told that I am being investigated for narcotic diversion. I am innocent. They have a lot of records generated by the pharmacy for a drug called fentanyl and have shown that I have failed to sign out several doses.

koneydog I don't want to accuse you of something that you are not guilty of that is not my reason for replying. I just want to mention that I find it odd that after working 12 years in SICU you say "for a drug called fentanyl" that is a drug you should be familar with.

If you are innocent, get a lawyer, fight it like h***. If you have done something you shouldn't have, fess up and take the punishment and you won't lose your license as long as there are no repeats. Good Luck, Hon...

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Specializes in OB, M/S, HH, Medical Imaging RN.
Your thread will likely be closed rather quickly.

Why would you think so? Just curious.

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

1. if you have , contact your carrier today. they also represent nurses before bon issues.

2. seek legal council immediately. names can be obtained from your local bar association or contacting the american association of nurse attorneys (taana). discuss with them benefits/risks private drug testing at start of case.

3. do not discuss particulars of case with anyone outside spouse/s.o. nor post online for protection of your rights. bulletin boards, especially allnurses are heavily indexed on search engines, especially yahoo/google. one never knows who is reading information.

4. if you are innocent, then no need to request admission to state bon drug diversion program as employer requesting.

were always open 24/7. sending a {{{hug}}}

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Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.
help! i have been an rn in an sicu now for 12 years and am highly respected by my peers and physicians. i recently was told that i am being investigated for narcotic diversion. i am innocent. they have a lot of records generated by the pharmacy for a drug called fentanyl and have shown that i have failed to sign out several doses. they told me that a drug screen was not necessary and wouldn't help. i am now being turned in to the board of nursing and am scared to death that i am going to lose my liscence. i am trying to get legal counsel but it seems as if my superiors are out to get me. they have made it sound very enticing to turn myself in and get help and they will bend over backwards to get me back into my job. a couple of years ago a nurse was found stealing fentanyl and admitted to it. he went through the therapy for a couple of weeks and then returned to the sicu. he was caught again and then fired. do i have any chance of a good outcome here?

good morning, koneydog,

normally, an internal investigation occurs at the workplace whenever a nurse is suspected of diversion. after this investigation and if there is documented evidence of diversion, a report is submitted to the state bon.

the following is strictly for educative pursposes and not to be taken as accusatory in the least:

fentanyl is the most frequently diverted drug. reason? a high percentage of the drug remains in the patch after approximately 72 hours. nurses divert by removing the patch and pocketing it, removing the drug with a syringe, removing the patch from the sharp's container, and removing from drug stock.

a few clues that a nurse is diverting include:

1 - patient complains of lack of pain relief

2 - highly suspicious behavior by the nurse in question suggesting under the influence

3 - the nurse in question was "too busy or forgot" to secure a witness for a waste

4 - the controlled substance count is incorrect when the nurse in question works

5 - suspected forged signatures

6 - the nurse in question states "gave access code" to another nurse

if you have , as nrskarenrn pointed out, please contact your carrier today. let them guide you in what to do next. if you do not have insurance, please contact an attorney today. nrskarenrn also included a link to the american association of nurse attorneys (taana).

you need to be well-represented by legal counsel in order to receive the best possible legal advice and present your side of the story.

we wish the best outcome for you.

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Dear koneydog. this was a few years ago, how did things turn our for you?

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I have been involved in 11 investigations of suspected diversion. Before we were on the Omnicell (like Pyxis), investigations were based on flagrant documentation issues or patient complaints for not getting pain relief. The automated systems just give more data. I have to say that out of the 11 nurses, 9 were indeed diverting. If you are truly not diverting, then definitely get an attorney, but also evaluate your hospital's system for process errors: does the pharmacy tech have a shot at the drug? Is there a good trail from Pharmacy to your unit? Are the drugs truly secure? If applicable, how secure is your password? Just advice from someone who's been there.

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My suggestion would be to go and pay for your own drug test. It maybe too late for metabolites to show in a urine, so the best thing to do is pay for a hair follicle test which will show up to 3 months of drug usage. Have a written statement for the board of nursing when you are contacted, along with a copy of your negative test results. With this information, you can just be disciplined for inaccurate documentation. Just because there was missed documentation does not mean there was drug diversion. If there was no actual proof from your employer-appearing under the influence or any people staying they saw you place meds in your pocket, how can they get you? You need proof. Go get a hair test and stand your grounds of innocent!

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I am in the same situation, am also being reported for drug diversion. I have felt so shameful, guilt ridden and heartbroken that I could do this to myself but mostly to my husband and 2 children. Can anyone tell me what is the penalty for this as an RN in the state of CT?

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