"I Narcanned Your Honor Student"

Luckyyou, BSN, RN · Jul 13, 2017

in my state, the BON can easily call that a HIPPA violation

....what patient is it identifying?

Wuzzie · Jul 13, 2017

I'm passive aggressive enough to wear that under a scrub shirt, but in my state, the BON can easily call that a HIPPA violation and unprofessional conduct.

HIPAA is federal so your state cannot apply it anyway it wishes and it isn't anywhere near a HIPAA violation. Wish people would understand how HIPAA works. It would make our lives easier.

I agree with you though, wearing it to work would definitely be unprofessional.

RNGummy40 · Jul 13, 2017

This is an interesting thread. The numbers are at 32,368 Views, 157 Comments. WOW! There are many forms of stigma when it comes to addiction disorders. The stereotype can be assumed that a person with addiction disorders is uneducated, or unintelligent. These stereotypes are completely false. I would support a t-shirt like this because it makes people stop and think. Yes, it can be considered offensive but what is more offensive: some one overdosing or someone overdosing and getting narcan?

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Jul 13, 2017

The author has a good point. As nurses, we must uphold integrity. I have dark humor, but I also understand that lay people don't. I'm passive aggressive enough to wear that under a scrub shirt, but in my state, the BON can easily call that a HIPPA violation and unprofessional conduct. We must be ever conscious of how we are perceived by the public. There is a reason that RNs are the most trusted and respected professionals 15 years in a row.
I like the shirt, but think back to your therapeutic communication. Ask, what would the mom be feeling if they read that shirt at WalMart. We need to take mental health seriously. To her, her kid's OD, is not a joke.

No it can't.

esrun77 · Jul 14, 2017

I'm one of the few nurses who doesn't have gallows humor. Oops. So yes, I can see how you'd be disturbed by it. I personally don't think we should become numb to these emotions and situations, but clearly there are a lot of people who disagree, who see it as a form of coping.

Skippingtowork · Jul 14, 2017

Sucks for them, I had to deal with their child dying because they didn't intervene sooner... Guess how many faces of dead patients I have to see in my thoughts/memories... I'll laugh at a shirt any time I want toï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½

Because THEY didn't invtervene soon enough? Where is your compassion?

maji2002 · Jul 14, 2017

"Because THEY didn't invtervene soon enough? Where is your compassion?"

I think sometimes, ok many times in our society, compassion is confused with enabling. Parents and people in general are not held accountable for the choices, actions or inactions. Calling them out sometimes is more compassionate as it can facilitate learning and maybe save a life. IDK, I guess I am a tough love type. Everything is not ok, and sometimes it just needs to be said.

simplicityjones · Jul 14, 2017

As a 20yr ICU nurse I can see the humor. It is dark, gallows humor. It is sad to say, but yes, the dark side of life is funny. Critical care nurses like ER nurses see a lot more than the average nurse. We see people at their best and worst. We often lose sight that people have feelings too. Most people cannot relate to what we see on a daily basis. If someone would had told me that I was going to be touching dead bodies and placing tubes in other people's body parts I would had called them sick. But, alas, is that not what we do? I have narcanned honor students, and homeless people, and lawyers, and housewives, and psych pt's. and on and on. I would never wear a shirt with that slogan. But I do not advertise that I am a nurse either. Just appreciate the humor and realize that the person who wears a t-shirt like that just doesn't feel the need to be politically correct. Isn't politically correctness the reason we are in the trouble we are in now anyways?

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Jul 15, 2017

"Because THEY didn't invtervene soon enough? Where is your compassion?"
I think sometimes, ok many times in our society, compassion is confused with enabling. Parents and people in general are not held accountable for the choices, actions or inactions. Calling them out sometimes is more compassionate as it can facilitate learning and maybe save a life. IDK, I guess I am a tough love type. Everything is not ok, and sometimes it just needs to be said.

Nope, blaming a parent for their child overdosing is not tough love, nor is it compassionate. We aren't given the history and back stories, we don't know the battles the parents faced, we don't know the many times they have tried to intervene or the countless hours they cried in defeat because they couldn't help their child that was in the throws of addiction.

So to imply that calling the parent out is compassionate, or tough love or imply that it's their fault on a topic that is anything but a black and white topic, is completely asinine.

KarenMS · Jul 15, 2017

I think a lot of you are confused about how gallows humor works. It's not supposed to be consumed by the masses. I've made some dark jokes that would probably shock even some of you who claim to love dark humor....but it's been between one or two people going through the exact same situation and who I knew would appreciate it. A bumper sticker or a tshirt is a weird place to display your gallows humor.

chan727 · Jul 18, 2017

I would have to agree with Luckyyou, this is funny and I am as well an actual nurse... In the ED you don't know how many people come in for an overdose, start on with CPR given Narcan and then back to normal and want to go AMA right after they find out they are not going to jail...

rnbabyzoo · Dec 23, 2017

You are new. As the years go by as a nurse there are many oxymoron in a carrier. Our humor is dark because most of what we deal with is dark. I thinks it's funny. Some of the outside world look at things in example an A student and feel it's great, but under all the happiness the students given into temptation to use drugs to help them perform better to get the A in school. Overdoses happen, alot actually. Or 14 year old becomes pregnant. Or your star athlete uses anabolic steroids. You will see it if you make it through nursing school.