ETOH/heroin/cocaine=GOOD times!! :)

[MizzLizz]

So besides the fact that most are absolutely charming... Drug addicts annoy me to no end. When you're just minding your business, trying to enjoy your day, a druggie will always find a way to add a negative note. Despite Ativan and Clonidine sometimes methodone and morphine and orange juice and hot breakfast and a warm bed and a friendly hello and a whole staff of people (almost) genuinely concerned for their well-being, some are dead set on being negative rude and hostile. Here's an example from the other day.

Druggie: "how do you sleep at night inflicting so much pain on people every day (heparin shot)

Nurse: "oh I sleep quite well, actually"

Druggie: "yeah I know you secretly like to cause pain... You crazy, you just mean!"

Nurse: "aren't we all a little crazy, mr. dupayash- not to get too philosophical, with it being 7:30 am and all."

Druggie: "well I don't need that **** anyway"

Nurse: "why cause you're going to leave AMA?"

Druggie: "yes"

Nurse: "okay I'll get your paper- and give me my **** heart monitor back, you won't be able to sell that on the street"

Druggie: You aint nothin but a nurse. Get my doctor in here, I need to talk to him.

As the druggie coughs and spits sputum into his basin and throws his heart monitor on top, I am wondering (as I'm disinfecting the contaminated monitor) what the hell I am doing with this creep. Oh later the druggie came back, accused me of stealing his money, and got so out of control we had to call security. So what is your craziest/most annoying drug addict?

[sissiesmama, ASN, RN]

Oh, goodness! I haven't even thought about this patient in years, but the main character in the story, was an LPN and a fellow co worker at the LTAC facility where I was working. She had Chrone's and had to have surgery. Post op, she had a PCA pump with Morphine or Dilaudid, or whatever pain med she was on. She got caught trying to "break in" her own PCA to take " a little extra" med. Her explanation when confronted was the fact that "this is my medicine and ya'll will be charging me for all of it. If I can take 2 pain pills at home out of my bottle, then I ought to be able to suck as much of this as I want at one time."

Then within just a few minutes, they caught her in the patient's room next door to her trying to get "a little extra" out of the other patient's. Don't even know what the other pt was on, that is beside the point. Since I worked with her, I was SO glad to not have her especially in the times when she did this. She was dating a fellow LPN and he was suppling the syringes.

I ran into her not too long ago in town, and she has lost about 50 lbs. Don't know if she lost it due to Chrones or meds, ect. I also noticed the shake she had when she reached out to hug me, and I remember it when we had patients getting ready to DT, ect. It is a sad situation for all, her kids and now ex husband.

She said she was working as a greeter in a steak house. When the BON contacted her, she refused to go to rehab or comply with a monitoring program and her license was revoked.

Anne, RNC

To the OP, I can remember some of the things patients said to me, including the "why do you like to hurt people sticking them..." when I gave an IM abx or sq injection for insulin or Heparin, but the IM Stadol or Demerol ect. stick wasn't "hurting people". One also said I was sticking him "cause you don't like me". Mr. XYZ - I don't know you, I don't hate someone I don't know ...

[hotshot12345]

mizzlizz, with the way you talk and view your patient, it doesn't surprise me he did what he did.

[locolorenzo22, BSN, RN]

You know, I think the most interesting one would have to be the one that consistantly peed in his water pitcher, and then proceeded to pour it back into the glass and drink it...I thought it was apple juice the first time. working nights, at 3 AM he was down on his hands and knees looking for "little green men" under the iv pole, and thought I was from the mothership, here to finally take him home.

but for everyone of those, there's someone who realizes "smokin reefer and drinking a fifth everyday" just isn't gonna do it anymore...he could have really screwed up his kidneys with a stone that he ignored, and he's ready to change.

[AntFlip7395]

mizzlizz, with the way you talk and view your patient, it doesn't surprise me he did what he did.

hmmm...i am going to go out on a limb here and venture to guess that you have never dealt with a nasty drug addict. work with a few and you will realize that you will most likely not be able to develop a therapeutic relationship.

i can relate having worked in medical icus where you go through times when it seems the only patients you get are drug and alcohol withdrawal patients. it is not fun to have to get 4-5 nurses plus 2-3 big security officers to get a patient into restraints and give meds while they are hell bent on getting up. it is very, very dangerous work.

[cherrybreeze, ADN, RN]

mizzlizz, with the way you talk and view your patient, it doesn't surprise me he did what he did.

can i insert an eyeroll here?

everyone responds to different types of communication. this guy didn't need to have his orifice kissed, or have the sugar poured on. i see nothing wrong with what she had to say. if someone is going to give me attitude, they're going to get a little back. i'm not a wal-mart greeter.

[SlightlyMental_RN]

Hmmm...I am going to go out on a limb here and venture to guess that you have never dealt with a nasty drug addict. Work with a few and you will realize that you will most likely not be able to develop a therapeutic relationship.

I can relate having worked in medical ICUs where you go through times when it seems the only patients you get are drug and alcohol withdrawal patients. It is not fun to have to get 4-5 nurses plus 2-3 big security officers to get a patient into restraints and give meds while they are hell bent on getting up. It is very, very dangerous work.

Okay, I'm going to go out on a limb here, and venture that you aren't CDU RNs. :chuckle This type of patient is all I work work with day-in-day-out...things that come in handy: a thick skin, tons of patience, your therapeutic communication skills (think back to nursing school.) And, yes, you can develop a therapeutic relationship, but you truly need a poker face--as some of them will try to shock you--and to be extremely tolerant. It's not for everyone, and I understand that. Thank goodness there are those of us that enjoy working with this population, huh? :wink2:

[aileenve, ASN, RN]

It sounds like he was able to push your buttons :wink2:

[carlasbizz]

Are you a Nurse? This posting is awful

[Nurse1966]

I work in an ICU, and am the mom of a lovely addict. It's a disease, pretty much like any other. How 'bout the diabetic who sneaks down to the gift shop for Coke's and candy bars, and demands double portion meals. I'd rather deal with the addict than the non-compliant diabetic anyday. For me, dealing with the addict helps me understand my own addict a little better. All patients have the potential to be a pain in the you know what, and dangerous too! Sorry for rambeling, just my two cents!

[heron, ASN, RN]

Okay, I'm going to go out on a limb here, and venture that you aren't CDU RNs. :chuckle This type of patient is all I work work with day-in-day-out...things that come in handy: a thick skin, tons of patience, your therapeutic communication skills (think back to nursing school.) And, yes, you can develop a therapeutic relationship, but you truly need a poker face--as some of them will try to shock you--and to be extremely tolerant. It's not for everyone, and I understand that. Thank goodness there are those of us that enjoy working with this population, huh? :wink2:

You're absolutely right about this, but I do have to support the OP as well.

I worked for 11 years on a unit with 100% active addicts dealing with a terminal disease. Average length of stay was about 6 months, longest was 18 months. Most of our patients died on the unit.

I, too, loved working with that population but it ain't easy and, ultimately, it was the addiction behaviors rather than the death and dying that burned me out. And I had a weekly one-on-one debriefing with the program's Psych NP ... unlikely that the OP has access to that level of support.

From the info in the OP, she seems to be in acute med-surge or critical care. She is responsible for an active addict, probably in withdrawal, with an acute medical issue she also has to address. Been there, done that, wore out the t-shirt.

Being on the receiving end of some of those behaviors common to addicts will lead to a normal emotional response. The difference between an amateur and a pro is our ability to deflect or channel that response. Some of us come by it naturally but, for most of us, it's a learned skill. There is absolutely no provision in the acute care setting for nurses to get that kind of support.

Hence, the vent post.

I most often refer people to Al-Anon if they want a way to process those feelings outside work. Paid therapy can help, too ... but we often can't afford either the therapist or the time.

Most often, though, I see people get chastised for having a normal human reaction to hurtful, frightening or downright dangerous behavior. Respectfully, I think that just aggravates the polarization between the nurse and the patient.

[Jules A, MSN]

I work with a lot of drug addicts. While I do keep in mind that it is considered an illness and most of them are quite sick in general their level of entitlement is infuriating. Give me a civil but non-compliant diabetic any day!