I am in a monitoring program for psychosis, not substance use. But I have to get UAs anyway, same as anyone else. I'm losing my mind over all the ways I could accidentally fail a drug test. I thought I could just avoid drugs and alcohol and be fine. But now I'm realizing I have to worry about sugar alcohols, poppy seeds, alcohol in cleaning products etc.
It seems impossible to pass this program! Almost every beauty product I have has alcohol in it. My case manager insists I don't have to worry about these with "normal use". But then I see all kinds of stories online about people getting false positives from food and household products.
Has anyone here actually made it through the program without false positives?
Give it some very very deep thought before you quit the job you have. Everyone's situation is different, but just trust me, give it deep thought before quitting the job you currently have.
Most nurses don't know this until it faces them and that is........once you get your consent order/agreement which comes from the BON, part of the requirements of your consent order is that you give your new or future employer/your boss a copy of your consent order and your consent order will go into detail about what you did, and the BON will check eith your employer after you start to make sure they have a copy as your employer will have to turn in quarterly reports to the BON.
It's easy to give a brief summary to your employer about what you did and how you are now active in recovery and doing well, but the employer WILL see the x rated version (which is written in your consent order). Keep this in mind when looking for that new job (or before you wit the old one).
Does the BON actually email employers to verify they received a copy of the consent agreement? I'm new to the program and nervous to give my employer a copy. I know I have to though.
Does the BON actually email employers to verify they received a copy of the consent agreement? I'm new to the program and nervous to give my employer a copy. I know I have to though.
Part of all the paper work you signed when you entered your monitoring program gives the BON the right to contact your employer, and that includes by phone. When your supervisor sends in via email your first quarterly work report to the BON, the BON can easily reply to your supervisors email, "Report Received, and just to verify Ms. Smith is in compliance, did she give you a copy of her consent order when she was hired?" That's a very quick and easy sentence and easy way for the BON to verify.
1 day of stress versus 365 days of stress. Which should we choose? You are nervous and anxious about giving your supervisor a copy of your consent order. That's normal. It's nerve racking and its difficult, but that stress lasts one day. You simply tell the truth, be honest, and also reinforce to your employer about where you are at in recovery now, and that you are doing well. The other option is...... you don't give the supervisor a copy of your consent order. The stress for that one day you underwent by giving your consent order to the supervisor is incredibly high compared to not giving your supervisor the report which is not as stressful, but it's still there. It never ends. You always have that constant worry daily about whether the BON checks to see if your supervisor received it. When you get that 4 day weekend or that first week of vacation to Florida, that subtle worry is still present on the beach in Florida or at the nice restaurant or concert. It doesn't go away. You have that constant worry that if the BON finds out, your job is gone and the BON Revoking your license becomes a real possibility. There's no way the average human can carry around that much stress from day to day and it not do serious damage to them.
1 day of stress versus 365 days of stress. I choose 1 day, get it over with, be honest, tell the truth, and you never carry that stress weight again for the next 1 year or 2 years or whatever. It's over from the minute you give that copy to your supervisor and it's like 500 lbs being lifted from your shoulders.
That's crazy, we don't have to test when we are on vacation (but we do have to go to this peer group meeting). But you have to put in for a monitoring interruption. They have some arbitrary rules about how many you can take and how long you can go before they decide to extend your contract. I went to Spain for 3 weeks, and had to extend my contract to go. I only did it because I had some family things that I couldn't miss. Part of me is glad I went, but another part feels it wasn't worth it. Now, I still plan to go on vacation but only if I don't have to extend my contract.
I finished with monitoring 2 weeks ago but was here to respond to someone. I am so jealous you were allowed vacations! I'm in Ohio and we didn't have that. I had to check in everyday for 4 years, didn't matter what I was doing and we are not allowed to leave the country, take a cruise, etc. You could take vacations within the states but had to tell them where you were going and get locations while you were there to test if you had to, I really didn't go to many places because it just caused me so much anxiety. I had to worry about whether I had to test on the day of my daughter's wedding (I didn't) ugh. It's nice that some states allow people to take vacations (OK "nice" is a stretch but you know what I mean LOL)
Anyone have or heard of any issues of menstrual cycle affecting test results? Sometimes blood can make its way into urine stream while on cycle. My question is has anyone had any issue with it affecting results?
I've heard of them calling it a testing irregularity. A UTI can cause a positive Alcohol test
I'd like to know whether I should disclose a job as a remote quality assurance RN. There is absolutely no patient care involved so if we are going by the idea that these programs are to prevent patient harm then it shouldn't matter. For reference I am in the evaluation stage no monitoring contract signed. I was reported for a positive ua of fentanyl on an er trip unrelated to work. Hair test level was 15 pg - I don't use and believe I used laced weed. Did the initial evaluation with their therapists and then once they got my hospital records for the past 10 years and saw I was frequently seen in the ED related to my seizures that is now a concern. I can't get an appointment with my neurologist until the end of October and they won't let me practice direct patient care before that. They also now want me to see one of their psychiatrists which ya know, I can't afford since I'm being blocked from working.
I'd like to know whether I should disclose a job as a remote quality assurance RN. There is absolutely no patient care involved so if we are going by the idea that these programs are to prevent patient harm then it shouldn't matter. For reference I am in the evaluation stage no monitoring contract signed. I was reported for a positive ua of fentanyl on an er trip unrelated to work. Hair test level was 15 pg - I don't use and believe I used laced weed. Did the initial evaluation with their therapists and then once they got my hospital records for the past 10 years and saw I was frequently seen in the ED related to my seizures that is now a concern. I can't get an appointment with my neurologist until the end of October and they won't let me practice direct patient care before that. They also now want me to see one of their psychiatrists which ya know, I can't afford since I'm being blocked from working.
Yes, you should disclose even if you are not providing direct patient care. If you are using your RN license to work, you have to disclose. When I first started, I was under the impression that if I were not providing direct patient care, I would be safe from having to disclose. However, my case manager said that any position that utilizes my RN license needs to be disclosed. I know this sucks, but I promise you that it is the best route to go. If your program later discovers that you are working without the proper logistics, you may be terminated from the program and possibly not even offered a contract. I know it feels like jail, and it does suck. At first, I thought I would be okay with a non-clinical role, but after clearing things up with my case manager from the program, I was disappointed.
If you are in the BON's line of sight, they have the ability to find out if you are working because legally, they can run your social security number and tell if you have made money, and because you are under investigation, they can.....unfortunately, legally do that. What I'm saying is.....yes, they can find out, even if you don't disclose.
Here's the real crappy part. For many nurses that enter monitoring, their first year of working as a nurse when they return to practice Often (not always, but often) requires patient care nursing that Requires Supervision On Site. Meaning, another RN has to be in the same building or general area. What am I getting at? This takes home health, community health, remote IT type nursing, remote case management nursing off the table because most (again, not all, but most BON's consent orders) require "Direct Supervision" in that first year.
Common sense tells us, if you have any nurse in monitoring/recovery and you are "worried" about public safety, then a nurse doing case management that is not doing direct hands on care would be a great starting point for re-entry, but the BON has no common sense. If you are a case manager and you work remotely, what you can do, if the BON says you can't work from home and that you need direct supervision, is to simply try to keep the job of course, but find a hardened-physical office at some facility where there is one other nurse and that would take care of it.
When I returned to nursing many years ago for my first job re-entering and starting monitoring, I did case management. I had to do exactly the above. I told my supervisor the issue and she said no problem, we are going to assign you to a desk at the facility and she then told me, "by the way, if I don't see you here at the desk, I don't care, as long as you get your work done, and as far as I am concerned, you now work from the desk, but if I never see you and your work somehow magically gets done from home, then good job." So, there are ways around this, but you absolutely have to get your supervisor on board.
I'd like to know whether I should disclose a job as a remote quality assurance RN. There is absolutely no patient care involved so if we are going by the idea that these programs are to prevent patient harm then it shouldn't matter. For reference I am in the evaluation stage no monitoring contract signed. I was reported for a positive ua of fentanyl on an er trip unrelated to work. Hair test level was 15 pg - I don't use and believe I used laced weed. Did the initial evaluation with their therapists and then once they got my hospital records for the past 10 years and saw I was frequently seen in the ED related to my seizures that is now a concern. I can't get an appointment with my neurologist until the end of October and they won't let me practice direct patient care before that. They also now want me to see one of their psychiatrists which ya know, I can't afford since I'm being blocked from working.
Don't bother with their psychologist. They don't listen to them anyway and sounds like you will most likely be sentenced to 5 years anyway. It literally doesn't matter what they say unless they say you gave a problem. They will use that.
Don't bother with their psychologist. They don't listen to them anyway and sounds like you will most likely be sentenced to 5 years anyway. It literally doesn't matter what they say unless they say you gave a problem. They will use that.
Out of curiosity, is there anything specific that makes you say 5 years?
It also doesn't seem like I have an option to not go to their psychiatrist.
Don't bother with their psychologist. They don't listen to them anyway and sounds like you will most likely be sentenced to 5 years anyway. It literally doesn't matter what they say unless they say you gave a problem. They will use that.
That's False. No offense, but your statement is 100% FALSE regarding the automatic 5 years.,.......keyword....IF the nurse gets an attorney and the nurse has an independent evaluation that is by a rehab type recovery center that says the nurse has no problem, then that attorney can push the issue with the BON and get the case into a court of law before an administrative law judge and then........it's not about about "what the BON accepts or who the BON listens to." The judge takes over. It's all about the judge at that point, and the judge 95% of the time DOES accept the independent eval. It's not about what the BON "uses" if it reaches a court of law in front of judge. It's about what the Judge uses.
But, most nurses never get the 2nd eval. Additionally, most don't get the 2nd eval and an attorney, and most don't get the 2nd eval, the attorney, and an eval that says no substance abuse issues. When you have these 3 factors, you have an incredible chance. Most nurses won't complete the 3 things above and they end up doing 3, 4, or 5 years.
As for a clinical psychologist, you are correct. They have little value unless they are certified or working literally in an addiction treatment center.
That's False. No offense, but your statement is 100% FALSE regarding the automatic 5 years.,.......keyword....IF the nurse gets an attorney and the nurse has an independent evaluation that is by a rehab type recovery center that says the nurse has no problem, then that attorney can push the issue with the BON and get the case into a court of law before an administrative law judge and then........it's not about about "what the BON accepts or who the BON listens to." The judge takes over. It's all about the judge at that point, and the judge 95% of the time DOES accept the independent eval. It's not about what the BON "uses" if it reaches a court of law in front of judge. It's about what the Judge uses.
But, most nurses never get the 2nd eval. Additionally, most don't get the 2nd eval and an attorney, and most don't get the 2nd eval, the attorney, and an eval that says no substance abuse issues. When you have these 3 factors, you have an incredible chance. Most nurses won't complete the 3 things above and they end up doing 3, 4, or 5 years.
As for a clinical psychologist, you are correct. They have little value unless they are certified or working literally in an addiction treatment center.
Do you know realistically of anyone actually winning against these people? Obviously money is tight and I'm concerned that even if I get a lawyer, they can do what they want. I will say I told them that I have a lawyer and they did seem to get a little nervous demanding to know the lawyer's name which I obviously said I don't have to provide you with if I'm not asking you to speak with them.
That's False. No offense, but your statement is 100% FALSE regarding the automatic 5 years.,.......keyword....IF the nurse gets an attorney and the nurse has an independent evaluation that is by a rehab type recovery center that says the nurse has no problem, then that attorney can push the issue with the BON and get the case into a court of law before an administrative law judge and then........it's not about about "what the BON accepts or who the BON listens to." The judge takes over. It's all about the judge at that point, and the judge 95% of the time DOES accept the independent eval. It's not about what the BON "uses" if it reaches a court of law in front of judge. It's about what the Judge uses.
But, most nurses never get the 2nd eval. Additionally, most don't get the 2nd eval and an attorney, and most don't get the 2nd eval, the attorney, and an eval that says no substance abuse issues. When you have these 3 factors, you have an incredible chance. Most nurses won't complete the 3 things above and they end up doing 3, 4, or 5 years.
As for a clinical psychologist, you are correct. They have little value unless they are certified or working literally in an addiction treatment center.
Also, how does one go about getting an evaluation from a recovery specialist? I am seeing therapists from family based recovery 3 times a week. This is through dcfs and they work with people suffering active addiction. I've been with them for 2 months - negative drug tests 3x a week and in depth assessment- they are not diagnosing a substance use disorder and are not concerned with any substance use issue. They are actually pushing back on dcfs trying to strong arm them into a diagnosis. I feel this could play in my favor.
Shonda01
4 Posts
Does the BON actually email employers to verify they received a copy of the consent agreement? I'm new to the program and nervous to give my employer a copy. I know I have to though.