MA SARP

Nurses Recovery

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Specializes in Psych RN for over 30yrs.

Hi All,

Is anyone here in the MA SARP program? I’m wondering about other’s experience working while in SARP, and colleague relationships given some of the license restrictions such as inability to administer narcotic medications. How has this impacted your work environment?

Thanks!

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Specializes in Interventional Cardiology.

Hi! I too am looking for jobs to to while entering the SARP program.  Any idea or thoughts would be helpful!-G

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On 6/9/2022 at 11:55 PM, PsychRN67 said:

Hi All,

Is anyone here in the MA SARP program? I’m wondering about other’s experience working while in SARP, and colleague relationships given some of the license restrictions such as inability to administer narcotic medications. How has this impacted your work environment?

Thanks!

Hello, I’ve been working for a few months now since being in SARP. They make the process for getting the job extremely stressful and you really have to keep on them to be sure they are doing what they have to do to approve it. It took me almost 2 months from the time I got the job offer until I actually started. The SARP staff won’t email with anyone they want faxes or through the mail documents from HR. There are a lot of conditions that SARP says need to be in place but I think they will eventually approve the position as long as it’s a somewhat normal nursing job. The job itself has been fine. No real need to tell the people you work with unless you have to have them give your controlled meds. This whole program is bogus in my opinion. 

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Specializes in Psych RN for over 30yrs.

I found a nursing position at a community health center but it does not include medication administration at all, so it doesn’t “count” towards getting out of the program. I’ll need to move into something else very soon.
I feel like I am treated like a criminal. No one in the community seeking treatment is treated this way. At least I would not, as a nurse, treat anyone especially another nurse this way. The fact that a license is involved doesn’t mean the person is any different.  Of course I understand the rationale for monitoring but the restrictions and potential consequences for things that come up that don’t have anything to do with safety is unnecessary. The stigma against nurses who have suffered with addiction is quite ironically severe, given we as nurses treat the public for the same problems. This road is so devastatingly difficult and demeaning I can hardly believe I’m making it through. 

Best to you!

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Specializes in Psych RN for over 30yrs.

@GINGERNUT  I found that at the “no narcotic” stage inhospital positions would not hire me with this restriction. I actually petitioned to have this restriction removed citing the drug testing, benign necessity for this to do the job and fully function, and the fact that narcotics were not an issue for me. I also had three letters of recommendations and SAREC approved of it. The board denied it though. I had luck with a community health center doing triage but I will need a more clinical position in order to be discharged form SARP. I’m so sorry you have to go through this it is indeed demeaning. If you can email me I’m happy to give you more info-I wasn’t able to email you here. 

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Specializes in Addiction Medicine, ER, and Psychiatry.

Hello!

I have been told I am the longest standing member in the MA-SARP program. God-willing, I should complete this program this May/June, having entered in 2014. I have had full privileges and I have started over, staying sober throughout. I'm not willing to get into details because I do not know who reads this board. I am currently weeks away from getting my CA-3 once again working in an acute detox facility treating the exact patients I once was. I openly told most of my coworkers my (edited) story thinking that was the best way to be transparent. This bit me in the butt. I found it hard to be stigmatized by some of my colleagues who were supposed to show compassion for a population that I belonged to. But a nurse?! Unforgiveable! 

There have been many changes in staff at MA-SARP since my start. I will say that in the last year, I find them more approachable and helpful. My last piece of advice is get a lawyer. I never thought I needed one. I can barely afford the one I have, but without him I would be in SARP eternally. I am happy to help!

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Specializes in Psych RN for over 30yrs.

Thanks for your response. No need to explain- Lord knows I know stuff happens! It’s interesting to see how people respond to another nurse with a similar issue to one we treat our patients for. Sometimes it’s hypocritical at best really. I got a lawyer in the beginning but it did nothing I should’ve just bypassed that and joined SARP immediately. Now I have a “ summary suspension” notation on my license look-up forever. At least there is an open & end date on it which indicates there was an issue, and it was resolved. I also find honesty is the best policy and let things fall as they may. 

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23 minutes ago, PsychRN67 said:

@GINGERNUT  I found that at the “no narcotic” stage inhospital positions would not hire me with this restriction. I actually petitioned to have this restriction removed citing the drug testing, benign necessity for this to do the job and fully function, and the fact that narcotics were not an issue for me. I also had three letters of recommendations and SAREC approved of it. The board denied it though. I had luck with a community health center doing triage but I will need a more clinical position in order to be discharged form SARP. I’m so sorry you have to go through this it is indeed demeaning. If you can email me I’m happy to give you more info-I wasn’t able to email you here. 

See this is where things get confusing. How does SARP know if you give meds or not? It was explained to me by SARP staff that giving any meds at all would be good enough to then move on to the next stage of privileges and then discharge from the program. When I got a job I didn’t have to prove that I was going to be giving medications. I really think that the SARP staff does not know their own policies and it’s likely that they make things up as they go along. 

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Specializes in Psych RN for over 30yrs.

They actively sought to verify that my job description does not include any regular medication administration. My DON is going to work towards getting me to another position with meds by April if all goes well. 

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Specializes in Addiction Medicine, ER, and Psychiatry.

@Tyson SARP staff also called my place of employment to verify I was abiding by my contract before moving forward with my CA-3. This is a shift. Never in my almost 9 years has anyone from SARP called where I was working to check in on me, what I was doing, or even talked with the Supervisor I listed. Based on my experience, MA-SARP is really getting it together both in how they are treating us and how they are organizing themselves.

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Hi I am in the SARP program since October 2021.  I'm still not working as a nurse yet. Has anyone found any professional meetings where we can learn from one another? I feel like this program is a nightmare. And the punishment far out ways the crime! I've been a nurse 20+ years and made 1 mistake! No second chances nothing! After an exemplary career.  
The stress I'm under right now is unbelievably unbelievable and I made a slip one night last week after giving a  ETG urine for alcohol for a drug test (my problem became wine).  Well the MRO called and now I have to do a PEth test because my urine came back with only 2 metabolites! He even said it was probably hand sanitizer! But now I have to do a blood test that's probably going to positive now! 
Has anyone been through this? Please no judgement here, I already know and am ready to fall apart. 

Wanted to add another word

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Has anyone failed a Peth blood test? What will the sarp/SAREC do?

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