i have a medical marijuana card - can i still be a nurse?

Published

i live in california and have a medical marijuana card. i'm signed up to start my prereqs but thought i would ask here first.

i DO NOT smoke. i have the card for other reasons. is this going to hurt me? doesn't the background just cover arrests?

thanks!

Specializes in being a Credible Source.

Please, people, restraint...

This is *not* a thread about the pros and cons of marijuana - as medicine or as recreation. If you start such a thread, I'd be happy to chime in but let's stay on topic here.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Hospital Education Coordinator.

the key word is impairment. Benadryl 25 mg will impair me and I can get it OTC all day long. Your state Board of Nursing will have to tell you for sure, but be aware that the nurse is always responsible and ACCOUNTABLE for knowing when they are too impaired to work.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Hospice, ONC, Tele, Med Surg, Endo/Output.
i got it a long time ago for legitimate back problems. i don't like the taste of smoke in my mouth so i used it once then never again.

Then get rid of the dang card!

Up Vote Up Vote ×

It's our privacy rights as patients

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med/Surg.

People that are so pro-marijuana that they feel the need to C&P 50,000 words on the history of it do nothing to positively promote their argument, IMO (protest too much?)

But that is O/T.

So is this, but I have to add it: WHY do so many people assume that patients who are prescribed certain medications long-term are automatically "impaired" when they take them?? And to add anti-depressants to that list?? Come on. Surely as nurses we have more knowledge of medications than THAT, by now. Close-mindedness at it's finest.

As far as the OP goes....if you don't currently use the marijuana, don't worry about it. Get rid of your card, if it's still even active, and call it a day. You don't have to offer the info that you have one, if a drug test does not test positive for it. Since it's medical info, it would not be something that an employer, etc, would be able to access without your permission.

Personally, I think that in the states that have legalized marijuana for medical purposes it is WAY too over-prescribed. I took care of a man in his 40's that was visiting from Cali who was prescribed marijuana for SLEEP. REALLY? It amazes me. I don't think it's regulated nearly enough, and that's the reason I'm glad it's not legal where I live. I do believe it has medical uses, but I think they're very specific uses.

Lastly, while still O/T (sorry!), there is no way you can believe that marijuana never kills anyone. The simple fact that it is SMOKED is enough to know that it contributes to pulmonary diseases. To try to argue that or say it isn't true is being ignorant.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in being a Credible Source.
Lastly, while still O/T (sorry!), there is no way you can believe that marijuana never kills anyone. The simple fact that it is SMOKED is enough to know that it contributes to pulmonary diseases. To try to argue that or say it isn't true is being ignorant.
That's actually debatable. There is some significant evidence that it actually has a protective effect...
Up Vote Up Vote ×

Not to mention MJ can be eaten. If you're worried about damage to your lungs, bake you some brownies!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in being a Credible Source.
Not to mention MJ can be eaten. If you're worried about damage to your lungs, bake you some brownies!

Or taken by means of a nebulizer which eliminates the particulates, the superheated gases, and the oxidative compounds of combustion.

Always interesting to me how many folks are fine with all the other psychoactive compounds peddled by Big Pharma but so fearful of marijuana.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.
i see reading comprehension isn't your strong suit. i said i DO NOT smoke. i have the card and do not smoke...get it? i do not condone any drug use at work.

You seem very uptight.

You know what will help that? :D

When you said you DO NOT SMOKE, I just assumed you meant that you take your marijuana another way. Here in Rocky Mountain High, there is a MM store on every street corner, and the MJ candy and baked goods sell just as well as the bud. And then there are the vaporizers.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Certified Med/Surg tele, and other stuff.

You can always roll up the card and smoke it.;)

Sorry, just had to be a smart a$$.

Sound like the card expires, so nothing to worry about.

Good luck in your studies.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
The problem is, just because a drug is legal, does not mean that nurses are permitted to use it and hold a license.

There are states that bar working nurses from using mood modifying substances (Florida, I believe is one). Thus technically, you cannot use antidepressants, antibipolar drugs, etc...drugs that are perfectly legal.

Thus, this question should be addressed to the BON and the school, as they are the final arbiter.

Can you provide any credible links or resources for not being able to use antidepressants? I have checked the Florida Bon website and couldn't find anything.

I know a lot of nurses that are on antidepressants and a couple that are bipolar, plus there are numerou threads on this forum about nurses with depression. Just wondering where this information is coming from. Thanks!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in PICU, ICU, Hospice, Mgmt, DON.
Can you provide any credible links or resources for not being able to use antidepressants? I have checked the Florida Bon website and couldn't find anything.

I know a lot of nurses that are on antidepressants and a couple that are bipolar, plus there are numerou threads on this forum about nurses with depression. Just wondering where this information is coming from. Thanks!

**To clarify...I believe what she means is, this bit about the antidepressants is specific to a nurse who is a member of the FLorida IPN (monitoring program). It is a total abstinence program. You may take what is considered "mood altering" medication but be closely supervised by a psychiatrist. He/she must report quarterly to the IPN on the medication management.

THis includes non prescription meds as well as scripts.

For example-while in the IPN you may not take OTC Benedryl, Sudafed, and others....unless you are monitored.

You may take antidepressants, bipolar meds and such if you are in the IPN and work. What you may not take..are any sort of narcotics or benzos...if you must take them..you notify the IPN, and refrain from work until you are off and can prove clear urine drug screens.

Again, all of this only applies if you are in the IPN...If you are not in the IPN non of this matters, of course you can take antidepressants...bipolar meds, ADHD meds, as long as they are prescribed, and you are taking them appropriately.

I hope this clears it up.

I have work with dozens of nurses in Florida who take antidepressants....:)

(we need it!)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion