Narcotic free areas?

Ruas61, BSN, RN · Feb 9, 2013

Telephonic nursing, case management maybe outpatient dialysis?

Kunzieo · Feb 9, 2013

We rarely have any in peds! (At least on our unit.) We have the occasional pre- or post- op that gets some oxy, and veeery occasionally we take ortho or med-surg adult boarders that have fentanyl or Percocet/Norco.

But they are far and few enough in between that making your assignment to include only non-narc pts wouldn't really be a problem, especially if you have decent coworkers.

MJB2010 · Feb 9, 2013

Dialysis.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Feb 9, 2013

We rarely have any in peds! (At least on our unit.) We have the occasional pre- or post- op that gets some oxy, and veeery occasionally we take ortho or med-surg adult boarders that have fentanyl or Percocet/Norco.
But they are far and few enough in between that making your assignment to include only non-narc pts wouldn't really be a problem, especially if you have decent coworkers.

Depends on the type of unit. I've always worked peds and always, always, always have patients on narcotics. Surgical and oncology patients are almost always on narcotics at some point during their stay.

In school nursing it's rare, but you would be the only nurse and if a student returns to school following a fracture or some kind of surgery and has PRN narcs, they'd be kept in the nurses' office. There also could be the chronic patient with sickle cell or MD who regularly needs to take narcotics.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Feb 9, 2013

Depends on whether your restriction is just for narcotics/pain pills or involves all controlled substances.

Chemical dependency and acute detox will have limited access to controlled substances...however they may not necessarily be 100% controlled-substance free. Depending on the setting and your restriction, working there may be possible, with another nurse giving out the few schedule meds that may be required. With rare exceptions, you will not encounter opiates and narcotic pain medications in CD or detox. Nor will you see benzos being handed out left and right for anxiety or sleep. However, some controlled substances may be used as part of withdrawal protocols, such as the use of PRN lorazepam or Librium for ETOH w/d. In residential CD (the "28 day program"), encountering schedule meds is even less, as most of these patients are out of acute w/d. However, there is a chance that you may meet a patient on an extended benzo/methadone/suboxone taper.

In addition, child/adolescent psych doesn't involve narcotics or benzos, except maybe in the older teenagers. However, there are frequently ADHD medications administered, all of which are Schedule II.

Trauma Columnist · Feb 9, 2013

Dialysis is known to be very restriction friendly.

wishiwereanurse, BSN, RN · Feb 10, 2013

Narcotic-free hospitals, wow that would be a dream come true for me....

BlueDevil,DNP, DNP, RN · Feb 10, 2013

Most health departments, I believe.

bugya90, ASN, BSN, LVN, RN · Feb 10, 2013

Family med/ambulatory care, we may handle the scripts for norco, ritalin, etc but never the actual med. We actually don't even have any narcotics in the building.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Feb 10, 2013

Depends on whether your restriction is just for narcotics/pain pills or involves all controlled substances.
Chemical dependency and acute detox will have limited access to controlled substances...however they may not necessarily be 100% controlled-substance free. Depending on the setting and your restriction, working there may be possible, with another nurse giving out the few schedule meds that may be required. With rare exceptions, you will not encounter opiates and narcotic pain medications in CD or detox. Nor will you see benzos being handed out left and right for anxiety or sleep. However, some controlled substances may be used as part of withdrawal protocols, such as the use of PRN lorazepam or Librium for ETOH w/d. In residential CD (the "28 day program"), encountering schedule meds is even less, as most of these patients are out of acute w/d. However, there is a chance that you may meet a patient on an extended benzo/methadone/suboxone taper.
In addition, child/adolescent psych doesn't involve narcotics or benzos, except maybe in the older teenagers. However, there are frequently ADHD medications administered, all of which are Schedule II.

This is a very good point. Since the OP only mentioned narcotics, that's what I was thinking when I said I encounter them rarely in school... if, however, the restrictions involve all controlled substances, school nursing is most definitely NOT the place to look... the vast majority of the meds I administer regularly at school are Adderall, Concerta and the like.

wish_me_luck, BSN, RN · Feb 10, 2013

I don't know. I was told no home health and I have a narcotic restriction--I really think it could be because of the alcohol abuse (thinking on the lines of a gateway drug). Nothing was really expanded upon other than "narcotic restriction".