Nurses and alcohol

lovedijah · Jul 2, 2012

I think that people just like to drink, honestly. "Oh nurses like to drink", "Marines like to drink", "Teachers like to drink". Some people just like to drink regardless of what they do for a living. I don't judge. I just hope people are being safe about it.

mssjez · Jul 2, 2012

I think drinking in moderation is fine. There's nothing like working all day, coming home, and having a glass of wine or a beer and getting into "home mode". If you can choose to go to the gym instead and get into that mindset by exercising that's great too. I for one, can't go to the gym after working a long day. I'm more apt to go before work than after. So I like to relax for a few minutes and let my mind wind down before I can begin thinking about what I'm doing around the house or going out. I think that the nurses (or teachers, policemen, etc.) who tend to drink a lot at home or go out binge drinking before a shift will suffer at work and it will show.

eatmysoxRN, ASN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

I come home from work and use a cup of merlot to wash down a vanilla cupcake as I puff a cigarette.

Hypocrite? Maybe. But it's better than other stress relief techniques.

Oh, and I don't share much about my bad habits at work. It's not the business of my coworkers. I attempt to keep my personal and professional lives separate when feasible. Especially since my employer frowns upon alcohol use.

afterseason, ASN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

I have a friend who is an ER nurse, and he parties HARD. It amazes me. Sometimes I find it hard to take the thought of him being a nurse with responsibilities seriously.

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

What area are you working in? Wherever it is, these comments are unprofessional. Those conversations could be overheard by family, patients and ancillary staff.

Nurses are expected to be pillars of the community.

How they deal with the stress of the profession should be kept private.

malamud69, BSN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

What area are you working in? Wherever it is, these comments are unprofessional. Those conversations could be overheard by family, patients and ancillary staff.
Nurses are expected to be pillars of the community.
How they deal with the stress of the profession should be kept private.

Not sure if you are referring to the "partying hard" quote...private??? Why should it be so private when someone goes out the night before they are supposed to be in to work and still has alcohol coursing through there veins when they come in...we all know that happens daily, everywhere. I don't care what anybody says...it is not safe and they cannot perform like they should whether they are 20 or 60 and should never be condoned.

MN-Nurse, ASN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

One thing I'm learning is that nurses can drink! They talk about drinking their entire shift, and then go out for drinks after. But I can't blame them! Nursing is a very stressful job. I heard addiction is a problem with nurses. What's your take?

Nurses probably have addiction rates that are about the same as the rest of society - which is pretty bad.

That being said, I have taken care of many, many, many ETOH withdrawal, cirrhosis, varicies, gastritis, pancreatitis and other enjoyable patients.

None of them have been nurses. Yesterday was a mechanic, the other day, a chef, previous to that, a crack addict, before that, records processor, sales manager, bank officer.....these patients are from every occupation.

I'm past my partying days and I rarely drink....but I still can go out and tie one on with my coworkers once in a while. To an outside observer, it looks like we are booze crazy, and we play it up and have a good time.

CHESCCRP · Jul 2, 2012

There's nothing wrong with the occasional drink with friends. A daily drinking habit is probably not the best thing, and that person should probably figure out a better way to deal with stress. That said, I don't proclaim to walking in anyone shoes, and maybe their job or life needs that release. No one is saying, "I get wasted and work hungover." Perhaps this is something done after their last shift before days off. Why would anyone want the punishment of working impaired on their shift? Long shifts can be bad anyways, let's just add a nice headache and nausea to go along with that... There is also the reality of putting one's license and career in jeopardy if you're caught working impaired. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but the more reasonable people probably wouldn't do it.

Many years ago, I worked in the restaurant business. There is an appalling level of addiction in that industry, at all levels. While it's not life-and-death like nursing, it's still a really stressful field, and it attracts unconventional personality types. If I was able to make it out of that field without smoking, drinking or using illicit drugs, I think I'll be fine with nursing.

OB-nurse2013, BSN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

Nurses probably have addiction rates that are about the same as the rest of society - which is pretty bad.
That being said, I have taken care of many, many, many ETOH withdrawal, cirrhosis, varicies, gastritis, pancreatitis and other enjoyable patients.
None of them have been nurses. Yesterday was a mechanic, the other day, a chef, previous to that, a crack addict, before that, records processor, sales manager, bank officer.....these patients are from every occupation.
I'm past my partying days and I rarely drink....but I still can go out and tie one on with my coworkers once in a while. To an outside observer, it looks like we are booze crazy, and we play it up and have a good time.

Actually, and I don't have the actual research but I believe it was in my fundies text, but in our first semester our professor told us that nurse have a much higher rate for substance abuse and that it is a high stress job as well.

afterseason, ASN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

What area are you working in? Wherever it is, these comments are unprofessional. Those conversations could be overheard by family, patients and ancillary staff.
Nurses are expected to be pillars of the community.
How they deal with the stress of the profession should be kept private.

There's nothing "private" about it -- these things go on in public places. I haven't seen anyone "outed" here for bad behavior, and most of the comments seem to uphold a fair amount of anonymity. I don't see anyone naming names... We're just discussing.

afterseason, ASN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

Not sure if you are referring to the "partying hard" quote...private??? Why should it be so private when someone goes out the night before they are supposed to be in to work and still has alcohol coursing through there veins when they come in...we all know that happens daily, everywhere. I don't care what anybody says...it is not safe and they cannot perform like they should whether they are 20 or 60 and should never be condoned.

I would like to just clarify one thing here in regards to my specific comment about my friend -- he does NOT go out and get sloshed the night before work. I am strictly speaking about times we have been on group vacations, long weekends, etc.

TopazLover, BSN, RN · Jul 2, 2012

I had not read this thread when I just wrote an article so it is not in response to what I read here. The article is clear about my thoughts on the topic. We are not saints and don't need to be, but in public I believe we need to present ourselves with some decorum.