exception from the board

[barbs23]

hello,

i started tpapn back in march and was hoping to only be on it for 1 year but turns out that i will have to be on it for 3 years unless i can get an exception from the board. i was wondering if anyone has ever actually attempted this??? and if so how did it go and what was the process? i have over 6 years of sobriety so i feel like i can make a good case for myself but i also feel like it's most likely not to go through just because well...it's the board and tpapn and frankly they don't give a ****.

[hppygr8ful, ASN, RN, EMT-I]

I agree with "staying under the radar". I loathe this program and my PNAP Counselor, My "Therapist" and anybody that comes in contact with me knows what I think of all of this garbage. However, they also know that I intend on being fully complaint. Why the stark contrast? It's because I have come to the conclusion that these people have me by the you-know-whats and there is only one way out of this hell and that's to follow their rules so I do to a "T". I never miss the retarded nurse support meeting, I ensure all my paperwork gets turned in on time (if not early) and (most of all) I check in everyday and promptly comply with all DAU demands. I don't drink or drug. I've gone so far as to tell my counselor and therapist I would fake a "good attitude" (aka lying) about the benefit of all this BS if it helped but they said that wasn't necessary. I hate all of this and once I get my release my first stop after hearing might be the "flew outta hell" party my fellow nurses are already planning for me but I will not give them any excuse to keep me in this hell another minute. It's the only way outta this hell

I get it and I agree with you. Your case is different due to the fact that you had a DUI with no evidence of addiction (poor judgement perhaps but not addiction). Even though I freely admit I was prior to my years in recovery and alcoholic headed for a very early grave I hated the program most of the time I was in it. I loved AA it helped me immensely though I refuse believe that if I should ever slip I will die in a gutter somewhere. My goal with the BON was to play Boxer (The horse from Animal Farm) and put my head down, lean into the collar and keep saying to myself "I will work harder."

It's all behind me now though I am working to help pass legislation that holds the BONs accountable and makes these programs actually about rehabilitation than punishment.

Hppy

[SpankedInPittsburgh, DNP, RN]

Hppy:

That is a laudable goal!!! I truly wish you luck. I think to do that we have to examine the question of why nurses are so hard on each other? Many of us seem to revel in the miseries of our colleagues be it personal or professional. When I was in rehab I was there with an MD, Fireman and Policeman. All of them suffered from severe addiction issues. Once they were done with rehab they were allowed to return to work and get on with their lives. None lost a job over the fact that they had a substance abuse issue. Why the difference? I think it's because many other professions bond together with their colleagues and give them the benefit of the doubt. They have to stay clean and get tested and the doc had his own monitoring program to report to but none so much as missed a paycheck and all were allowed to return to their profession upon completion. I've read on this website many posts about how other medical professionals look down upon nurses and we don't get enough respect. Maybe its time we started bonding together and demanding respect instead of eating whatever garbage people want to feed us (including and especially from other nurses) and thanking them for it.