pnap 3 year monitoring, questions and concerns

backtowork · Nov 9, 2011

Hi 317... These are all great questions which I think can best be answered best by your peer review case manager. Since I am in a different state, I am not sure what your peer review requires or what your BON would do. What I can offer is this. I have read every post in this forum, and retained an attorney, and I network in person with other nurses in our situation because I know knowledge is the key to making good choices. Most of us on this forum are here because we have made poor choices and now are paying the price. Research, ask questions, be brave about talking honestly about your recovery and you will have all the answers to make good solid positive choices. I know I have not answered your questions, but hopefully gave you direction on where to find the answers. The definition of lunacy is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results and we can break that chain with making better choices. Congrats on your sobriety and welcome to the fold.

jmo1231 · Nov 9, 2011

Hi 317 I too am enrolled in PNAP and have to agree with Back to Work. We are all here because of consequences of poor choices made in life ect. I have worked too hard for my nursing license to give it up for Anyone or Anything. I am sure you have worked just as hard maybe harder. Noone can answer your exact questions but I do believe in order to mainain your license you have to do the program weather its now or 3 years from now. Welcome to the forum and to recovery we are all in this together! I am not sure about the specifics on the urine testing thats a question for your case manager. I believe they test for different substances at different times who knows why? Just stay clean and it wont matter but I suppose the cost of the test varies.... Well said Back to Work :)

backtowork · Nov 11, 2011

ditto to you JMO

3809 · Dec 4, 2018

Hello I have been in the PNAP program since 2016, I am in the State of PA I was told that the program could be from 1 to 3 years I volunteered for the program wanting to protect my license. I had no violations on my license and after all this time almost 3 years later with no failed random drug test wANYhy am I still in this program. I believe I was lied to in the first place, I thought for sure because I volunteered and was not forced into the program I would be done after a year definitely 2, now we are approaching 3 years. It's not fair they need to have tiers in this program because Nurses who do the right thing in this program should not be penalized for years, its not right. Is there anyone I can write to or call I simply tired of having what feels like my life being on hold simply because I volunteered thinking I was doing the right thing. HELP ANY ANSWERS

Persephone Paige, ADN · Dec 4, 2018

hi im new to pnap and i had a couple questions. first of all just for curiositys sake, lets say i was able to find a non nursing job to work for the next 3 years. what would happen if i decided not to do the pnap program. im sure they would suspend or take my license away. but after a 3 year period what would happen if i attempted to get my license back? and is that possible? second off, once i am allowed to practice as a nurse again, what type of jobs would be good to look for since ill have certain restrictions. also iv been selected to be "randomly" tested supposedly twice in the past 5 days. both time its been option 3, and i know there are 10 options. im wondering what does option 3 test for just out of curiosity, and what type of reasons would warrent me to be tested under any of the other 9 optoions. any input on any of these subjects would be greatly appreciated. thank you, and thank god for my sobriety.

Hi New (317171k),

First thing to remember is that all States have their own ways of doing things. Perhaps a member from your State will have some experience, or know someone who's had a similar experience and chime in. I can tell you what would happen if you did that in my State. Our board in Fl., is pretty swift and decisive. If a nurse has been caught diverting, he/she may be given the option of self reporting to avoid board involvement. In extreme cases, when the nurse has demonstrated very concerning behavior, the authorities may decide to skip that option and place emergency suspension. In all cases I am familiar with if the nurse has been reported to IPN and IPN has asked that they do an evaluation and the nurse fails to follow through, the BON is notified. Then, there's the public report available forever. The BON then makes it mandatory for a nurse to comply with IPN. If the nurse still refuses ( what I did ) they suspend your license for 2 years. And they require that you come before the board again ( at which time they will refer you to IPN again ) before you can have it reinstated. This is all very expensive, btw. The BON is keeping track of how much it's costing them to investigate, harass, sick the DOH investigators, staff you at board meetings, etc. So, any "time off" from dealing with this is just delaying the inevitable. Again, this is Florida. It is a huge task to make everything right again. It's expensive and it takes a long time. If you are up for the fight, waiting may be okay with you. I can tell you that had I known what was waiting for me, I would have straightened up sooner and complied.

Persephone Paige, ADN · Dec 4, 2018

One more thing I forgot to mention is that there are a few nurses in my group who were addicted to more 'off the beaten path' stuff. Some of the drug screens are geared to pick up drugs like Ambien, nurses will get one of those here and there. I have yet to find an algorithm, rhyme or reason for who gets selected for what, when. Just remember, they are TRYING to catch you using a mind or mood altering substance and those 'different' tests do that. Don't use any of that crazy Asian tea, cat-nip, or whatever these young whippersnappers are coming up with now.

SpankedInPittsburgh, DNP, RN · Dec 5, 2018

3809:

Yeah, I feel your pain. I've been in about the same amount of time and it is horrible and senseless. Furthermore, they told me that it was a 3 year program and that turned out not to be true. After sitting on my paperwork for months it will be closer to a 4 year program. However, all other alternatives (for me anyway) are worse than serving out my stint in this cartoon-land program so I try the best I can to get on with my life in spite of it.

As far as calling somebody to complain? Who? After all this is a program overseen by the BON (nurses). These are our chosen leaders in the commonwealth. The simple truth is that many nurses love to see other nurses in pain and failing. Anything they can do to revel in other's misery seems to be an almost orgasmic experience for them. Until we address that basic fact I'm pretty sure your objections will fall on deaf ears