I am a new nurse. I had a massively hectic night shift and we were rushing from drug cabinet to drug cabinet with only one set of keys. I gave a patient 10mg (2x5mg) diazepams as prescribed. Sometimes, if a medication strip is finished I just stuff it into my pocket. Now, I have emptied my pockets to do my laundry and found what I thought was an empty strip actually has one tiny tablet on it! Or at least I assume that is why it is in my pocket?
We do not keep diazepam in our controlled drugs cupboard so there is no register of it. It is kept in a bedside locker with a patient label on it like all the other meds. Though the pharmacy do keep track of when they are running out.
What should I do? I have a few days off and now they are going to be ruined by stress. What if someone saw me do this?
If I own up, I will look so suspicious, they know I have social anxiety so I will look like I am taking it for anxiety!!!
Please, advise me. Destroy the tablet or phone work and get written up or suspended?
I went home with 2mg Dilaudid this past Sunday morning after work. I drove back to work, and wasted the med with charge nurse. He just laughed at me and told all I had to do was call him about it. If you just call or go back, they will be less suspicious because you did the right thing. Just call then and see what they want you to do.
@hotflashion Yes, it's not often I get to cite Poe and Dostoevsky in a nursing thread. And my father told me that English degree I pursued during my first round of college would never be useful in real life....
We all do stuff by mistake sometimes! I would take it back and talk to the charge nurse on duty IF you trust them. They should help you find out where it belongs/do a count with you. If you feel like they are out to get you, I would call the nurse manager STAT! to talk to them about it. I wouldn't want to just throw it away... Eventually the count will be noticed, and if your hands were in there you will be questioned/your blood drawn. I would rather just fess up and be honest in this situation. I hope it goes smoothly for you. Good luck with what you decide.
I'm going to have to leave it and pray I get away with it .
If that was an option, you should not have told anyone (and for goodness sake not posted on the internet). Given your propensity to spread this type of information around, I wish you the best of luck getting away with this.
And my father told me that English degree I pursued during my first round of college would never be useful in real life.... 
AznMattRN
30 Posts
I went home with 2mg Dilaudid this past Sunday morning after work. I drove back to work, and wasted the med with charge nurse. He just laughed at me and told all I had to do was call him about it. If you just call or go back, they will be less suspicious because you did the right thing. Just call then and see what they want you to do.