OIG OMG!

[alinkastar]

Hello fellow ”persons in long term recovery”! I went through some really tough times last year, got addicted, diverted but now I’m really trying to make amends and turn my life around. I’m in treatment and diversion program. Now ideally I really want to work in addiction treatment and help others struggling through this process. But I can’t find a nursing job anywhere:( because of pending felony and background check…
Do you know if OIG exclusion is for an absolute certainty with a felony to obtain substance (even with withheld judgment?)? My license was technically never disciplined, I went straight into monitoring program. Do you guys know how exactly nurses get on OIG list? Who refers them? Do they get paperwork from the court, from nursing recovery program, BON, how does it work?
I’m reading that if the nurse is enrolled in a nursing recovery program and the license is not suspended/revoked or on probation, then the board won’t refer to OIG. Is that correct?

I already can’t pass a background check with health and welfare fingerprints because of felony , which is a 5 year disqualifying event, even with withheld judgment. OIG time out would make it so much worse:(
Any advice is very appreciated!
Thank you!

[catmom1, BSN, RN]

I have been a poster here in the "nurses in recovery" forum for many years and unfortunately it appears to be dying off for lack of participation.

The good news is there should be an absolute TREASURE TROVE of excellent information and personalized insights in the forum histories on this site.

Do a search here at Allnurses using various terms related to OIG and you should find many posts relating to your inquiry.

 

The good news for you is that even if the posts you find are several years old, they will probably apply to your situation since licensure, OIG, and criminal consequences do not tend to change much over time.  So,  the consequences I had over 20 years ago are likely similar to what is happening to a nurse in my state who got reported to the board of nursing (BON) just last week because they diverted controlled substances.

A couple of points for you:  1) Consequences will take a LONG time to resolve and 2)  Staying substance free is the most important thing in your life.

License and income are critical to survival but will be irrelevant if you are dead from a drug OD.

Many have navigated your situation and are okay now.  You are NOT alone.

**HUGS**

Catmom1