For my second year of nursing, I was hired to become an Oncology Nurse. It was not my first choice because of the multiple cancer stricken family members I have in my life right now. Eventually, I made peace with it since I needed a job and I thought it was God's way to have me a chance to honor my love ones. I had a great year meeting new co-workers and caring for the patients and meeting their families.
I was not aware of Oncology Nursing's reputation for the highest nacotic meds access and the other reputation of suspected users in Oncology Nursing. I regret to be so limited/hard-headed to only think it as chemotherapy, death & dying.
Now that I am reading allnurses since I had been audited for the lack of documentation for my controlled substance administration, I am shocked to see that the highest suspected narcotic user/diverter is that of: Oncology nurses, that really good nurse, the one with the outgoing personality, and that one that works plenty of shifts, and of course, the one with documentation issues. I am all those!
Because of my strongly moral basis for Oncology, the kind of care I deliver to patients is heart-felt and personal.
Because I come from an artistic background, I tend to be emotional and expressive.
Because I am only a sophomore nurse, I am very optimistic in the wonderful world of nursing the sick.
Because I am a new grad from 2008, I was tangibly affected by the recession that I:
perform with so much enthusiasm against all odds
worked many additional shifts like back-to-back, and extra days. I was positively enforced about this at work as well.
There will be nothing an investigator will find in my background in relation to narcotic diversion or use. It was purely mis-documentation and my self-bought drug test show negative. But I cannot let go of the thoughts that someone out there thinks that I am a possible suspect.
My director is obligated to report my forced resignation to the Board. I hear that there might be times that the director does not do so anymore. Does anybody know what happens if my director truly reports me ?
This is so very upsetting. I was almost suicidal and psychotic the day after I wanted to voluntary admit myself as a 5150; but thanks to family, my faith, and nursing knowledge, I was able to get out of that funk immediately.
I not quite sure what type of response I wish by writing a new thread but I'm just taking advantage of the support this type of community offers.
I am sorry this happend to you but for some reason I feel like there is more to this story than being told. Your personality has nothing to do with determining if you are a drug seeker, diverter, etc. But I do not understand how they would just fire you for documentation errors, seems like they would counsel you about it. Have you ever gotten into any other trouble at work, no other counseling?
Like said before if your not guilty get a lawyer, and you need to ask them what kind of drug test they want, I have never heard of you being able to take a OTC drug test and then show them results, you could have had anyone pee on it, you see what I am saying, that is what they will think to, you need a drug test witnessed through a company not on your own.
Good luck to you, I hope everything turns out well!!
Pink
Hi: yes you can pay for your own drug test through federally approved drug testing centers. These tests are also conducted by doctors. It costed me $200 for urine and hair test -- how humiliating personally.
Per my personality, I think it has nothing to do with it either but looking around allnurse.com , it came across posts when I searched Narcotic documentation or wrongful narcotic diversion accusation.
As for there being more to the story, I guess that's true. I didn't mention that this is my second documentation offense. I had gone under corrective action for the first one. I was just pleading for at least a second write-up and re-train; and a Last Chance Agreement meaning I am let go if I repeat it one more time.
i hope others can learn from your story. narcotic documentation is a really big deal. i hope that you were given warnings that your documentation was subpar and given the opportunity to improve. sadly, you've learned a very big lesson. best of luck in the future.
I really worry sometimes about whether it is a good idea to be posting such specific information about an ongoing investigation on a public forum.
Done, it sounds like you have had a lot going on in your life, both personally and professionally. A hard road to travel for someone just coming into an already difficult profession. I hope that you can find the answers that you need and that you are able to move on from this awful experience.
Thanks for your empathy. I hope so too. You remind me to be sure to seek some counseling as this surely can affect my disposition in the job search.
I think it's alright to post something like this since I did not mention any specifics. Alert me if I did. Also, I'm not under investigation if that helps.
if I were, what's the harmful thing in posting ( asking out of pure curiosity ) ? If me or the board or courts use it as evidence, wouldn't it be considered as inadmissible anyway ? Pls tell me what I'm missing :) thanks for replying however
every nurse i've ever known who was fired for drug diversion had "falsification of documentation" or something similar as their official cause of termination. it's concrete. if someone removes a narcotic from pyxis and didn't chart it as given to a patient, wasted or returned within and appropriate time frame, that is concrete. saying someone has "signs of drug use" may be descriptive, but it's subjective.
i guess this is somethign i didn't state -- my problem was that i pulled from the pyxis but didn't scan into our electronic chart and nothing else, however, hapoened more than once. but i surely administered all of those meds (patient care first -- someone mentioned conscience in here somewhere -- my nursing conscience is very proud and clear that all my cancer patient's pain had all been managed).
I really worry sometimes about whether it is a good idea to be posting such specific information about an ongoing investigation on a public forum.
Done, it sounds like you have had a lot going on in your life, both personally and professionally. A hard road to travel for someone just coming into an already difficult profession. I hope that you can find the answers that you need and that you are able to move on from this awful experience.
You are kind. thank you. I remember why I solicited to this online community.
Your post is very interesting from a statement analysis perspective. I didn't read anything in it that says "I did not take any drugs." Instead, it's a rather rambling account of how you fit the diverter profile, and how there's nothing an "investigator" will find in your "background."
I had a similar problem a few years back. I was new to the pyxis system and I forgot to witness my narcotic wastes. Of course, my boss eventually had to talk to me, but the first words out of my mouth were "I don't take drugs, and I will take drug urine and hair test right this minute."
If you are innocent, then tell them straight out you didn't do it, and prove it any way you can.
If you are guilty, admitting it is the first step to getting help. We are all vunerable to diversion. It's one of nursing's dirty little secrets, how many of us fall prey to addiction.
If you did it, please get help, because it will only get worse. Addiction thrives on secrecy and denial. If you didn't, get a lawyer and clear your name. I wish you all the best.
Hi pumpkin: oh my god you're right, I didn't say so in this post. I was sure to say it though to my mother, my husband, manager, closest friends, and HR that I do not use.
The post was written this way as influenced by the other allnurses narcotic diverters postings. Some warned the readers of those characteristics I mentioned/used. i guess the personality aspect is associated to drug-seekers characteristic of being manipulative ( psych nursing stuff ).
Now I'm self-analyzing why I didn't write it right away. Perhaps I Thought it was understood that I'm not guilty of diversion since my post was about how shocked i am tha my own personal descriptions matched that of the other posts. Also, stating it up front makes me feel like I am defensive; I'm under the impression that defensiveness is also a sign of guilt.
Anyway, i am just plainly sad that i experienced this when my mistake was pulling it from Pyxis -giving it to patient-but not scanning it into the eLectronic MAr ( reasons of distraction, interruption etc ). It feels unfair since the worse thing is the one who scans perfectly but actually diverts. Tsk
I hope this doesn't make oncology nurses afraid to give narcotics. My son suffered cancer for 8 years before he passed away 2 years ago. We had to beg and beg and beg for pain meds. Cancer was in his colon, liver and both lungs, then finally in his brain, but everyone looked at him like he was just a drug-seeker.
This is terrible. I'm sorry for your loss and experience. I hope oncology nurses at my old workplace gets more support so that nobody will be placed at my unfortunate spot making all fearful. There are system errors that I presented to affect my documentation -hopefully, they get addressed after my terrible experience.
For the past year that I worked there, most nurses didn't care to work more than our regular 24 hours/week despite opportunities, were burdened by every 2 hour pain med needs ( I think affecting the attitudes or even care ).
Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
It sounds like you are saying some of your personality traits caused them to suspect you of diversion in combination with the errors in documentation?
I would seek legal counsel. I take you at your word, so you were terminated for something you didn't do. In order to get through it emotionally, you will need to be proactive, it's very hard to bounce back just waiting for the bad news to roll in. Get some professional perspective. I wish you the best in getting through this and in your career going forward.
I am confused too.. I am not sure what your "outgoing, bubbly personality" has to do with documentation or lack therof. Typically if they have a suspicion, you get pulled off the floor and made to Pee in a cup on the spot. Once they determine what you are
Hi: well,this apparently isn't the culture. There is an ethical line that I was told they consider -- having me test for drugs right away compromises my dignity, and nursing is all about preserving human dignity.
Also, I went to a federally approved drug testing clinic. Same clinic as companies and coroorations use for background checks. I will edit my post now.
It sounds like you are saying some of your personality traits caused them to suspect you of diversion in combination with the errors in documentation?
I would seek legal counsel. I take you at your word, so you were terminated for something you didn't do. In order to get through it emotionally, you will need to be proactive, it's very hard to bounce back just waiting for the bad news to roll in. Get some professional perspective. I wish you the best in getting through this and in your career going forward.
Thanks for your kind words.
Well, surely the basis of my resignation was the lack of narcotic documentation. i brought my personality into light because the allnurses posts touching narcotic diverters mention this ( surely in lieu of drug-seekers manipulative characteristic per psychiatric nursing lessons )
EVERY nurse I saw come through drug and alcohol rehab, or who were former co-workers were outstanding nurses. Department was irrelevant. They were simply really good nurses, aside from the addiction. Access to narcs is pretty easy on post-op floors & med-surg.
My workplace requires that nurses document each instance of narcotic administration in three different places: the MAR, the flow sheet, and a narrative in the nurses notes. Any person who repeatedly fails to document narcotic administration in all three places runs the risk of being investigated and/or reported.
The bottom line is that any caregivers who work after you may sometimes depend on your accurate (or inaccurate) documentation before making their next clinical moves. Omitted documentation of giving narcotics can have gravely serious consequences.
We use electronic MAR and the next nurse doesn't have to care.
Done
15 Posts
Hi: yes you can pay for your own drug test through federally approved drug testing centers. These tests are also conducted by doctors. It costed me $200 for urine and hair test -- how humiliating personally.
Per my personality, I think it has nothing to do with it either but looking around allnurse.com , it came across posts when I searched Narcotic documentation or wrongful narcotic diversion accusation.
As for there being more to the story, I guess that's true. I didn't mention that this is my second documentation offense. I had gone under corrective action for the first one. I was just pleading for at least a second write-up and re-train; and a Last Chance Agreement meaning I am let go if I repeat it one more time.