C Rizzle

I am 16 months into Diversion in Orange County, CA, please feel to reach out. I would love to talk to other nurses in diversion or probation.

This is so heartbreaking! Report the BRN to the state Auditor, send letters to local state representatives and senators. They are starting to hear us roar. We would never allow a patient to be abused. I refuse to see nurses be abused so callously!

This is absolute insanity! [MODERATOR EDIT OF NAME, PER TOS] must be removed or reassigned.

Yes, message me anytime. CA is turning into a *** show ever since BRN staff member [MODERATOR EDIT OF NAME, PER TOS] took over the diversion program.

In California, they tell you to write an essay on how you will not get another dilute test. You can research on Google a lot of great articles on maintaining a superior hydration status to avoid dilutes. The following is advice I was given, I don't advise you write the following in your essay if you are assigned to write one. To avoid further dilute results, on the morning that I am told to test, I avoid drinking too much fluid and I don't drink coffee. To ensure I do not get a dilute, I have heard that people take a multivitamin 1-2 hours before testing. I have also heard that people put a scoop of protein powder with a scoop of creatine an hour before testing, in a small amount of fluid like water or almond milk. In California, as long as you are clean, they send dilute test urines to a specialized dilute lab test to make sure you don't have any banned substances in your system. **This is not medical advice, make sure to check with your doctor prior to taking any new supplements or products to make sure you are not harming your health.** Since I started following the above advice that was given to me, I have not had a dilute urine. That said, it is not a guarantee that a person who follows this regimen will avoid a dilute test result.

Diversion AKA Intervention AKA Alternative to Discipline This is the program a nurse can volunteer to join. The main benefit is you do not have a public record of an administrative charge against your license such as alcohol use disorder, a mental illness or drug use disorder. You can not work for at least a year and must undergo inpatient or outpatient hospitalization and anywhere from 52-150 mandated random drug tests a year. You have a case manager and restrictions and actions you must follow in order to keep your anonymity and complete the program. They make you sign a contract but the BRN does not have to sign the contract and can make changes anytime they wish. There is no requirement for the board to release you in a timely manner, however they say you will remain in diversion until they release you for 3-5 years. You must work a minimum of 6 months with narcotics to be released from diversion. The BRN stated this requirement is proposed, however it is currently being imposed, with no warning to nurses who had as little as one day to be released. Probation is run by the DA but the BRN ultimately decides what charges will be levied and what restrictions will affect your license. It can also include inpatient or outpatient hospitalization, random drug charges, a fine up to $20,000, and you must work or your license gets suspended. It is a public administrative charge against your license that will remain publicly accessible online for 10 years. After 10 years, the complaint is no longer available online however, a flag will be noted on you license that a previous action was placed on your license and you can call the BRN to access anyone's complaint after 10 years so it will always be available publicly. The probation period has a legally binding term end date if you follow all the requirements listed. The BRN does not have to follow the judge or DA's recommendation and can choose what ultimately happens to the nurse. Hope this helps explain the differences.

The recent CA BRN changes have been increasingly mentioned in public comments at BRN meetings. What the heck am I referring to? The CA BRN diversion program has recently made changes to their rules on nurse participants without warning or explanation. If you are currently on diversion (formerly known as intervention) this will affect you. In recent BRN meetings, which are generally open to the public, portions are closed to the public for confidentiality reasons, nurses, lawyers and BRN support group moderators have been speaking out about changes to the diversion program. Nurses who were months, weeks or days away from completing their diversion programs are being told that they must work a minimum of 6 months passing narcotics before they will be considered safe to complete the program. Before this recent rule change which purportedly began around December, nurses in early 2023 were informed that THEY would not be released from the diversion program unless they worked a minimum of 6 months in an approved RN role. Many nurses joined the Diversion program prior to November 2023 when these rules were not in effect. These nurses were not grandfathered into their contracts and many nurses were presented new contracts with no options but to accept the new terms of the BRN's contract or risk immediate removal from the program and start at the beginning of a probation process after months or years of compliance with the diversion program run by Maximus. If you are currently in diversion, or you have previously completed the diversion program, please watch the archived BRN meetings since December. The archived meetings can be accessed at https://www.RN.ca.gov/consumers/webcasts.shtml. I highly suggest you watch the BRN meeting on February 28. There were many complaints brought up with the nursing board. You can find the dates of upcoming BRN meetings at https://www.RN.ca.gov/consumers/meetings.shtml#boardcomm. This issue will tentatively be an agenda line item discussed at the May BRN meeting. The public is allowed to attend all open sessions of BRN meetings. Please share this in your BRN Nursing Support groups and encourage every diversion nurse and support group moderator you know to attend future meetings.

Is your facility located in southern california?

Yes, this has been increasingly mentioned in public comments at BRN meetings. The archived meetings can be accessed at https://www.RN.ca.gov/consumers/webcasts.shtml. I highly suggest you watch the BRN meeting on February 28. This issue will tentatively be an agenda item discussed at the May BRN meeting. The public is allowed to attend all open sessions of BRN meetings. Please share this in your BRN Nursing Support groups and encourage every diversion nurse and support group moderator you know to attend future meetings.

Good evening, The answer is yes. However, it is a difficult and arduous process. I am currently taking ADHD medications. First, my doctor wrote a letter stating his treatment plan included a banned ADHD medication because it was appropriately indicated. Maximus/BRN stated that I would not be able to work while taking a banned but properly prescribed medication. I continued pursuing permission to take my appropriately prescribed medication and being allowed to work. I was asked through Maximus to try Strattera first to prove that this SNRI 4th line treatment for ADHD does not work. While inappropriate, my psychiatrist was very patient and understanding and prescribed Strattera. Then, when it failed (it was a horrible experience for me), I was asked to have my psychiatrist write a second letter indicating Strattera failed. At first, Maximus/BRN stated that I needed to seek a second opinion from a separate psychiatrist. Then, I was told I can take the medication but would still be denied the ability to work and take the appropriate 1st line ADHD medication. I persisted and continued pursuing approval. Finally, Maximus/BRN stated I would need to submit a neuropsychology report from a PHD psychologist that proves that I am neurocognitively intact while taking said 1st line medication. This exam costs $4000-$5000. I submitted my report and was eventually approved to take the medication prescribed by my psychiatrist AND be allowed the opportunity to work while taking the medication. The entire process was approximately 5 months with many calls to Maximus (they indicated they were contacting the board several times) and then finding a psychologist (who needed to be approved by Maximus) in time to submit the report to the board before my scheduled meeting with the BRN. I hope this helps.

Hi all, I have been in the California BON Diversion program for 7 months. I am in the program for Mental Health but because I also drank prior to my mental breakdown, I am dual diagnosis. All in all, I am doing great. I am in compliance so far. After much back and forth, I got an initial go ahead to take Vyvanse for ADHD with my case manager. As a rule, these programs are abstinence programs, because I am not at risk for drug use, and documentation from my psychiatrist I am waiting for my meeting to go back to work. Maximus does not have a protocol in place for a nurse who takes a controlled medication. In order to go back to work, I must get a neuropsychiatry evaluation for fit for duty/return to work (at my cost). It seems this evaluation is similar to a HIMS aviation evaluation. Maximus only had one name and his practice is full so I am searching for a neuropsychiatrist, who is also addiction certified. If anyone has any referrals, I would greatly appreciate it. If anyone has any experience with this, I'd love to hear how it went with the board. Thank you!