solarex

If you haven't smoked THC, that is no issue. You are fine. The danger is this....Most State Boards in the last 5 years are selecting the testing sites for where nurses go for evaluations. It did not use to be this way. The Board would say, we need an evaluation from somewhere in our state within one month. Now, the Board actually has contracts with certain facilities in their states to which they send nurses who are referred. What's the problem with that? If the chemical eval declares that you have a program, then the Board takes them at their word, but there is more to it. If the facility doing the chemical eval finds that you have a problem, then that facility also adds another nurse to the pool of those requiring random drug testing over the next few years, so it is going to make a buck by having you, or some other nurses having to come back and randomly test there over the next few years. Unfortunately, the rate of nurses who are Referred by the Board for a Chemical Eval to a Facility that the Board picks, the overall rate in New York State in the year of 2020 was 89%. That means, the facility told the Board that for every 10 nurses that presented to it for a chemical eval, almost 9 in 10 was declared to have a problem. That's New York State. I don't know about Louisiana. Trust me....prepare for an alcohol hair test IF the Board told you go to to that exact place in which you are being evaluated. They are very stringent and its more than drug testing. You could test Negative on Drug Test, but there are chemical eval written-paper-interview tests they do that can cause them to report that you have a problem and need to be in monitoring EVEN IF you test negative in urine and hair tests.

When you enter a program, most programs will want you to attend 3 recovery meetings per week, which is either AA, NA, Celebrate Recovery or Smart Recovery or a combination of those above. You will call in everyday to check in and when you call, if you are selected to give a drug test, you have to give a drug test that day. Those are the big requirments. Here's the thing though, when you enter a monitoring program, they are going to want you to attend a 6 week hospitalization program, a 6 week IOP program, and a one year aftercare program which is 1 hour to 1.5 hours meeting once per week of Aftercare. You will not have time to work while in the PHP program. That's pretty much all day. You will be able to work regarding having enough time while in an IOP program and onward. The Board doesnt' have the power to tell you whether you can or can't work in a place outside of nursing. If you want to be a Druck Driver or waitress or warehouse worker, they don't have the power to tell you that you can't work somewhere and they won't do that. They will simply tell you that you better be at those meetings and not miss a daily check in. Anything that hinders your recovery is a no no, but working somewhere outside of nursing while your license is suspended is fine. For nurses who are suspected of diversion. Warning to you. Many for some reason or another love to wait until the Board Investigation is over which can take up to 2 years, and when it's over, the nurse thinks, OK, I will just start the monitoring program then. It doesn't work like that. If you are determined to be diverting and lets say the 18 month mark comes up and the Board finishes its investigation. They are going to make you go to a 6 week Partial Hospitalization Program somewhere, then do a 6 week IOP program, and a one year Aftercare Program, and if diverting, your license usually suspended for 1 year, and they want you to get this rehab part done while that license is suspended. So, there is more to it than simply starting your monitoring program when the investigation is over. Again, this is another reason I tell nurses to get to rehab immediately after caught diverting and do not wait for the investigation. Get to rehab, and while you are in rehab, call your state monitoring program from the rehab program and get the paperwork in, get enrolled so when you return from the 6 week PHP program back to your home, you are immediately checking in, being monitored the moment you return home. This is viewed as OVERwhelmingly FAVORABLE by the Board and your punishment is usually much less by the time the Board finishes the investigation.

1. Rose, please don't post about things you have no clue or concept of what you are talking about. I am a CRNA and use to set on the California Board prior to CRNA school while an RN. I did it for 2 years. I have seen over 25 nurses criminally charged in my time. After leaving the Board, I diverted 4 years later as a CRNA and have been through both sides of the process, both the working for the Board side, and then actually being an offending nurse who diverted. 2. Hospitals can't "charge you criminally." A Hospital isn't a Prosecutor. The DA is the Prosecutor. What did I write in the previous post? I did NOT write anything about "Hospitals Charging Someone." That's not possible. What I DID write was....hospitals and the Chief of Pharmacy has a DUTY, by LAW, to NOTIFY the local/county police and the DEA and the State Board in diversion cases because diversion is a criminal act. As to whether the District Attorney decides to prosecute a nurse is not simply based on "what the Hospital wants to do." LOL. That has ZERO to do with it. It's about three things. The first is how many cases does the DA have and does he have the time to fool with you. Usually, that answer is no. I can tell you that Southern States are far likelier to bring charges compared to western more liberal states. 2nd, the volume of evidence plays a part. For example, is the evidence overwhelming and obvious. 3rd, and often the biggest factor involved if the first 2 criteria above are met. For example, if the DA decides he or she is going to bring charges and has the time and money to do so, and the evidence is overwhelming, then the 3rd factor is your behavior AFTER getting caught. Are you denying, lawyering up, not responding to the Board, and MOST important, have you yet to enter a recovery program. Of all the people that do get charged criminally, I can tell you this, 99 percent of them meet these three criteria above. Aside from your nurse license. Just put that aside. Any lawyer will tell you the this. If you have a drug problem and the evidene is overwhelming against you, GET to rehab IMMEDIATELY. Why? It can literally make the difference in whether or not you are criminally charged. If a DA is thinking about bringing charges, the first thing they do is look to see what you are doing at present, and if you are in rehab, in monitoring as well, your changes just went WAY down of being charged. Even if charged, if you have gone to rehab and are in monitoring program, the changes of those charges being dropped go trough the roof. Again, Hospitals are not in the legal criminal field. A hospital doesn't decide whether or not you are charged. We are talking about criminal law, not civil law. In criminal law, the District Attorney, who represents the citizens of the State you live in decides whether to bring charges regardless of what a Hospital wants to do. Let me assure you of this. In EVERY suspected diversion case in America, the Hospital-Chief of Pharmacy has a duty to report to the DEA, and the Board of Nursing. If not, the hospital can and will be fined millions of dollars, and the Chief of Pharmacy can lose his or her license to practice, so I promise you, they report it. Again, reporting it, and then a District Attorney bringing criminal charges are two different things, but once again, your actions, your behavior AFTER you have been caught diverting can dramatically effect the odds of whether or not you are charged criminally. Last of all, Rose stated you could not talk to the Board and your license suspended for a year or 2, and then you get it back. What nurses don't understand is that it is pretty easy to "get your license back." That's not difficult. The problem is when you get that license back in 2 years, the stipulations that follow. The Board will say, yep, you got your license back, congrats, now here are the stipulations you have that allow you to keep it, and if you don't the following, we will revoke it. And when revoked, you aren't getting it back. Choose another profession quickly. As for those stipulations after you "get it back." You are on probation. You will attend 3 recovering meetings weekly and your Supervisor at Work will send the Board a report every 3 months, and you can't have access to controlled substances at work, and you should have completed a 6 week PHP program, a 6 week IOP program, and a one year Aftercare Program, and you will call in daily and be in random drug testing. These conditions above last for 5 years, but we will give you your controlled substance ability and privaleges back after 1 year to 18 months. By the way, we need to approve where you work before the first day that you start work and will be contacting your Supervisor frequently via phone or email to check in on you, and oh yea, good luck getting a nursing job without narcotic privaleges. The only place that will hire you is Dialysis if you are lucky or a plasma center, and both have long hours and pay very little. But hey, "you have your license back." My point is....when you here the words, "you got it back," most nurses who just don't think very clearly either choose not to, or don't have the ability to tell you what "having your license back" involves. I just told you, and was being honest.

In California, everyone does NOT get a key restriction. This totally varies based on what the nurse did, for example, diluted urine specimen when applying for a job compared to proven Diversion of narcotics while at work. Those two are radically different. When does the Board give you credit from another Board? They are looking for one key thing and that is.....have you been monitored (as in....daily check ins and random drug testing). They will want proof that you have been monitored and if monitored for 2 years and you can provide the proof, then you will get credit, but.........they are not going to accept "you monitoring yourself."

I am in Sacramento, and use to be on the Board. I'm now in NYC

Then....you need to fight. I would first and foremost, acknowledge the receipt of the investigation. 2nd, I would immediately get a chemical evaluation and then send this to the Board. From that point right there, the Board has no case against you. What you did was in the past and you paid for it, and you have the proof that you don't have a substance abuse issue. IF the Board does not stop.....after you have given them the chemical eval, obtain an attorney. I would not obtain an attorney yet. The chemical eval showing you don't have a substance abuse issue should do it. That should end it. But, if that doesn't end it, I would then get an attorney.

The hair test for alcohol is very, very likely IF.....IF the Board is picking the chemical eval facility for you. If they are saying to you, "we want you to go here." Then it's very likely. If you have some say so in which chemical eval facility you are going to, then it's 50-50.

Your license was suspended and you are still drinking....as in.....ANY amount of alcohol shows poor judgement. It begs the question of....how much do you truly care about your licence. With the volume of alcohol that you drank in the last 90 days, a hair test for alcohol will easily show a positive test. It's automatic. At a chemical eval, it's 50-50. If you are being referred to that chemical eval facility by the Board, then it's likely they will do a hair test. It's not automatic, but highly likely. You said your license was suspended. Did the Board specifically say in your suspension order that you must refrain from all mood altering substances? I'm betting they did. If they didn't, then tell the truth. Tell the evaluator you drank wine. Again....that is if you aren't prohibited from drinking wine or alcohol. If you are prohibited....and I would think you are, you really need to ask yourself how important your license is. Because....if they do a hair test, you are going to test positive. It's automatic. If a urine alcohol test, you will be good to go if no alcohol in 6 days.

A previous med error and IPN are not the same thing. You don't get placed into a monitoring program due to a simple med error. Is there more to the story? Was the med error something just a bit more than a med error.....as in....narcotics went missing and you called this a med error, but it's actually a bit more than med error? Are you saying that you are being investigated by the Board for a simple med error that you reported? If so, acknowledge the investigation and comply. Why do you need a lawyer? If it was a med error, what do you have to hide? But, if there is something more to the story that you are telling (and there usually is with these discussions) and your "med error" was related to drugs that went missing, or if your "med error" was one in which your previous stated they gave some type of disciplinary action. If the med error or discipline was related to narcotics, I suggest you immediately go get your own Chemical Eval from a Treatment Center and send that to the Board on your own showing that you don't have a chemical issue. That will nip it in the bud and end it right there. Now, if you truly and simply did....have a med error in your previous state and it was only that and not narcotic related, or if your previous board required some type of chemical eval when they disciplined you, then send that copy to the board, and then I suggest you tell the truth and say yes, I made a med error, just like probably everyone on the Nurse Board and on this Board has had a speeding ticket at some time. People make mistakes, but what I am getting at is...........is there just a little something extra that happened in what you are calling, "a med error." DO NOT IGNORE IT! The investigation will go on without out you. At least acknowledge that you have received the notice of investigation. You have to do that. Even if you had a lawyer, the lawyer will tell you that you have to acknowledge that you have received the email. Now, complying, speaking to the Board, telling your story to them is NOT required. That is where the lawyer could come in. Here is the thing, if it's in the past and the discipline with the previous board is over with and you have nothing to hide, then I wouldn't get a lawyer.

For any nurses in monitoring programs, be careful requesting vacation time. Some of you will have allowed maximum amount of vacation time specified in your monitoring agreement per year. Some will say it's at your case managers discretion. Some will not say anything about it other than that you simply have to clear it with your case manager before going. Here is what I am getting at and why it's important to think twice. If your monitoring program is for alcohol and is 4 years, or lets say it's for Diversion and it's 5 years and you request vacation time which means.....you are getting permission to travel and you are getting permission to not have to check in daily while on vacation for a week or 2. Here is what is happening across the country with monitoring programs. Many of them are tacking on your vacation time to the end of your monitoring discharge time. For example, if you are doing a 4 year monitoring agreement and you are within a month of discharge, you may not be discharged in one month. Monitoring programs are moving to this. They are looking back and adding up the vacation time you took over the past 4 years, and lets say it's 8 weeks total. You just added 8 weeks to your 4 year monitoring period. Is it a big deal? No, not really, but it is an extension and it is a real thing. They are doing this more and more. What I have seen many nurses and monitoring programs do is this. You simply take vacation and still call in every day and if selected to test, then you test at the site where your vacation is and you are the one responsible for knowing where that site is. Many monitoring agreements......actually most of them.....do not require you to "request vacation or travel" if it's inside the USA. Some do, but most don't. They absolutely and obviously do require you to request permission to travel/vacation AND be exempted from having to check in daily while on vacation. The easiest thing, and keeping with your routine, might simply be to travel, go on vacation, and treat it like any other day and check in and be prepared to test if selected. I know for some....for some people, you are required to get permission to simply leave the state or travel regardless of whether you are requesting to check in or not check in, but most monitoring agreements don't require that. Most only request you get permission to travel if you are planning on not checking in daily while you are on your trip and vacation.

First of all, you did not disclose WHY you have a chemical dependency evaluation. 2nd. Alcohol usage can be detected in the hair for up to 90 days. The test is more qualitative than quantitative and here is what I mean. They can detect, going back to 90 days, if you have been drinking or had a one time-one night binge on alcohol versus the accidental alcohol mouthwash or hand sanitizer. They can't tell if you have been drinking every day or every week, but they can get an idea of the overall volume and they can tell the difference in that versus accidental alcohol contact like alcohol pads for finger sticks and injections to patients or perfume or mouthwash. Important....think of a giant string of yarn that is Blue. If you had one night where you got hammered 2 months ago and that was it. You did not drink at any other time in the last 3 months, they can at the tiniest level with the highest powered microscopes, identify that giant string of yarn that is blue and with a 100 percent certainty, they will find that giant string of yarn with a completely and perfectly encircled yellow color that is sized literally within a couple days before or after and they can time it based on the length. It's actually not hard for them to do. If you drank for example once every 2 weeks. They can see and estimate those times based on the discolorations of the reagent that is ALARMINGLY accurate and simple to see with a microscope, and they have a mathematical formula based on your hair length sample and the size of the discoloration that can estimate the frequency of your use and the approximate time, and yes, this is so scientific that it has held up in court for over 2 decades. As for the Pleth. If you are having a chemical dependency eval, in addition to the hairtest, they will do a urine test for alcohol. The type they do will be the most sophisticated/most accurate possible. As of 2023, the most sophisticated urine alcohol tests can detect alcohol metabolites for up to 6 days with very, very good reliability. This is why so many people lose their licenses and get kicked out of monitoring programs. It happens all across the USA after a 4 day weekend. Lets say there is Christmas coming up. For example, it's Friday the 21sr of December, so the 24th is a Holiday which is a Monday and the 25th is a Holiday which is Tuesday. The nurse who is in monitoring calls in very early on Friday morning at the earliest time possible and they are NOT selected to randomly test that day. The nurse knows they are off over the next 4 days and doesn't have to call in again to see if they are selected to test until Wednesday. What does the nurse do? The nurse calls in sick on Friday and instead, plans on getting themselve a stiff drink or cold brew. Surely, 5 days is enough to clear the alcohol if they are selected to test the following Wednesday when it's time to call in again. Well, 5 days is NOT long enough to clear it. You would be amazed how many nurses are removed from monitoring programs and licenses suspended or revoked around late December every year because of the 4 day Holiday. It's incredible how many nurses call in sick to work on the last working day before the Holiday to give themselves what is basically a 5 day weekend instead of a 4 day weekend so they can get their alcohol in them soon, which gives them more time to clear it. When it happens, and the nurse gets selected and tests positive on Wednesday when having to call in again, what does the monitoring program and board do? They immediately call your employer and ask a simple question. Was she or he sick on Friday, the day before the 4 day weekend, or did she take time off, doctors appt, etc? Boards know this. They have seen every trick in the book, and that trick is repeated with every 4 day weekend all across the country by nurses who think they are the only nurse in the United States to come up with their brilliant idea.

False. It is now 5 for anyone coming in with Diversion History and here is why. First, I have cut and pasted from their website "Generally, the Program length is between three (3) to five (5) years. However, the actual length of time will depend on how well you respond to your individual recovery plan." A one time DUI, one time failed drug test with no history of diversion at work after the Board thoroughly checks? These are the kind of incidences where you will get 3 to 3.5 years. IF....again...if you are diverting and the reports and pharmacy records and behavior supports Diversion, I will again repeat, you ARE doing 5 years, period. In the last 5 years, 14 states have gone to 5 year programs for Diversion Cases. These state use to be 3, 3.5 or 4 years. Why the move to 5 years for basically ALL Diversion Cases? The research supports this from recovery centers across the United States. Nurse Anesthetists. One of the leading research groups in Nursing as it relates to recovery is nurse anesthetists because they have overwhelmingly high amounts of substance abuse. Because of this, the AANA (their national organization) has invested lots of dollars into Recovery Research. For example..how to treat it..how to prevent relapse, best methods, etc. One of their research arms is Parkdale Center near Chicago. It's technically in Indiana. Parkdale, with the AANA, have done tons of research on recovery and this research has been shared with pretty much every nurse board and nurse monitoring program in the USA. Their research is leading the way. The data that has come out of there places strong emphasis on 2 things... 1. The good- getting nurses back to practice within 6 months, as long as they are in active recovery and monitoring. 2. The not so good- Monitoring should be 5 years for all Diversion cases, or cases where it's obvious that the person is addicted to substances in order to decrease the chances of relapse at the highest level. Even when you see a state monitoring program out there that says, "plans are individualized regarding treatment and length of time is 3 to 5 years." Trust me...your "individualized plan" is going to have the number 5 on it, if you were diverting. Again....a one time DUI with no history of any issues or a one time failed drug test for example....when applying for a job and not ON the job? These are the 3 to 3.5 year type things. For the person who is addicted, or a 2nd DUI, diverting at work, you are NOT finishing a program before 60 months. I work in this area and know what I'm talking about.

There are circumstances where waiting is better due to not being in that state, or traveling, saving money, etc. I get that, but by in large...and in most cases, getting the clock started is better. Trust me on this. I have talked to hundreds....not 20 or 30 or 50, but probably 200 nurses that are either in monitoring programs or they are finished with them and about 180 out of that 200 have all told me the same thing. "Why on Earth did I wait for well over a year until the Board finished investigating when I could have started earlier and had it over with." I have heard that statement well over 100 times. Many of these nurses were approaching well over 18 months waiting...close to 23 months (almost 2 years) before the Board had an official decision and consent order. A very stressful process that could have taken 5 years had been lengthened to nearly 7 years. 7 years is 70% of one decade! It's stressful waiting on the Board to finish their investigation and get everything finalized. You are better off starting monitoring/diversion program immediately because you are in the program, you are being monitored, you know that you are doing the right thing and trending in the right direction and TRUST ME, the Board will have favorable action at NOT throwing the book at you, if you are in the monitoring program for the 1.5 years or sometimes more while the investigation in ongoing. It looks VERY good for you compared to playing the lawyer game, having your lawyer do every piece of communication with the Board on your behalf, only to get the EXACT same thing to happen to you as if you would not have had a lawyer. You are GOING into the monitoring program for 5 years. The exception? Obviously if you are not addicted or you have not taken drugs, and you are being accused of something to where you truly don't need to be in a 5 year program, then sure, lawyer up. Otherwise, you are Wasting 10,000 dollars for a lawyer. GET INTO Monitoring/Diversion Program literally the day that you are caught diverting. Get signed up that fast, and your life will be better. Your license WILL come out BETTER in the long run and it's actually LESS stressful for you in the long run by entering a monitoring program EARLY.

No there isn't. You are absolutely not under any work restrictions UNTIL the Board says you are. If you are being investigated by a nurse board and the evidence looks overwhelming to the point that the Board can not wait the average 12 to 18 months before the investigation and punishment is decided, they will do an quick injunction forbidding the nurse from practice until the investigation is over. A nurse will know quickly if they get an order from the Board to stop working. If you haven't received an order to stop working from the Board, and only a notice that you are under investigation, you can continue to work while in the Diversion Program. The program is VOLUNTARY until.....the nurse board finishes the investigation and decides you have a problem. It become INVOLUNTARY after that. Either way....the 5 year clock has started once you enter the program and are being monitored/drug tested. IF....again....IF you wait until the investigation is over and 1.5 years have gone by, and you then Enter into the diversion monitoring program, your 5 year clock does not start until that date. You have basically just lost 1.5 years do to ignorance.

No, I did not wait until the investigation was over before entering my monitoring program. Why? Because I wanted the clock started. It's a 5 year monitoring program. The state is going to want you to do 5 years of being monitored (daily check in/random drug testing) and nurses are just plain ignorant, completely ignorant for "waiting until the investigation is over" before entering the monitoring program. Often 1 year to 18 months has passed before the Board makes a decision. You could have already had 1.5 of the 5 years DONE before the Board made a decision, but what do ignorant nurses do? They wait-stress themselves out/worry themselves sick for the 12 to 18 months time it is taking for the Board to finish the investigation and make a decision, then when the decision is made, the Nurse just got to add another 5 years of stress into the mix on top of the 18 month waiting period. Ignorance. Monitoring program/diversion program. If the Board decides you don't need monitoring 1 year after you have already quickly enrolled into the diversion/monitoring program, then great, you just leave the diversion/monitoring program when the Board decided you don't need it. The thing is, over 97% of diversion cases brought to the Board will end up requiring monitoring for the nurse for 5 years. Get on the clock. Get the clock started. Absolutely DO NOT WAIT to enter into diversion/monitoring. Get into it quickly because you are getting the clock started on this nightmare coming to an end quicker.