Substance abuse in nursing

[ChelC05]

As a first year nursing student, in my classes I have learned a lot about how common substance abuse is in nursing. We have learned about how nurses may steal medication from the hospitals and even from their patients. This came as a surprise and as a shock to me. Because my professors went to the point to address the issue in lectures, I am to believe it is quite a big problem. I was wondering if any of you practicing nurses out there could inform on how severe the problem really is and what the hospitals are doing to find a solution. I am quite curious -Thanks !