Took A Gummy Which May Or May Not Have Had THC

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Took A Gummy Which May Or May Not Have Had THC

Dear Nurse Beth,

I went to ER after taking a gummy with thc by accident. I went to the hospital where I work. The ER doctor asked me what happened I told him I took 1 gummy. I was having high anxiety from it. Does he have the obligation to report me. We live in Houston Tx? What should I do he didn't take a blood nor urine test. I was wrong about the thc my sister said it didn't have it in the gummy. Now I have a dc paper that says mild thc abuse. Do I go to my director and ask for a test?

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25 Answers

Specializes in Tele, ICU, Staff Development.

Dear Anxious,

I'm confused by some of this, meaning you went to the ED for anxiety caused by thc which you didn't take?

I'm not an attorney and therefore hesitate to say that the doctor is not likely to report you, because I don't know Texas reporting mandates- but what's to report?

I'm coming from a common sense POV, which is that there were no drug tests taken. If a doctor intended to report you (again, unlikely) then said doctor would have gathered evidence and also believed you were a threat to public safety.

There was no testing done, and your ED visit should be protected by HIPAA. I would not involve my Director in this as this is not a work issue unless you make it one.

You might think about talking to the doctor. You work at the same facility. Tell him you're concerned about the diagnosis of thc abuse being on your medical record, and that you were mistaken. Perhaps he could make an annotation to your record.

Specializes in Psych, Addictions, SOL (Student of Life).

Weather you knew about the THC or not I would quit talking about this too much. Marijuana is still illegal in the state of Texas except for highly regulated medical use so if the physician was going to report you he/she would most likely have done so already. That fact that no testing was done may be an indicator that the physician feels there are bigger fish for the state to fry than a possible one time user of THC. 

I used to be strongly opposed to legalization of marijuana but have doing some research into the benefits it can have for people with chronic pain and other conditions. 

Still since it is illegal in Texas it would be prudent to not take this again of you indeed did so. 

Hppy

Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.

What on earth is "mild thc abuse" when you didn't even take any? Doc could have written "anxiety" and it would have covered the whole kit-and-kaboodle, without specifying you being worried about the possibility of having consumed a thc gummy, which is why you went to the ED in the first place. Or he could have written it as a "rule out" order, but he would've had to run tests to do that.

On the whole, I'd say it's a non-issue which does not require any explanations to anybody. Let it go.

13 hours ago, No Stars In My Eyes said:

What on earth is "mild thc abuse" when you didn't even take any? Doc could have written "anxiety" and it would have covered the whole kit-and-kaboodle, without specifying you being worried about the possibility of having consumed a thc gummy, which is why you went to the ED in the first place.

I mean if someone is going to walk in and say that they are having a reaction to a THC gummy, then that's going to be part of the diagnosis.

A diagnosis of straight up anxiety in the ED generally speaking becomes  a diagnosis of exclusion due to liabilities, meaning other concerning things (cardiac, respiratory, infectious, neurologic problems, etc) that could mimic it or contribute to it have been ruled out or at least given due consideration. If it is not necessary to rule out those things because the person walks in with a reasonable explanation for their symptoms, then their explanation is likely to be part of the diagnosis.

 

Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.

Still, I think "mild abuse" is misleading.

No Stars In My Eyes said:

What on earth is "mild thc abuse" when you didn't even take any?

Yes, however he or she apparently didn't know this until after having left the ED.

No Stars In My Eyes said:

Still, I think "mild abuse" is misleading.

Then what would you call it?

Specializes in Critical Care.

Wondering why the OP felt the need to go to the ER.  Because of anxiety?  Pot can sometimes cause a paranoid reaction in some people, but it would wear off after a while.  Plus you don't really know what was in the gummy just what you were told.  Even when you buy OTC herbal weight loss products etc many times they have actual prescription drugs in them, sometimes controlled substances and since the FDA doesn't regulate herbal OTC there is no way to know what you are really taking.  So buyer beware.

I would have just let the side effects wear off and obviously not take any more gummies.  Hopefully this will not end up with a BON complaint and a long drawn out 3-5 year drug rehab contract, paying for drug testing, therapy and stipulations on the OP license.

May this be a warning and teaching moment for others out there that are tempted to experiment, take a risk of a drug to think twice.

Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.

The ED is not going to bother to report you based on no evidence. They have so many other things to worry about. Drive on. 

Specializes in ER.

In the future, you might think twice before going to the ER where you work for sensitive issues. 

Specializes in nursing ethics.

I live in a state where marijuana is legal and gummies are popular. I think the OP  knew it was marijuana with THC. It is unlikely to eat it by accident. It has a distinctive unsugary taste--I know from experience lots of times. How did the OP find the gummy if it is illegal--was it mixed with candy gummies? Anyway, don't worry. You're overreacting.

Specializes in Med nurse in med-surg., float, HH, and PDN.

 Potential For A Deficit in Discernment

 

No Stars In My Eyes said:

Still, I think "mild abuse" is misleading.

The wording is certainly a bit awkward just in terms of language...mild and abuse don't go together, they seem like opposites.

F19.980 Psychoactive substance use, unspecified, with psychoactive substance-induced anxiety disorder

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