Violation of privacy

elkpark · Oct 18, 2010

It is standard practice in many (most? all?) drug/alcohol treatment programs that urine specimen collection for drug screens be monitored in order to maintain the chain of custody of the specimen. In my opinion and experience, that's a reasonable requirement for the BON to set.

caliotter3 · Oct 18, 2010

When we did urine tests in the military, they were witnessed. I believe that is common practice.

sissykim · Oct 18, 2010

So they actually watch? If chain of custody is a concern, why not take blood?

caliotter3 · Oct 18, 2010

Do not know why they don't take blood. Perhaps urine tests are cheaper. Most people who are "witnessing" will require that the bathroom stall door be open but they don't necessarily stare at you while you pee.

sissykim · Oct 19, 2010

Thank you for answering and the sight. My other concern with the tech watching, it will cost an extra $26.00. Twenty-six dollars is a whole lot of watchfullness. I pray to never again find myself in this position. I am not a druggie nor substance abuser and lott of hair could have proven my case. If I have to pay for testing I should have a say in what type of testing. Why won't the boards use hair? Doesn't hair date back longer periods and tell the history of abusive behaviors?

elkpark · Oct 19, 2010

If I have to pay for testing I should have a say in what type of testing.

I have no personal experience with BON impaired nurse programs, but my understanding of how they work is that you have to meet the program's requirements if you want to get your license back (or restrictions lifted, or whatever). It's not a negotiation. Have you looked over some of the other threads here about various state impaired nurse programs? There are lots of people who post here who are in programs in different states.

catmom1, BSN, RN · Oct 19, 2010

I recently received a letter from the board of nursing informing me that the process for collecting urine. Now the tech. will have to actually watch as I void. I understand some people may cheat but not every body. Is this a violation of my rights to privacy? If it is so very important for the lab to be certain of specimen processing than why not take blood? Can I fight here, have my constitutional rights being violated?

I have been monitored now for over four years. Up until about a year ago, they just left the bathroom door open when I peed.

Suddenly, the tech just came in with me & shut the door. :mad: I never got a letter informing me that this would now be the practice and I asked: "What's next, body cavity searches?!" I have calmed down about it now and suspect that someone, somewhere being monitored with the "open door" procedure, tried to pull some kind of fast one. So, all of us being monitored have to suffer further indignities.

We have zero say in how any of this goes.

Catmom :paw:

sissykim · Oct 19, 2010

I think we should began to fight the system. I would prefer my blood be examed as opposed to some trick watching me void. Take my hair every three months something just don't degrade me for some urine. I have not tested postive and won't. I am just about ticked off enough to say hell no I won't go take this lisence and shove it. I am in foreclosure, my car is soon to be repoed, no one wants to hire me. I just took a job and was so afraid of being reported for nothing that I self reported for nothing. I was taken off the case before my first check another doctor hired me and never paid me a dime. As a probationee the know I have little fight left.

Trauma Columnist · Oct 19, 2010

I would think that you would just want to follow the rules and get on with your life.

Agree, that's its not too cool to have someone watch you pee, but as another poster says, it happens in the military all the time. I was in the Navy in the late 70's and pregnant to boot and still had to have a "monitor" watch me pee! Ugh.

Fighting this will probably get you nowhere and nowhere near a job.

sissykim · Oct 19, 2010

Thank you Trauma and all repliers. I was just saying. I truely believe next it is going to become standard to have bladder catherizations for urine collections. I will pee, infact I have been selected to void today. I am on my way. My problem with the techy watching, it is going to cost an extra $26.00. For what? What exta work? Are you kidding me twenty-six smack-a-roos? Is it ten dollars to open the door, five for each eye to visually inspect the process, what is the other $6.00 for? She has to flush afterwards anyway. See this is the problem with health care. I hope it falls so hard so fast and no one gets paid. It is a rip off. A rip off out of my foreclosed, repoed, empty pockets. I am peed off.

luvche · Oct 19, 2010

I didn't know there were any programs for IPN/PEER/ETC that didn't observe the specimen being voided.

But as far as hair and blood? ha! I heard of a nurse that got an extra year added on. She had a procedure done close to her date to be released from the program. She did everything right. All healthcar providers faxed all logs of every med she got from start to finish of hospital stay. She was tested 3 days later.....not ONE of those drugs showed in her system....but temazepam (or something like that) did! So she thought "well surely one of the drugs they gave me wasnt listed". Nope. She never got Temazepam. Plus..why did NONE of the other drugs from surgery and after show up? I think a specimen got mishandled.

She took a HAIR FOLLICLE test that proved she never had that drug in her system. Got a lawyer too.

Peer didn't care. It's their program. We have to jump through the hoops or lose our license. That's the choice. Not that it doesn't suck....but it's how it is.

Unfortunately you just smile, nod...and get through it best you can. I joke with the lady at my test site now. Tell her i can hardly squeeze a drop out without a cup and a voyeur