If you had a strong suspicion of a coworker's diversion of narcotics, how you handle it?
I'm talking, a nurse in the ER who habitually walks into the room with narcotic drawn up on your patient, right after you medicated, so then you have to waste with him. He has a history of being on a restricted license. He's a great nurse, very experienced, works a ton of OT.
It would probably financially ruin his life to get in trouble again, I don't know how many chances they give people. He functions very well on the job. Is it really the right thing to snitch on someone like this?
Unfortunately, the state boards are in cahoots with many addiction" specialists" and many people who are not addicts are treated like addicts just so the people at the board can justify their paychecks and the "specialists" can make a crap ton of money. It is insane.
State boards force many medical professionals who are not addicts/alcoholics into treatment programs and monitoring programs that cost tens of thousands of dollars just to say that their success rate is 80%, which is a complete lie. If you admit people into a monitoring program for drugs/alcohol that are not addicts/alcoholics to begin with, guess what? Their rates of success will be fantastic!!
I can't say for certain or prove that the claim you make is false, but I do have serious doubts.
So, that's why I said that I would confront the nurse and tell him the deal. I wouldn't say anything to management or anyone else unless I encountered a medical provider habitually coming into work with alcohol on their breath, or if they appeared to be high at work repeatedly. Turning someone into the state board is a step that should be the very last, in my opinion. I would want to know that someone was definitely an addict/alcoholic before I went that route, knowing what I know about the whole industry.
and this from your earlier post in this thread:
Tell him to cut the sh**. Let him know that you are coming directly to him instead of management to let him know you're not stupid, and you're giving him the chance to stop the crap. Let him know unless this crap ends, you will not hesitate to go to management and let them deal with it.
I think that you are being naive. In almost every other type of conflict situation with a coworker (non drug related), I support the idea of giving the individual it concerns a chance to explain and address the issue before bringing it up the chain of command. How many drug addicts would remain addicts if stopping was as easy as, cutting the crap?
Every addict I've met (and they are many) have seemed to have miserable existences. Their entire life revolves around getting the next fix. They lie, cheat, steal, suffer abuse/exploitation and betray the trust of loved ones to get it, because when they suffer withdrawals their life is just a world of pain and the next high is nirvana (or at least some time free from suffering).
If you give your coworker with a narcotic abuse problem a heads-up, s/he will likely be more careful around you, (at least for a while until recklessness gets the better of him/her), but I seriously doubt that it will result in them facing their addiction and getting free of it.
As I've previously mentioned, I've made thousands of arrests for drug-related offences. Notonce have I been mistaken. If I thought that the person was under the influence of narcotics, theywere. (urinalysis and blood tests).
If I come across a fellow healthcare professional who I with good reason suspect is stealing (diverting) narcotics, either for their own use or for other purposes, I will report them. For their own sake, as well as for their patients.
NurseDiane, how would you feel if you delivered your stern heads-up to your colleague that you suspect might be diverting (but didn't report to management) and that colleague went on to seriously hurt/injure or even kill a patient or died themselves from an overdose?
If you notice behavior consistent with addiction and/or diversion, chances are that you are correct. Report it.
I can see how someone who was wrongfully accused, terminated, threatened with the loss of their nursing license and forced to undergo treatment for addiction would have a very jaded view, I am aware that wrongful accusations happen and have terrible consequences. However, in the majority cases, it wasn't a wrongful accusation and there was reliable, objective proof of the nurses diversion before steps were taken.
Do you have a statute you can point to that states nurses have a duty to report drug diversion? May we see it?
In general, state law does not hold nurses responsible for ratting out diversion. Your own employer's policies may vary. Rather, institutions are often required to submit a report to the state for suspected diversion following an internal investigation, not nurses. It helps to know what you are talking about, instead of spewing out a bunch of boo-hooray like "Nurses have a DUTY blah blah blah dgnsdfklgnjsdlkgads."
(26) Duty to Report to the Board. A nurse who holds a valid license and who directly observes another nurse engaged in any of the following shall report that nurse to the Board in accordance with Board guidelines:
1.abuse of a patient;
2.practice of nursing while impaired by substance abuse;
3.diversion of controlled substances.
Comments Applicable to the Duty to Report Standard of Conduct at 244 CMR 9.03(26)
•Reportable conduct under 244 CMR 9.03(26) is limited:
The conduct of a nurse which 244 CMR 9.03(26) mandates be reported is limited to abuse of a patient; the practice of nursing while impaired by chemical substances including alcohol or drugs, or both; and diversion of controlled substances.
....."Diversion:
Diversion is defined as the unauthorized removal of a controlled substance from a patient or resident supply or care setting."
On your conscience be the consequences. Prepare yourself for the guilt that you may rightly have awarded yourself.
Do you have a death wish for other addicts? Or just the patients? Perhaps you want emergent to Lose her license and her job for not reporting a potential threat to patient safety? You should be ashamed of yourself.
And Emergent? Kudos to you for doing the right thing.
Do you have a death wish for other addicts? Or just the patients? Perhaps you want emergent to Lose her license and her job for not reporting a potential threat to patient safety? You should be ashamed of yourself.
And Emergent? Kudos to you for doing the right thing.
Maybe RNDynamic is THE nurse in question and doesn't want to be caught.
Specializes in LTC,Hospice/palliative care,acute care.
Do you have a statute you can point to that states nurses have a duty to report drug diversion? May we see it?
In general, state law does not hold nurses responsible for ratting out diversion. Your own employer's policies may vary. Rather, institutions are often required to submit a report to the state for suspected diversion following an internal investigation, not nurses. It helps to know what you are talking about, instead of spewing out a bunch of boo-hooray like "Nurses have a DUTY blah blah blah dgnsdfklgnjsdlkgads."
It is your duty to report. If he is guilty of diversion, then all consequences are on him. He's the one getting himself into trouble by his own actions.
This thread was doing just fine. Honest discussion, no snark, no flaming. Really refreshing.
And then you showed up. I honestly have no rebuttal to your absurd comments except to say "Wrong. You're so wrong". Are you high at this moment? Because your responses are devoid of logic and completely false.
macawake, MSN
2,141 Posts
I can't say for certain or prove that the claim you make is false, but I do have serious doubts.
and this from your earlier post in this thread:
I think that you are being naive. In almost every other type of conflict situation with a coworker (non drug related), I support the idea of giving the individual it concerns a chance to explain and address the issue before bringing it up the chain of command. How many drug addicts would remain addicts if stopping was as easy as, cutting the crap?
Every addict I've met (and they are many) have seemed to have miserable existences. Their entire life revolves around getting the next fix. They lie, cheat, steal, suffer abuse/exploitation and betray the trust of loved ones to get it, because when they suffer withdrawals their life is just a world of pain and the next high is nirvana (or at least some time free from suffering).
If you give your coworker with a narcotic abuse problem a heads-up, s/he will likely be more careful around you, (at least for a while until recklessness gets the better of him/her), but I seriously doubt that it will result in them facing their addiction and getting free of it.
As I've previously mentioned, I've made thousands of arrests for drug-related offences. Not once have I been mistaken. If I thought that the person was under the influence of narcotics, they were. (urinalysis and blood tests).
If I come across a fellow healthcare professional who I with good reason suspect is stealing (diverting) narcotics, either for their own use or for other purposes, I will report them. For their own sake, as well as for their patients.
NurseDiane, how would you feel if you delivered your stern heads-up to your colleague that you suspect might be diverting (but didn't report to management) and that colleague went on to seriously hurt/injure or even kill a patient or died themselves from an overdose?
If you notice behavior consistent with addiction and/or diversion, chances are that you are correct. Report it.