Substance Abuse Among Nurses

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One night ,while working as usual, Jane Doe injects nasal spray butorphanol (Stadol) to a couple women who are in labor. Some of the women did not require the full dosage of the drug so she slipped the leftovers in her pocket. Once her shift had ended that night, Jane was getting ready to leave when she decided to use the restroom. When she was there she remembered that she had some leftover drugs in pocket. Jane cautiously looked around and checked every stall to make sure no one was there. She then took the drugs out and injected herself. Thirty minutes later a colleague finds Jane passed out in the restroom. She is immediately treated and once awake, is taken to a drug-testing facility to provide a urine sample. At the drug-testing facility Jane admitted to stealing the drug and justified herself by saying it helped her cope with the stress of taking on extra shifts, and caring for her two young children and her severely disabled mother. Jane said “I thought I could stop any time but I was wrong.”

Substance abuse is a critical issue that has been visible within the nursing profession for more many years. According to Todd Monroe and Frances Pearson “[f]or more than a century, the US nursing profession has been aware of substance abuse problems among its practitioners and student nurses.” Among nurses, substance dependencies have been linked to a number of factors such as family history, stress at work, and easy access to medications. It is extremely important that these addictions be adequately addressed because “[s]ubstance abuse among nurses is a problem that threatens the delivery of quality care and professional standards of nursing”(Talbert). Addressing these addictions requires nurses to report evidence of substance...

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... of Nursing 107.8 (2007): 78-79. Academic Search Complete. Web. 8 Dec. 2013.

Monroe, Todd, and Frances Pearson. "Treating Nurses And Student Nurses With Chemical Dependency: Revising Policy In The United States For The 21st Century." International Journal Of Mental Health & Addiction 7.4 (2009): 530-540. Academic Search Complete. Web. 8 Dec. 2013.

Monroe, Todd, and Heidi Kenaga. "Don't Ask Don't Tell: Substance Abuse And Addiction Among Nurses." Journal Of Clinical Nursing 20.3/4 (2011): 504-509. Academic Search Complete. Web. 8 Dec. 2013.

Talbert, JeanAnne Johnson. "Substance Abuse Among Nurses." Clinical Journal Of Oncology Nursing 13.1 (2009): 17-19. Academic Search Complete. Web. 8 Dec. 2013

Wright, E. Laura, et al. "Opioid Abuse Among Nurse Anesthetists And Anesthesiologists." AANA Journal 80.2 (2012): 120-128. Academic Search Complete. Web. 8 Dec. 2013.

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