A nurse worked at Community Hospital for several months, then resigned and took a position at
General Hospital. At General he was seen as a "super nurse" and given increasing responsibility.
He
often volunteered or arranged with others to be assigned as medication nurse. After a year, he began
to call in sick frequently and was noticed to be more irritable and unsociable. Then he made several
serious medication errors in rapid succession. As these were investigated, it was learned that he had
been allowed to resign from Community Hospital when he was found diverting client narcotics for
his own use. One evening shortly after the investigation began, the nurse was found unconscious in
the locker room. The nurse manager retrospectively identified an early indicator of the nurse's drug
use as
a. assuming responsibility for errors.
b. high sociability with peers during the shift.
c. seeking to be in possession of the narcotic keys.
d. presenting a neat physical appearance.
C
The nurse who is intent on diverting drugs for personal use or who uses drugs while on duty usually
attempts to isolate himself or herself from peers and may manipulate others to gain access to the
keys to the narcotics. Appearance often deteriorates and errors are blamed on others.
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