CRNA stealing pain meds

[Agast]

Board: Anesthesia provider’s surgical patients were awake and in pain

State regulators have suspended the license of a hospital nurse suspected of diverting anesthesia or painkillers from surgical patients.

The Iowa Board of Nursing has alleged that certified registered nurse anesthetist Benjamin Albert misappropriated patient medications or supplies in 2022 while working as an anesthesia provider at an undisclosed acute-care hospital. Albert was first licensed to practice in Iowa in October 2021.

According to the board, the staff at the hospital claimed Albert was tasked with providing anesthesia to surgical patients who subsequently came out of the operating room more awake than was typical. The patients also reported high levels of pain despite records showing they were given larger than normal doses of narcotic pain medication, according to the board.

In January 2022, Albert was allegedly seen in a darkened hospital operating room that he was not scheduled to work in. According to the board, the lights were switched off and Albert was observed accessing an electronic medication-dispensing machine.

The board alleges that during the undisclosed period when Albert worked for the hospital, he withdrew a total of 550 micrograms, or just under two ounces, of narcotic medications that could not be accounted for.

Pursuant to a settlement agreement with the Board of Nursing, Albert has agreed to an indefinite suspension of his license pending the completion of chemical dependency and mental health evaluations and the completion of any treatment that is recommended. If no such recommendation is made, Albert’s license will be reinstated subject to three years of probation, which will include a requirement for chemical screening.

Albert now lives in Illinois, where his nursing license is in good standing with no public record of any disciplinary action. The Iowa Capital Dispatch was unable to reach Albert for comment.

It's ok, I'm sure this addict has learned self-control and is perfectly safe to continue on as a CRNA. His NPI shows his group affiliation as Illinois Pain Treatment Institute, which is even better!

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[rakotomazoto]

If at first you don't succeed, then try again. There are 50 states, after all.

 

[coffeebythelake]

He has nursing licenses in multiple states including Pennsylvania and Washington.

 

[pgg]

Careful

If you imply diverters and addicts shouldn't work in anesthesia again, the compassionate hordes will be along to tell you to get off your high horse. That guy worked hard for his degree and has rights! It's not fair to make him find another line of work.

 

[dabears505]

This happens to a lot of mds too. It's not limited to crnas.

 

[Beeftenderloin]

The most common presentation of relapse in anesthesia providers who are recovering addicts is death. There are plenty of nursing jobs that don’t involve dispensing narcotics.

 

[aneftp]

I’ve experienced working with drug addicts. In the beginning I had no clue what signs to look for. But one by one I caught on.

Besides the usual symptoms described.

Relieving someone using drugs for breaks they will replace esmolol with fentanyl. That’s just one of many ways to divert narcotics. And u think the patient is feeling better when their heart rate goes down temporarily

 

[coffeebythelake]

Agree anwsthesia is an jnherently dangerous job given its easy access to many different drugs with abuse potential.

 

[Agast]

How easy is it for an anesthesiologist to get licensed in another state once their medical board has nailed them on narcotics diversion?

 

[Dr. Rude]

How easy is it for an anesthesiologist to get licensed in another state once their medical board has nailed them on narcotics diversion?

There is a difference between having a nursing license and having a CRNA license. There is a difference between having those licenses and having them unblemished. All of the above will be disclosed to a potential employer and health care facility where they apply for privileges and a liability carrier who might insure them. All of the above are discoverable.

 

[nimbus]

Board: Anesthesia provider’s surgical patients were awake and in pain


It's ok, I'm sure this addict has learned self-control and is perfectly safe to continue on as a CRNA. His NPI shows his group affiliation as Illinois Pain Treatment Institute, which is even better!

“The board alleges that during the undisclosed period when Albert worked for the hospital, he withdrew a total of 550 micrograms, or just under two ounces, of narcotic medications that could not be accounted for.”

Nitpicking but assuming that the diverted drug is fentanyl, 550mcg is 11ml. Not “just under 2 ounces” which would be 59ml. Somebody forgot their middle school science.

 

[nimbus]

There is a difference between having a nursing license and having a CRNA license. There is a difference between having those licenses and having them unblemished. All of the above will be disclosed to a potential employer and health care facility where they apply for privileges and a liability carrier who might insure them. All of the above are discoverable.

But given the current shortage, some desperate place will hire them.

 

[abolt18]

But given the current shortage, some desperate place will hire them.

I know a surgery center that's got 2 crnas working who have been in trouble with drugs. One of them has been in trouble more than once, at more than one hospital. (Acutely intoxicated with ketamine and fentanyl while working at my hospital in residency. Shortly after got a job at the VA and was then found passed out in a room at the VA.) Apparently some places are very comfortable looking the other way.

 

[Dr. Rude]

But given the current shortage, some desperate place will hire them.

True. But they will never be able to say “I didn’t know.”

 

[kidthor]

I know a surgery center that's got 2 crnas working who have been in trouble with drugs. One of them has been in trouble more than once, at more than one hospital. (Acutely intoxicated with ketamine and fentanyl while working at my hospital in residency. Shortly after got a job at the VA and was then found passed out in a room at the VA.) Apparently some places are very comfortable looking the other way.

The VA really confuses me. They’re supposedly hard to get a job at, yet they tend to have a fair number of duds/weirdos. Maybe it’s a patronage or “who you know” thing?

 

[pgg]

This happens to a lot of mds too. It's not limited to crnas.

Yes, and they shouldn't return to the practice of anesthesia either.

The most common presentation of relapse in anesthesia providers who are recovering addicts is death. There are plenty of nursing jobs that don’t involve dispensing narcotics.

Most anesthesiologists who divert but complete rehab can do another residency and be physicians who don't have daily hands-on access to drugs. This is a safe and respectable path to a second chance.

Most CRNAs who divert but complete rehab would rather OD and die than be an ordinary nurse again. They made it out of that life and they're not ever going back.

 

[pgg]

I’ve experienced working with drug addicts. In the beginning I had no clue what signs to look for. But one by one I caught on.

Besides the usual symptoms described.

Relieving someone using drugs for breaks they will replace esmolol with fentanyl. That’s just one of many ways to divert narcotics. And u think the patient is feeling better when their heart rate goes down temporarily

There are red flags, absolutely.

But if you think you can pick them out of a crowd, you're fooling yourself. They look just like us, they're just as smart as us, and most of them get away with it right up until the moment they lose control.

 

[Greenbayslacker]

I’ve experienced working with drug addicts. In the beginning I had no clue what signs to look for. But one by one I caught on. Besides the usual symptoms described.

Please do tell

 

[DirtDocMD]

We had a locums CRNA that spent the first couple days with us constantly asking for breaks, looking bleary-eyed, and telling us he had a “touch of something” (virus). We found out from a circulator after another day or two, that he was getting MASSIVE amounts of narcotics out for cases (a particularly obvious one was 1000ug of fentanyl for a CAROTID).

Why didn’t WE notice these massive amounts?? Well, he was ALSO making a point of NOT closing out his electronic record until LATER in the day. We’d give a break, and the chart would only show 50-100ug of fentanyl. He’d go back later in the day to add/edit the massive amounts he’d gotten from the Pyxis, and then close the chart out.

We wouldn’t see the large amounts he had gotten out of the Pyxis (we have them in each OR) because he was making a point to get it out of the HALL Pyxis, or having the circulator do it for him, so it wasn’t showing up on the OR Pyxis screen.

This guy was obviously pretty far down the road of addiction, taking out large amounts, that were obviously going to be noticed relatively soon, but he DID manage to get away with it for 3-4 days (we quickly demanded a urine test, after hearing from the nurses about the amounts and his continued “illness”, which after initially agreeing to, he walked out on after a few minutes).

We later found out he had pulled a knife on someone at another locums job (no CLUE how he continued to work after something like that)…..

We reported him to his agency and the hospital reported him to the nursing board. No idea what happened after that.

 

[2Fast2Des]

We had a locums CRNA that spent the first couple days with us constantly asking for breaks, looking bleary-eyed, and telling us he had a “touch of something” (virus). We found out from a circulator after another day or two, that he was getting MASSIVE amounts of narcotics out for cases (a particularly obvious one was 1000ug of fentanyl for a CAROTID).

Why didn’t WE notice these massive amounts?? Well, he was ALSO making a point of NOT closing out his electronic record until LATER in the day. We’d give a break, and the chart would only show 50-100ug of fentanyl. He’d go back later in the day to add/edit the massive amounts he’d gotten from the Pyxis, and then close the chart out.

We wouldn’t see the large amounts he had gotten out of the Pyxis (we have them in each OR) because he was making a point to get it out of the HALL Pyxis, or having the circulator do it for him, so it wasn’t showing up on the OR Pyxis screen.

This guy was obviously pretty far down the road of addiction, taking out large amounts, that were obviously going to be noticed relatively soon, but he DID manage to get away with it for 3-4 days (we quickly demanded a urine test, after hearing from the nurses about the amounts and his continued “illness”, which after initially agreeing to, he walked out on after a few minutes).

We later found out he had pulled a knife on someone at another locums job (no CLUE how he continued to work after something like that)…..

We reported him to his agency and the hospital reported him to the nursing board. No idea what happened after that.

He's still practicing at the top of his license!

 

[coffeebythelake]

We had a locums CRNA that spent the first couple days with us constantly asking for breaks, looking bleary-eyed, and telling us he had a “touch of something” (virus). We found out from a circulator after another day or two, that he was getting MASSIVE amounts of narcotics out for cases (a particularly obvious one was 1000ug of fentanyl for a CAROTID).

Why didn’t WE notice these massive amounts?? Well, he was ALSO making a point of NOT closing out his electronic record until LATER in the day. We’d give a break, and the chart would only show 50-100ug of fentanyl. He’d go back later in the day to add/edit the massive amounts he’d gotten from the Pyxis, and then close the chart out.

We wouldn’t see the large amounts he had gotten out of the Pyxis (we have them in each OR) because he was making a point to get it out of the HALL Pyxis, or having the circulator do it for him, so it wasn’t showing up on the OR Pyxis screen.

This guy was obviously pretty far down the road of addiction, taking out large amounts, that were obviously going to be noticed relatively soon, but he DID manage to get away with it for 3-4 days (we quickly demanded a urine test, after hearing from the nurses about the amounts and his continued “illness”, which after initially agreeing to, he walked out on after a few minutes).

We later found out he had pulled a knife on someone at another locums job (no CLUE how he continued to work after something like that)…..

We reported him to his agency and the hospital reported him to the nursing board. No idea what happened after that.

He probably got an administrator position at the AANA

 

[Anesthesia_Guy]

How easy is it for an anesthesiologist to get licensed in another state once their medical board has nailed them on narcotics diversion?

It's well nigh impossible.

 

[Fpg1245]

It's well nigh impossible.

There was a resident I went to school with at a very well known program who was caught diverting. Did some drug rehab.

Probably gives Anesthesia in some far corner from anything remotely mainstream. Ruined life.

 

[Dr. Rude]

The Junkie in the O.R.

Some doctors are addicted to the very drugs they prescribe. Find out why going under the knife could be more dangerous than you think

www.menshealth.com

interesting story and cv

 

[abolt18]

The Junkie in the O.R.

Some doctors are addicted to the very drugs they prescribe. Find out why going under the knife could be more dangerous than you think

www.menshealth.com

interesting story and cv

Scares me to death. I often tell my wife that if I ever have surgery I want little/no narcotics. NSAIDS/acetaminophen for life. I would like to say "that will NEVER happen to me!" but then you let your guard down. Have to always guard against it.

 

[coffeebythelake]

Scares me to death. I often tell my wife that if I ever have surgery I want little/no narcotics. NSAIDS/acetaminophen for life. I would like to say "that will NEVER happen to me!" but then you let your guard down. Have to always guard against it.

I imagine the addiction and abuse potential of ketamine is going to be less than opioids?

 

[Bertelman]

Worked with a doc who had 2 previous documented episodes. Rehabbed. Worked with us, happened a third time.

When he knew he was about to be confronted, he admitted to diverting. That changed everything. Now he had a disease.

Got treatment, pretty sure he’s still practicing. Not in a small hospital in the middle of nowhere.

 

[pgg]

Scares me to death. I often tell my wife that if I ever have surgery I want little/no narcotics. NSAIDS/acetaminophen for life. I would like to say "that will NEVER happen to me!" but then you let your guard down. Have to always guard against it.

Yeah, the drugs physically change your brain and the way you think. Stuff that was unthinkable becomes seemingly sensible. I think of it like having a weird dream where crazy **** is happening, but it makes perfect sense to dream-me, then I wake up and awake-me thinks what the actual **** was that? How did I think doing a flip in my car off a freeway onramp was going to work and turn out OK? I think that's why people who are so confident they'll maintain control and just dabble or try it, spiral out of control. When it comes to drugs, dream-them is doing the thinking.