It’s best to seek the help of a nurse attorney when facing different complaints and allegations. However, some nurses tend to face these results instead without thinking that Houston nurse attorneys are always reliable for matters such as these.
On July 1, 2016, staff from a hospital in Houston had observed the RN asleep while on duty on a number of occasions. The RN reported she had been diagnosed with narcolepsy, but failed to submit verification from her treating physician of said diagnosis.
The RN was working a shift beginning at 6:00a.m, on April 3, 2017, at the facility. At approximately 1:30 p.m., a staff member observed her sleeping in the environmental services office, the hospital administrators woke the RN and asked her to leave the facility. Prior to the RN’s departure, she performed a narcotic count and noted a discrepancy.
Specifically, it was discovered that 5 milliliters of liquid morphine belonging to a patient was missing and unaccounted for. The RN was the only staff person with access to the medication car during that shift. Following the completion of the drug count, the RN was escorted to her vehicle in the facility’s parking lot, she was subsequently observed passed out in her vehicle with the radio blaring. A staff went outside to the vehicle and woke the RN. He offered to drive her home or call an ambulance. In response, the RN sped out of the parking lot.
Thereafter, the police officers located the RN’s vehicle parked in a commercial parking lot. The vehicle was running with the radio on, and the RN was observed to be unconscious in the driver’s seat. An officer had to perform a hard sternum rub on the RN in order to wake her. The RN was ultimately transported to the local hospital via ambulance, where she remained for several days.
During the encounter, the officers observed one 20 milligram Baclofen pill on the RN’s leg. While performing a search of RN’s purse, officers also located a bottle of Alprazolam prescribed to the hospital patient. The bottle had one pill inside.
Additionally, the officers searched a bag located on the passenger seat of the RN’s vehicle. They discovered two bottles of Baclofen prescribed to C.T. Finally, the officers located one pill of Morphine sulfate, one pill of Lorazepam, one pill of Vimpat, and five pills or Acetaminophen/hydrocodone Bitartrate. The RN did not have a prescription for those pills.
Based upon the results of the officers’ search, the RN was criminally charged with Unlawful Possession of a Prescription Drug, a serious misdemeanor. The RN admitted that “I was in knowing possession of a prescription drug; baclofen (sic), to which I did not have a valid prescription for a said prescription.”
However, she was not able to provide a good defense for herself. Therefore, the Board placed her RN license to a disciplinary action instead.
Your license is one of the RN’s most valuable assets. You need to protect your license as well as your right to practice as best as you can. In doing so, a nurse attorney is the one to depend on.
Be sure to find a Houston nurse attorney who’s experienced and knowledgeable in several nurse cases to ensure the best assistance possible.
If you are summoned to appear before a licensing board regarding a disciplinary incident, you will need an experienced nurse attorney in Houston who knows how to handle nurse cases. Texas Nurse Attorney Yong J. An is one of those dedicated nurse lawyers who helped various nurses in their cases since 2006. You may contact him 24/7 at (832) 428-5679 for more information or if you want to schedule a private consultation.