One afternoon, Beth asks Linda if she would cosign the
narcotic count with her. Linda discovers that the Demerol 50mg injection
count is wrong. Linda thinks that this is the second time the count has
been wrong this week while Beth was working. Beth tells Linda to "Just sign it, I’ll figure
it out." Linda refuses, concerned for her licence,
and now suspecting that Beth is chemically dependent,
she is concerned about the health of her colleague.
Beth states, "I just forgot to
write one of my patients Demerol injections down.
I’ve had so much on my mind
lately. You understand, right?"
Linda continues to
refuse and tells Beth that
she is concerned that she has a drug problem and is
going to have to report
her suspicions and the situation to the unit supervisor.
Beth responds by
saying "Don’t you trust me? We’ve worked together for
4 years and I’ve never made a mistake like this.
I’m just having so many family problems that my
head is not here. Just sign the sheet and it will
never happen again, I
promise. How could you possibly think that I could be
a drug addict? If you
report this you’ll ruin my reputation and my life."
Linda is trying to decide what to say and do.