Inside This Issue

1  History of R2P2
2  Meet the Treatment Team
3  Function of the Aftercare Program
4  Rules Regarding Use of  Medication
5  Nurse Advocacy
6  Participants’ Corner
7  Upcoming Events
8  Subscribe
9  Address Change

The Ridgeview Recovering Professionals Aftercare Program serves as a monitoring and advocacy component to our treatment program.

Nurse Advocacy

Donna McGrane and Beth Houser are both Nurse Advocates, and lead the Nurses Support Groups for Recovering Professionals Services. Both have many years of psychiatric and addiction nursing experience. Donna works in Business Development and Beth is the Nurse Manager for the Child and Adolescent Program. They provide a variety of support and resource information for nurses, Ridgeview and the community.

As Nurse Advocates, they are members of the Georgia Nurses Association and American Nurses Association, and are active in meeting quarterly with other Georgia Nurse Advocates around the state to provide ongoing education and support for nurses with impairment.

Advocates are available for interventions with nurses and to assist hospital personnel in identifying impaired practice. The goal is to help healthcare staff understand the disease of addiction, as well as to provide support and treatment resources for nurses (rather than take punitive measures). Another major objective for advocates is supporting the nurse back to work and through his/her work experience. This is done through providing in-service education to hospital administration and management staff, help with policies regarding impaired practice and work issues, educating schools of nursing, EAP’s and any other opportunities that may arise to help people become better informed about the disease.

In Georgia, the Nursing Board has a responsibility to maintain public safety. By helping nurses get the treatment and support they may need for their disease, they can continue to support a nurse in providing safe nursing care and keeping his/her license. Many nurses get the help and support through the Georgia Nurse Advocate Program.

Donna and Beth are both available for any nurse who calls for help or comes to Ridgeview for an assessment. They may explain how the Nursing Board gets involved, encourage treatment either at Ridgeview or other resources in the community, support a nurse’s return to work, provide in-service education, connect a nurse with other recovering nurses, or are available for an employer or employee struggling with the disease of addiction. They also monitor all the nurses involved in aftercare at Ridgeview through advocacy on their behalf with the Nursing Board and by providing ongoing support as nurses return to work and face the challenges of daily life in recovery.

To learn more about the signs and symptoms of an impaired nurse addicted to either alcohol or drugs, or to learn more about the Georgia Nurses Association, follow the link below and click on “Workplace Issues”, then on the “Impaired Nurse” to learn more about the Nurse Advocate program.

www.georgianurses.org