Pete and Amelia are practical nurses who have worked together at a long term care facility in Edmonds for three years. Amelia, a single mother,…

Question Answered step-by-step Pete and Amelia are practical nurses who have worked together at along term care facility in Edmonds for three years. Amelia, a single mother, confides to Pete that her relationship with her two teenage sons has been particularly difficult over the last year. Pete expresses concern and shares his observation that Amelia seems to be distracted and unhappy. To himself, Pete concludes that this explains why Amelia always seems to be stressed out and irritable. As Pete prepares the medication cart for the evening shift, he notices that three of the residents’ medications are missing; all are Ativan (lorazepam) prescribed for bedtime. Pete phones the pharmacy to replace the missing medications and is surprised when the pharmacist says, “What’s going on up there? Can’t you watch your carts? This is happening way too often.” Shortly after, another resident complains to Pete that she did not receive her 5 pm Xanax (alprazolam). Pete checks the medication administration record (MAR) and sees where Amelia recorded that she gave the Ativan and Xanax. Pete suspects that Amelia may be diverting the drugs. 1. What class of drugs are Ativan and Xanax?2. What action, if any, should Pete take?3. Should Pete confront Amelia with his suspicions?4. If Amelia admits that she has been diverting the drugs, what should Pete do?5. If Pete decides to talk to the nursing supervisor, should he identify Amelia or should he state his suspicions in general terms?6. How does the nature of the diverted drugs affect your responses? That is, if a drug were to treat a “physical” condition such as hypertension, would you be more – or less – concerned?7. What does the Nurse Practice Act in Washington State mandate regarding reporting the illegal use of drugs by a nurse? Health Science Science Nursing Share QuestionEmailCopy link Comments (0)