ANA Resolution

Originally drafted at the

International Conference on the Addicted Nurse

Thank you for all the work nurses in recovery lent to the successful

passage of the ANA Resolution. Here at last is the FINAL LANGUAGE

AS ADOPTED by the ANA 2002 House of Delegates:

The Profession's Response to the Problem of Addictions and
Psychiatric Disorders in Nursing

WHEREAS , education promotes the early identification of,
intervention with, and treatment of persons, including registered
nurses, who experience addiction and psychiatric disorders; and,
 

WHEREAS , treatment is effective in reducing drug use and
deterioration of health, and improving social and occupational function; and,
 

WHEREAS , nurse employment policies and procedures supportive of
alternative-to-discipline programs result in improved employee job
function and return and retention of nurses to the workforce; and,
 

WHEREAS , the American Nurses Association Code of Ethics for Nurses
mandates workplace advocacy and promotion of nurses' well-being; and,
 

WHEREAS , society's health needs require the preparation, support
and retention of a healthy workforce, and
 

WHEREAS , in ten states, nurses do not have access to programs that
provide alternatives to discipline during recovery; and
 

WHEREAS , the development of multi-state licensure compacts
underscores the need for consistent availability of
alternative-to-discipline programs across all jurisdictions.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the American Nurses Association will:
1. Support efforts to educate the public and professional nurses on
the prevalence of addiction and psychiatric disorders as diseases
for which society and registered nurses are at risk.
 

2. Seek to preserve the current and future workforce by promoting
awareness of impaired practice, its prevalence, treatment monitoring
and implications for public safety and well-being.
 

3. Increase awareness of the health and patient safety risks
associated with untreated addiction and psychiatric illness.
 

4. Renew its commitment to the support of activities that improve
nurses' access to alternative-to-discipline programs and promote
member and affiliate actions that encourage the development and use
of alternatives to discipline for health professionals in those
states where they currently do not exist.
 

5. Support expansion of peer assistance to include professional
nursing students.
 

6. Support efforts by the United American Nurses and the Commission
on Workplace Advocacy to advocate for the rehabilitation and
retention of nurses who are living with the disease of addiction and
psychiatric disorders.
 

7. Support RN regulatory boards in developing alternative-to-discipline

programs for recovering nurses deemed appropriate for such programs.

http://www.nursingworld.org/about/hod02/actions.htm#addict

There will also be a Summary of Proceedings posted in early January
at the ANA website. (http://www.nursingworld.org)