The primary victim of diversion is the patient. The risk to the patient can vary anywhere from being cared for by an impaired healthcare provider who is not at the top of his or her game, to being infected with contaminated drug supply which can lead to lifelong illness or permanent harm.
Healthcare facilities have an obligation to protect their patients. Facilities that don’t, risk legal and regulatory consequences as well as negative publicity and financial implications. All facilities must have a diversion program in place to monitor and respond if a diversion incident does take place. There are multiple state and federal agencies that enforce existing laws and regulations, and they will hold facilities accountable in the event of an incident. Regulatory agencies also survey with respect to accountability of controlled substances and will ask to see how a facility handles chain of custody and monitoring. Have you educated your staff to their obligation to report?
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Let us not forget the healthcare provider. The staff work as a team and if there is an impaired team member it puts all members at risk. The member at the highest risk is the addict themselves. Having a solid monitoring program in place will help facilities identify signs of diversion and impairment sooner rather than later with the goal of getting help for the employee as soon as possible.
Our pharmacy consultants at Rxpert Solutions offer a comprehensive approach to diversion monitoring. We have years of experience in this area and can assist you in developing a program for your facility, assess risks within your current program, work with you to create solutions, aid in monitoring, and provide training and education.
Director of Pharmacy