On June 28 1996, after a night shift on a labor and delivery unit, nurse Patricia Holloran was accused of stealing prescription drugs by hospital administration. Within days, she would lose her job, and be reported to the state nursing board, which threatened to revoke her license and end her career. So begins this tale of a nurse's remarkable journey from addiction to recovery, and beyond
Excerpt
My legs could barely hold me as I got down off of the stool and began to follow the beige suit. I couldn't bear to look at my coworkers as I was escorted out of the unit...I followed her beige suit silently past the administrative offices to a small conference room where two men were seated at a round table.
"Hello, Patricia. I'm John and this is Dick, and we are from the Department of Consumer Protection, Division of Drug Control. Will you please sit down?"
As the room began to spin, I sat, or rather fell, into the chair
Professional Reviews
Linda A. Barile, PhD, APRN, Professioanl Director, Health Assistance Intervention Education Network
Beautifully written with clarity, practicality, and commonsense, Impaired is the single best book written about addiction from a nurse's perspective. Anyone would enjoy this delightful read, but this enriching memoir is a must-read for every nurse, and instructors in all nursing programs should assign it to their students. Impaired belongs in the library of every health and human service professional.
Sepsis knocked her down and out. Faith, hope, and gave her the strength to get back on her feet. I am a Runner She fought the river of death They said she'd never run again
She proved them wrong...
