What's ETOH?

It is so important to know the signs of W/D

You just do not want to see it.

We have the CIWA scale.  The problem is that they use that for drugs too.  I didnt think you could use that for drugs.  A large number of the patient we treat are admitted drug users.  It is important that we know the S/S of withdraw for all drugs.  I hate hearing that patient is being difficult but with just looking in the chart you see that they admitting use drugs.  They are not difficult they are going though withdraws.  We need to able to know the difference and start treating the problem.  The reality is that they are not going to stop using and when they leave the hospital they will use agian,  But we can certainly make the stay more comfortable for them and us.  Knowledge is power.  I am currently seeking info on the withdraw symptoms of illegal drugs so that I can start making there stay better for them and me.  There is nothing worse then ignoring the underlining problem.  I know that we cant stop them but we can offer the help and be more proactive in our assessments and knowledge. 

CIWA can be used for benzos as benzos act on the bodily systems the same as ETOH. That is why benzos are used for detox. For opiate withdrawl, they should be using COWA

What about cocaine and heroine.  That seems to be the drug of choose that the hopsital I work for.  These patients dont play around they go for the hard stuff. 

Heroin is an opiate so you would use the COWA. you would use this as well for Lortab, Oxyconton, Perxocet, etc. For cocaine and meth we do not have anything yet like the CIWA or the COWA that I am aware of. WIth meth I usually prescribe benzos to bring them down.  

Dawn: I am going to add that info here for everyone:

Here is another one that you will find in the library that is pretty good.

Our office has set up a policy for our OB patients with drug and alcohol, we monitor those closely who continue to take drugs while pregnant and know the consequences once the baby is delivered.  We acutally have a pregnant patient come in last week, drunk, stumbling everywhere....she admitted to some alcohol abuse but never did we think she would come in that way. 

thanks cd I have 10 years clean and sober but this is the first I have heard of intnsa and CARN. We have a large recovery community here and this info is valuable to me.
AA NA lists and DE-tox centers are important tools for recovery... there may be people in recovery who will talk to or take the addict to their first meeting IF the addict is willing (try the # on the meeting list to get a volunteer)
Most addicts I know are afraid of 2 things Pain and de-toxing(due to emotional and physical pain).
re-assurance that you will work with them to find ways to help them through will help compliance during in patient stays

How do u know if ur withdrawling from precription drugs prefer phychotropic?

 Sorry, but have YOU ever been drunk or high on either legal, illegal or prescribed substances? People who are recreational users do not have withdrawl symptoms. They might feel like s*** the next day or when they show up in your ER. And if they're relatively 'kids', give them a break. Would you want pamphlets thrown in your face because you got drunk and fell and injured yourself badly enough to have to visit an ED? A trained chem/dep counselor can truly tell if there is a pattern, unless this patient is a frequent flyer with these type of admissions. You're a nurse, not a chem/dep counselor, and if you work in a smaller rural hospital, they're not on staff anyway. Not even on call. They simply can't afford it from a budgetory standpoint. 

Sure, take your blood when an officer comes in for a test because no one should be on the road that is intoxicated. But reading all this 'preaching' of morality and 'what the PC thing is to do' printed here is making me a bit ill. Folllow your protocols for your facility, but at least exercise a little common sense when it comes to treating people who actually have a 'problem'. Don't bunch them up into one group, label, then judge them. You don't know what's going on in their lives. I've seen so many RNs treat people like garbage based on their insurance status, color, backgrounds, and sex it's pathetic, and an outrage! It's what's wrong with health care today. The 'haves' and the 'have nots'. Class warfare is all it is, and if you think because you have an education and a few initials following your name that you are somehow 'better' than he/she is, just remember nearly everyone of us is a few paychecks or pink slips away from joining their ranks. How would you react to losing everything you have. It's like John Lennon wrote, "Imagine no possessions,.........I wonder if you can" 

So, before we all mount our most highly prized horses and dole out our sage advice and so-called 'wisdom' to persons we don't even know, how about just doing your jobs for once, and leave it to the other qualified professionals to determine whether this or that person is a skid row bum that's in and out of detox weekly, or a person who made a mistake or did something foolish while out with friends. We've all done stupid s*** in our lives and made bad judgements, young or old, rich or poor. The rich just have better lawyers. We are NURSES, people, and we are not from 'on high', no matter what your faith. Lets help each other, not tear each other down. 

**Oh, and to the person who asked, "What's ETOH?". I really REALLY hope you are not intending to become or already are a Paramedic, EMT, RN, or nurse's aide. The name of the game is education AND common street smarts, or common sense. If you can't fight your way out of a wet paper bag with a hole in it, then stay away from wet paper bags, so to speak. Everyone has a 'calling' of sorts. Explore all your options and try not to get in over your head. And I bring this up not to tear that person down, but to call attention to the importance of education. That goes for not only health care professionals, but health care consumers as well.

Just an opnion, don't get your undies in a bundle, people.