Doing drugs

Years ago two Certified Medication Aides were allowed to destroy narcotics that were discontinued or left over from residents who passed away.

The nursing homes would have a locked cabinet of narcotics that needed to be destroyed. When it got full the RN would let us know by poking her head in the med room and asking, "Who wants to do drugs?"

After a while it came down from the state board of nursing that it had to be a licensed nurse or a pharmacist who was the second person.

I was usually chosen as I was working in med records and on the floor, so I was available.

My favorite time was when the head pharmacist came over and he as I sat for 6+ hours logging and destroying a HUGE stock pile a recently fired director of nurses had let pile up in her office.

When it came time for the vials of morphine, we dumped them on the table, and used syringes to empty them and squirt them in the bucket. It was a pile of over 360 vials.

It was endless, snapping the lid off with your thumb, sticking the vial, sucking the contents out, squirting it into the bucket.

We settled into a quiet rhythm as we churned through the pile.

snap...stick...suck...squirt...
snap...stick...suck...squirt...
snap...stick...suck...squirt...

On about vial 100 my thumb was KILLING me.

I looked over at Dennis and commented. "My thumb is hurting."

He chuckled. "Mine too."

snap...stick...suck...squirt...
snap...stick...suck...STICK...squirt...

We had both gone for the bucket at the same time and Dennis had stuck me in the base of my thumb and injected me with some of the contents.

His face paled as his mouth opened and silently mouthed SHHHHIIIIIIIITTTTTTT!!!!!

"well" I said quietly, "on the bright side my thumb won't be hurting anymore."

"That's not funny." he commented and then regained his professional composure, "Are you allergic to morphine?"

"We are about to find out." I said with a straight face and then dissolved into hysterical giggles.

He joined me and we laughed until our sides hurt. Then returned to our task with no further mention of the incident.

snap...stick...suck...squirt...
snap...stick...suck...squirt...
snap...stick...suck...squirt...

The memory laid in my mind forgotten for many years until I was in labor with my son and the Doctor decided to give me morphine for the pain.

"Have you had morphine before? Do you know if you are allergic to morphine?" she asked.

The memory resurfaced instantly and I started laughing. "yes, I had it before and no I am not allergic."