Edie Falco's Nurse Jackie a Model For Hospital Drug Use?

June 19, 2009 — -- There are two secrets to Edie Falco's competence as nurse Jackie Peyton on Showtime's Nurse Jackie. First, she is smarter than most of the doctors. And second, "a little oxy," as Falco refers to the opiate painkiller Oxycontin, which she uses, along with Vicodin and Percocet, to help her stay alert and manage her emotions through the harrowing days in the emergency room.

For nurse Jackie, "a little oxy" is a way to get through the day, and she seems to be in control of her consumption. But for many nurses and physicians, even a small amount of a narcotic or other drug can be the start of a lot of trouble.

Debbie, a 45-year-old nurse who works in a Michigan hospital and who requested that her last name not be used, spent years as an alcoholic before becoming sober and completing nursing school. She was substance-free for nine years until her brother, father and a close friend died in a short amount of time.

"I had multiple losses in my life, I was working in high intensity work. I was not taking care of my recovery firsthand," Debbie said. "I was picking up alcohol just to relax... It kind of crept up on me, and all of a sudden I was drinking again."

In addition, Debbie had been prescribed painkillers for chronic back pain following back surgery, and she soon became addicted to pain medications.

"It's kind of like a roller coaster ride. One isn't enough and you're doing two [painkillers]," Debbie said. "Before you know it, you're having to medicate yourself just to go to sleep."

Drug abuse among those in the health professions is no higher or lower than that of the general population, between 10 and 15 percent. The key differences are access and expertise. Nurses and physicians encounter an array of mind- and mood-altering substances every day in the course of their jobs, and they know exactly how they work.

Dr. Michael Brooks, director of psychiatric services at Brighton Hospital in Brighton, Mich., pointed out that opioid treatments, which as little as 20 years ago were reserved for terminal, malignant pain, have been used more frequently for chronic pain.