Chemical dependency in nursing is characterized by alcohol and drug abuse lifestyles initiated and promoted by the job conditions through which nurses are subjected. The addiction adversely affects the output of nurses at their workplace and their quality of life at home. Similarly, codependency, characterized by excessive levels of independency, subject nurses to loss of identity and reduced productivity resulting from their altered behaviors that makes them always want to seek preapproval.
I feel maladaptive conditions in the nursing profession are not adequately managed. In most cases, these conditions are overlooked as private life issues, which makes the severity levels deteriorate before they are diagnosed and managed. Despite affecting nurses, maladaptive behaviors are also responsible for nursing errors, subjecting patients to increased risks and poor outcomes (Angres et al., 2010). The severity of these effects calls for a massive haul in a manner through which stakeholders in the healthcare sector handle the conditions. A unit manager, among other stakeholders, has a direct responsibility in ensuring that nurses are protected from emotional and physical trappings of maladaptive behaviors.
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As a unit manager, I would strengthen the system in preventing, detecting, and managing maladaptive behaviors among nurses. The prevention phase will entail creating a stress-free work environment characterized by comfortable work schedules and the provision of necessities that nurses need to perform their duties. Such job conditions require that as a unit manager, I look beyond ethical and legal obligations to provide an environment that seeks to fulfill every nurse's needs under my leadership. Frequent counseling and deployment of stress reduction sessions will also help ease maladaptive behaviors in their early stages. An anonymous feedback system from nurses will also be an essential tool that would enable my understanding of factors that promote chemical and codependency in nurses. The system will also encourage early detection through self-confessions and reports from colleagues and be backed up by a practical rehabilitation approach (Dittman, 2015). The treatment sessions which will entail talk therapies, cognitive-behavioral therapies, and anger management sessions.
References
Angres, D. H., Bettinardi-Angres, K., & Cross, W. (2010). Nurses with chemical dependency: Promoting successful treatment and reentry. Journal of Nursing Regulation , 1 (1), 16-20. https://doi.org/10.1016/s2155-8256(15)30361-6
Dittman, P. W. (2015). Chemical dependency and nursing students. Journal of Addictions Nursing , 26 (2), 58-61. https://doi.org/10.1097/jan.0000000000000072
