DC'd narcotics

We are still having a problem with management not removing narcotics that dc'd pts had. I counted 26 blister packs dated back to August. Mngmt. does not care if we are hanging onto these narcs as long as we watch over them. They even gave us more space to hold them. We want them to take them, but they will not and I want to know what to do to let them know that they really should take all those narcs. Also, what is not funny, we get new patients with orders for narcotic pain meds and even though we have a supply of e-kit narcs, we are told that they don't have enough to give our new pts and our pharmacy is taking more than 24 hrs to send their narcs sometimes. We're all fustrated.
Contact the pharmacy directly ask for a pick up from the pharmacist?

We can't send narcs back so we destroy them.

Call the pharmacy, and the DON. Next the BON.

Quote from makes needs knownWe are still having a problem with management not removing narcotics that dc'd pts had. I counted 26 blister packs dated back to August. Mngmt. does not care if we are hanging onto these narcs as long as we watch over them. They even gave us more space to hold them. We want them to take them, but they will not and I want to know what to do to let them know that they really should take all those narcs. Also, what is not funny, we get new patients with orders for narcotic pain meds and even though we have a supply of e-kit narcs, we are told that they don't have enough to give our new pts and our pharmacy is taking more than 24 hrs to send their narcs sometimes. We're all fustrated.

And for anybody doubting the "destruction" of the narc to be used s/p MOM/lactulose 'bath'..... here's a visual..... Vicodin riding a bullet train out the back door...

Quote from Mom2boysRNWe can't send narcs back so we destroy them.

D/C'd narcotics used to pile up and never be taken and it got to the point where ..to be honest.. we wouldn't count them. They would just sit in the narcotic box until someone ..god knows who took them out. This bit us in the ass and I'm not going to get into specifics here but our new DON is always asking for D/C'd narcotics so its not a problem anymore thank god!Our pharmacy can be painfully slow sometimes. I sometimes think it would be quicker to send a pony to go pick it up. Just document when the order was placed and any follow up calls that you made.

Unsure how your facility works. I'm in a hospital and we can walk the narcs to pharmacy if they are piling up (usually at end of shift after report) or call pharmacy to come get them. RN and pharmacist signs a sheet for who returned them, how many there were, and who received them in pharmacy.