Drug Diversion and Infection Prevention: When the Needle Hits the Vein

Session Description: The United States Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the American Nurses Association (ANA) report that about ten percent (10%) of health care workers abuse drugs, a rate that mimics the general population. The link between a single infection, cluster, or outbreak due to staff, visitors, and others diverting and abusing drugs within the healthcare continuum is often an unrecognized insidious risk for the development of infection. Furthermore, drug diversion techniques and facility culture may lead to drug diversion being unreported, underreported, or undiscovered. We will describe the connection between drug diversion and infection development, providing real world examples. Patient safety methodology and related forensics used to discover and mitigate drug diversion will also be discussed. Technologies used to guard against drug diversion will be critically reviewed pointing out the benefits and pitfalls of commonly deployed devices and systems. Techniques for surveilling drug diversion activities will be presented from a Pharmacist, Infection Preventionist, and clinical perspective. Participants will leave with the tools needed to influence existing drug diversion programs or begin the push for the development of a holistic drug diversion program encompassing the aspects of infection prevention and control.