Understanding the Disease of Addiction

The disease of chemical dependency can be traced to neural pathways in the brain predating a diagnosis of addiction. A genetic predisposition alone is not enough to predict addiction. Typically, psychological and social influences drive the person to use the addicting substances, and the combination of genetic predisposition and these influences triggers the disease. Chemically dependent nurses are susceptible to the scrutiny of boards of authority if their addiction affects the workplace. Therefore, those in authority should understand the disease of addiction and use an effective, compassionate approach that will benefit both the addicted nurse and nursing as a whole.