Freaking out!!!

Sorry for yelling but I'm a bit on edge at the moment. I currently live in Philly and am trying to get things in order to move home to Ohio to be nearer to my family and my grandfather who is not doing well. I applied for an Ohio nursing license as I'm already licensed in PA but because I have a mental health diagnosis I had to get letters from my T and pdoc. Long story short, pdoc write 3 sentences in his letter and lists my prognosis as "fair." T wrote a 2 page letter as did I explaining my treatment and progression over the last 2 years. I talked to the lawyer today at the board of nursing and she said she's not sure she is going to be able to grant me a license since the prognosis is "fair." She says my letter is "thorough" and "one of the best to come through here." She says my Therapy sessions show I have an interest in my treatment and am being proactive in seeking wellness. She said those are positives but because this stupid pdoc used "fair" as the prognosis without any explanation, I may not be able to get my nursing license!!!! GGGRRRRRRRRRR! I hate him.. it's not even like he's a good doctor. I'm just angry because if I can't get a license I won't be able to move home. I can't leave a full time job with benefits to go home and have nothing. So he's definitely on my s*** list at this point. Anyway... sorry for the long post, I just needed to vent and can't do it with the family because they don't get it... thanks guys!!

Wow, you show a heck of a lot of poise for freaking out. I'm sure If I were you, I wouldn't be coherent. What a jerk that man is! I'm waiting for my own license application to get processed, and, yeah, I was warned that a lot of folks don't want us out there in the health professions. Thank God my supervisor is such a honey.

Don't give up, though. D'ya think you can talk to the doctor? Is he aware of what he is doing to you? Can you get a second opinion? Don't let him get you stressed beyond what's good for you. Illigitimi non carborundum. Good luck

What a ****. Why don't you have him resend the letter and explain what he means by "fair" including the progress you've made and that you're stable, etc. Maybe if he knew his letter was the difference between you getting a job and moving closer to your family or not getting the job and having to stay where you are, he'd actually give a crap. Drs are busy and often blind to their patients' (or former patients') needs because they have too many things to do. So, I don't mean to malign him, but I feel for your situation.

If he's not willing to help you or elaborate his message...I'm not sure what to tell you. Maybe visit your grandfather and your family every few months to check up on him. Sorry I don't know what else to add. I like to vent on the site too and sometimes am only looking for support. If my advice sucks or sound lame, feel free to ignore it. Just hate to hear about you or anyone suffering discrimination due to a mental disorder that is not their fault and completely manageable with meds.

I had a therapist (a new therapist, my old one had just recently moved away) who wrote a letter for me to social security when they were doing a review of my case.

He sent the letter and then shared it with me.

He didn't know me well at all and his letter was completely inaccurate of me. I panicked. He made me sound like I didn't deserve disability.

Well, you know what I did? I told him the accurate description of me and asked him to write another letter. He did and sent that letter to social security as well as refuting his earlier letter and my review was approved.

I understand there is a big difference between your situation and mine. My point is...Don't just roll over and let the pdoc give an inaccurate assessment of you. Talk to him, show him your T's letter and maybe have him explain in another letter what "fair" means to him. Maybe "fair" means something completely different to him? "Fair" is a way to describe a beautiful day, right? Maybe your pdoc's "fair" means something far more positive than the Ohio people think it means?

Thanks all for writing a reply. That's helpful to me. I am just frustrated because he didn't bother to explain "fair." I may be able to talk to him about it, Berries, but for now the lawyer at the board said hold off until she gets back in touch with me. She did say she would absolutely call me if they are going to refuse me a license so I can try to get other supporting documentation. I am pretty sure the inpatient pdoc I had would write something helpful for me. She was terrific! It's not even that he put my prognosis as "fair" that bothers me, but the fact that he just put it and was a lazy piece of crap and didn't explain it. Like say "fair pending further medication management" or something along those lines. GRR... anyway... just holding my breath and waiting at this point. Thanks again for your support.

This sux big time! What gets me is the pdocs don't even know you that well. At least, that's been my experience. All they do is prescribe meds. It's the T's that know you! Some of the best nurses I've ever met and had take care of me have been patients themselves. And I've been at this a very long time. Is there an appeal process? Can you get yourself an attorney? Wouldn't this fall under the ADA? I'm serious. If you can perform the major functions of your job and not endanger any patient in spite of your disability, they should license you, shouldn't they?

Keep us posted. I want to know how this turns out. You might need a good ADA attorney.

This really makes me angry. Nobody's nursing board application asks if you have an illness like cancer, diabetes, etc... but the second you have a "mental" illness you have to prove yourself a non threat. Unless someone has a history of a problem that has caused problems on the job for them, it's really none of the board's business what my health issues are.

Even on my worst of days in depression I came to work and got superior performance reviews. I even trained new employees who do a good job now. I was pregnant at the time. It's easier now that I am not severely depressed, but my quality of work hasn't changed much. The pregnancy caused the problems for me...Maybe I need to drink less coffee now that I work days instead of nights....

I will be thinking about you, my fellow bipolar nurse!

AAAGGGHHHH... still no word. I slept a total of 6 hours over the last 3 days. Not all because of this license thing but certainly the stress from that isn't helping. The lawyer I talked to said she was putting this at the "top of the pile." I guess I'd hate to see how long this would take if it weren't at the top of the pile! I'm also in the middle of a big move and all that goes along with that! Why is it always everything at once?!?!?!?!? I guess I'll just stay tuned for word on my license. Let's hope tomorrow I hear something.

Hang in there Gravyyy! Hope you hear something today!!