Attitudes of Nurse Managers and Assistant Nurse Managers Toward Chemically Impaired Colleagues

The purpose of this research was to determine attitudes among nurse managers and assistant nurse managers toward impaired colleagues in a descriptive correlational study method, using the Perceptions of Nursing Impairment Inventory. The study revealed no significant differences in attitudes between groups; assistant nurse managers demonstrated a more disciplinary orientation toward impairment within nursing. Both groups tended to have supportive attitudes toward impaired colleagues. Racial/ethnic origin had the most influence on nurse managers' attitudes toward chemically impaired colleagues. The Philippine/Oriental group demonstrated a stronger need to know when a colleague is impaired or receiving treatment, exhibited less belief in the treatability of impairment and displayed a stronger belief in impairment as a personality weakness.