title: Identifying the substance abuser in clinical practice.
abstract: Illicit drugs are used regularly by 14.5 million Americans. By identifying patients who abuse substances, the nurse will be better able to provide for the treatment interventions needed and omit ineffective treatment interventions. The patient will benefit by receiving timely and appropriate care. To identify substance abusers, the nurse must know effects of commonly abused drugs, their routes of administration, withdrawal signs, and the physical assessments that should be performed. The most common drugs abused are narcotics, depressants, antidepressants, anti-anxiety drugs, stimulants, hallucinogens, and marijuana.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bell
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D009730:Nursing Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000451:nursing