Nurse found guilty. Future legal precedent?

[CHARLESTONMMM]

Exactly - I’ve seen MUCH worse, often flagrant and intentional disregard for safety, and it’s never punished.

If you’re bringing money in or part of the old boys club things get a hand wavey explanation and a cover up, if you’re anything else you’re sacrificed.

What’s worse than paralyzing an awake patient until their brain dead and not monitoring them?

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[emergentmd]

What’s worse than paralyzing an awake patient until their brain dead and not monitoring them?

Not the outcome but knowingly intentional malpractice.

 

[pgg]

What is the purpose of jail? Rehabilitate vs unsafe to live in society vs voluntary intentional act..... Nope nothing fits here. There is no sound reason for her to be in Prison and clog up the system other than making a name for the DA.

Blade said the same thing in the other thread, and my response was

Four reasons for a prison sentence:
1) retribution
2) incapacitation
3) deterrence
4) rehabilitation

#2 and #4 don't really apply, but #1 and #3 do.


If low risk of repeat offense was all that mattered, we could allow/forgive any criminal act so long as the offender was unable to do it again.

 

[kidthor]

What’s worse than paralyzing an awake patient until their brain dead and not monitoring them?

Simultaneous spine surgeries with repeat bad outcomes including paralysis and death, having residents operate unsupervised but billing the government and documenting that the attending was there, doing medically unnecessary surgeries/procedures, intentional surprise billing, involuntary sterilization, throwing bloody instruments at staff, xraying while staff who are pregnant are not shielded, conspiracies to silence safety / fraud whistleblowers, medication errors that cause harm and are covered up without remorse, intentional administrator efforts to cut nursing staff and force unsafe overwork in the face of increasing systems flaws and bad outcomes (but with more money given to the admins/system), and so forth. All these are illegal intentional acts that don’t go punished while a nurse’s unintentional act does.

If any of those above acts were punished with jail time there would be a powerful deterrent effect. But instead they get away with it - maybe at worst get a slap on the wrist coupled with a golden parachute upon exit.

Criminal conviction of unintentional medical error doesn’t improve the healthcare system, instead it makes healthcare workers want to quit because the system appears even more rigged against them.

 

[Nuriko]

Simultaneous spine surgeries with repeat bad outcomes includingnparalysis and brain death, having residents operate unsupervised but billing the government and documenting that the attending was there, doing medically unnecessary surgeries/procedures, intentional surprise billing, involuntary sterilization, throwing bloody instruments at staff, xraying while staff who are pregnant are not shielded, conspiracies to silence whistleblowers, intentional administrator efforts to cut nursing staff and force unsafe overwork in the face of increasing systems flaws and bad outcomes (but with more money given to the admins/system), and so forth. All these are illegal intentional acts that don’t go punished while a nurses unintentional act does.

If any of those above acts were punished with jail time there would be a powerful deterrent effect. But instead they get away with it - maybe at worst get a slap on the wrist coupled with a golden parachute upon exit.

Criminal conviction of unintentional medical error doesn’t improve the healthcare system, instead it makes healthcare workers want to quit because the system appears even rigged against them.

My guess is that you've never been paralyzed while awake if you think that these things are worse... but hey, you're entitled to your opinion.

I would also like to reiterate everyone that intent to do harm is NOT a criteria for conviction of criminal negligence. Criminal negligence is conduct where a person ignores an obvious risk or disregards the life and safety of those around him/her/them. Her actions fit this definition.

Several examples you've listed are examples of harm to staff (not patients), which I agree that the affected staff could press charges for assault. Also, I believe that the double booked surgery cases at MGH ended in a malpractice settlement. I completely agree that many of these cases should have been prosecuted/punished harder, but the problem here is that they weren't prosecuted, not that she was prosecuted.

 

[kidthor]

In all reality a prosecutor could probably charge any of us in healthcare with something criminal if they wanted.

The bad message here is that they chose to prosecute and convict a nurse who made an error, was truthful about it, and expressed remorse. But they don’t chose to prosecute the MGH surgeon who is much more a criminal in my opinion. They could very easily charge him with multiple counts of conspiracy to defraud the US government, battery, criminal reckless, and whistleblower retaliation, but they chose not to.

 

[Nuriko]

In all reality a prosecutor could probably charge any of us in healthcare with something criminal if they wanted.

The bad message here is that they chose to prosecute and convict a nurse who made an error, was truthful about it, and expressed remorse. But they don’t chose to prosecute the MGH surgeon who is much more a criminal in my opinion. They could very easily charge him with multiple counts of conspiracy to defraud the US government, battery, criminal reckless, and whistleblower retaliation, but they chose not to.

The biggest variable here is that malpractice laws and litigation climate vary from state to state. I agree that the actions of the surgeon show at least comparable disregard for safety as the nurse (although I don't know as much detail about the MGH case), but it's hard to predict what will happen in a courtroom in 1 state based on what happened in another. Some consistency across the board would certainly be nice...

 

[emergentmd]

Blade said the same thing in the other thread, and my response was

Four reasons for a prison sentence:
1) retribution
2) incapacitation
3) deterrence
4) rehabilitation

#2 and #4 don't really apply, but #1 and #3 do.

I disagree that #1 or #3 fits.

#1 - My understanding is the family did not want to press charges. I can even slightly agree if the family wanted to proceed with criminal charges then go ahead if this makes the family feel better
# 3- Deterrence? What are we deterring? Do you think this will prevent any more deaths? I doubt it. What it will do is have nurses refuse to over ride the pyxis leading to delayed pt care and worse outcome.

This case is akin to the truck driving killing those people in Colorado when his brakes gave out.

Bottom line is if she can go to prison, then there have been many more egregious cases on the top of my head that should have gone to prison.

So I guess we will start putting race car drivers in prison when they lose control of their car and runs into a crowd. I mean, he knew the risks and potential loss of control when he was going around the curve at 200mph and didn't correct his turn until too late? I mean Pros should not be late in correcting for turns right?.

 

[Nuriko]

I disagree that #1 or #3 fits.

#1 - My understanding is the family did not want to press charges. I can even slightly agree if the family wanted to proceed with criminal charges then go ahead if this makes the family feel better
# 3- Deterrence? What are we deterring? Do you think this will prevent any more deaths? I doubt it. What it will do is have nurses refuse to over ride the pyxis leading to delayed pt care and worse outcome.

This case is akin to the truck driving killing those people in Colorado when his brakes gave out.

Bottom line is if she can go to prison, then there have been many more egregious cases on the top of my head that should have gone to prison.

So I guess we will start putting race car drivers in prison when they lose control of their car and runs into a crowd. I mean, he knew the risks and potential loss of control when he was going around the curve at 200mph and didn't correct his turn until too late? I mean Pros should not be late in correcting for turns right?.

One of the biggest misunderstandings with this case is how it's been reported. Many believe this is about a medication error, or a pyxis override. The crux of this case, IMO, is administration of an IVP medication (regardless of what medication it was) to an unmonitored patient, who she then abandoned. This would be the equivalent of the truck driver (or the race car driver) putting a brick on the gas pedal and jumping out of the vehicle, allowing it to careen at high speeds in any direction.

Also, the charges are filed by the state, not the family. The only one who has the right to decline charges in a criminal setting is the victim, who in this case is dead. I can't think of an instance where a murderer was not prosecuted simply because the family wanted to forgive.

 

[emergentmd]

The crux of this case, IMO, is administration of an IVP medication (regardless of what medication it was) to an unmonitored patient, who she then abandoned.

If you are going to take this line then where are all the criminal charges for the countless cases where pts were not monitored. There are countless times when I walk past a room when a pt was not monitored who should have been.

How about all the people around the patient including the Rad tech who didn't monitor the pt.

Just a bad precedent to take.

 

[deleted875186]

She screwed up, should be reprimanded. Lose her license, I think not. Criminal homicide and jail time?

What is the purpose of jail? Rehabilitate vs unsafe to live in society vs voluntary intentional act..... Nope nothing fits here. There is no sound reason for her to be in Prison and clog up the system other than making a name for the DA.

I have seen more intentional malpractice performed by docs who never even receives a slap on the wrist at MEC.

Bottom line is she is used as a pawn to further someone's agenda or career.

I disagree, our legal system is intended to produce “justice”, our culture in no way values rehabilitation, although we do have things like parol. For the most part, our society just cares that justice is served, which means jail time for murder.

 

[Nuriko]

If you are going to take this line then where are all the criminal charges for the countless cases where pts were not monitored. There are countless times when I walk past a room when a pt was not monitored who should have been.

How about all the people around the patient including the Rad tech who didn't monitor the pt.

Just a bad precedent to take.

As far as I understood, the rad tech told the RN that they were unable to monitor patients after receiving sedation. Knowing this, she pushed the medication and left. If I (or one of my CRNAs) was doing a case in radiology, we would be expected to stay with the patient the entire time after giving sedation.

I can't comment on the cases that you mention as I do not know all the details, but I'm guessing none of them led to bad outcomes (better to be lucky than good, as they say). All I can say is that it sounds like a setup for disaster. The only times I ever push sedation myself outside of an OR is for blocks (Where I am physically present for several minutes), or as the RNs are about to wheel the patient to the OR (when I know that they'll be in the OR in a matter of minutes. Even on the way over, the nurses are watching them, so they're not completely unmonitored).

I will concede that there are many cases that could easily be prosecuted criminally but aren't, or why the nurse in this case wasn't charged in a civil court. I'm not entirely sure why. Maybe it has to do with the medicolegal climate in certain states vs others. Maybe it's because it's ridiculously difficult to sue RNs (it's usually docs who take the fall for nursing errors, as it would be if a CRNA made a mistake under my name), so the natural course was to take a criminal charge. I honestly don't know the circumstances. All I can say is, since it did go to criminal court, that based on the circumstances of this case, the prosecutor was able to make a reasonable case for negligence.

 

[Onefellswoop87]

If you are going to take this line then where are all the criminal charges for the countless cases where pts were not monitored. There are countless times when I walk past a room when a pt was not monitored who should have been.

How about all the people around the patient including the Rad tech who didn't monitor the pt.

Just a bad precedent to take.

Since you are drawing parallels to this case, are you stating that you walk by rooms countless times where the wrong medication was given to unmonitored patients and a catastrophic outcome occurred? Is there a waiting list to present at your institution’s M&M conference?

In all seriousness, the lack of monitor is only one aspect of the tragedy here.

Rad techs monitor patient vitals? I not sure that’s in their job description or scope of practice. And even if it was, an RN hanging out next to a tech for an MRI trumps the tech.

 

[Onefellswoop87]

I disagree that #1 or #3 fits.

#1 - My understanding is the family did not want to press charges. I can even slightly agree if the family wanted to proceed with criminal charges then go ahead if this makes the family feel better
# 3- Deterrence? What are we deterring? Do you think this will prevent any more deaths? I doubt it. What it will do is have nurses refuse to over ride the pyxis leading to delayed pt care and worse outcome.

This case is akin to the truck driving killing those people in Colorado when his brakes gave out.

Bottom line is if she can go to prison, then there have been many more egregious cases on the top of my head that should have gone to prison.

So I guess we will start putting race car drivers in prison when they lose control of their car and runs into a crowd. I mean, he knew the risks and potential loss of control when he was going around the curve at 200mph and didn't correct his turn until too late? I mean Pros should not be late in correcting for turns right?.

False equivalencies left and right. This isn’t the same as the brakes going out. It wasn’t a mechanical error that spit out vecuronium. The nurse didn’t overcorrect which ever analogy you want for her steering wheel and cause an injury. No, she was negligent in her actions. Her intent is immaterial. She was negligent in her actions on so many occasions in the course of that patient encounter.

Sure, sometimes injuries occur to spectators at race car events. I’m sure there have been deaths from spectators. I don’t follow nascar or other races so I have no idea the incidence. But those are persons that take a known risk to be close enough to the action. No one wheeled them against to a nascar event, under the guise of their own benefit, only to suffer a tragedy. A patient being wheeled down for an MRI with a nurse is not taking a known or even foreseeable risk that the nurse will paralyze them after overriding multiple warnings, even double checking the orders put in and signed off by pharmacy, and still overriding the medication delivery to give it to an unmonitored patient.

And I know it’s been said, but the family doesn’t pursue criminal proceedings. The state doesn’t have to get their permission to charge someone with breaking a law. Of course the victim here has no say because he is dead. But the victim, in other criminal manners, can decline to participate and the state can still pursue criminal charges.
The family can choose to sue or not sue in civil manners. This isn’t the end of Big Daddy where the Jon Stewart tells the state to drop the charge and the state listens. And Adam Sandler and the gang live happily ever after. That’s not how it works.

 

[coffeebythelake]

Rad techs monitor patient vitals? I not sure that’s in their job description or scope of practice. And even if it was, an RN hanging out next to a tech for an MRI trumps the tech.

We had an issue with the pulse oximeter in the MRI machine. General anesthetic case. I kid you not, the radiology tech asked if it was even necessary.

 

[Dr. Rude]

As far as I understood, the rad tech told the RN that they were unable to monitor patients after receiving sedation. Knowing this, she pushed the medication and left. If I (or one of my CRNAs) was doing a case in radiology, we would be expected to stay with the patient the entire time after giving sedation.

I can't comment on the cases that you mention as I do not know all the details, but I'm guessing none of them led to bad outcomes (better to be lucky than good, as they say). All I can say is that it sounds like a setup for disaster. The only times I ever push sedation myself outside of an OR is for blocks (Where I am physically present for several minutes), or as the RNs are about to wheel the patient to the OR (when I know that they'll be in the OR in a matter of minutes. Even on the way over, the nurses are watching them, so they're not completely unmonitored).

I will concede that there are many cases that could easily be prosecuted criminally but aren't, or why the nurse in this case wasn't charged in a civil court. I'm not entirely sure why. Maybe it has to do with the medicolegal climate in certain states vs others. Maybe it's because it's ridiculously difficult to sue RNs (it's usually docs who take the fall for nursing errors, as it would be if a CRNA made a mistake under my name), so the natural course was to take a criminal charge. I honestly don't know the circumstances. All I can say is, since it did go to criminal court, that based on the circumstances of this case, the prosecutor was able to make a reasonable case for negligence.

The false equivalence is applying standards for anesthesia personnel giving deep sedation, major neuraxial anesthesia, or general anesthesia to other situations where sedation is given. One mg of versed iv or a few mg or morphine IM, etc., etc, are reasonable for almost all patients without the need for continuous presence of RN or other personnel.

 

[deleted875186]

The false equivalence is applying standards for anesthesia personnel giving deep sedation, major neuraxial anesthesia, or general anesthesia to other situations where sedation is given. One mg of versed iv or a few mg or morphine IM, etc., etc, are reasonable for almost all patients without the need for continuous presence of RN or other personnel.

I agree, you could make an argument that continuous monitoring is not needed if you are in the mild sedation realm, but I would say assessing the level of consciousness after a rapid acting IV benzo in an elderly patient is required, not pushing the medicine and walking away….

 

[coffeebythelake]

I agree, you could make an argument that continuous monitoring is not needed if you are in the mild sedation realm, but I would say assessing the level of consciousness after a rapid acting IV benzo in an elderly patient is required, not pushing the medicine and walking away….

There is also other potential issues that could come up like an idiosyncratic reaction or allergic reaction however unlikely that may be.

 

[pgg]

I disagree that #1 or #3 fits.

I don't know what to say, other than "you're wrong"...

Retribution is more than just the family's interest in vengeance. It's punishment for wrongdoing. Our society and its laws have created a justice system in which punishment is a core of sentencing. Future risk of additional wrongdoing, or lack thereof, is irrelevant to whether or not punishment is warranted.

As for deterrence, all you have to do is read this thread and all of the angst and concern over how OUR future conduct might create criminal liability. Right or wrong, it's definitely having an effect, which is the heart of deterrence.

#1 - My understanding is the family did not want to press charges.

Doesn't matter. While an angry or forgiving family can influence whether or not a DA chooses to pursue charges, and what sentence a judge imposes, there's no formal basis in law for family of victims to direct any of that.

The family's option is to file a civil suit, or not. If they choose not, that's the end of that but the criminal piece is out of their hands.

# 3- Deterrence? What are we deterring? Do you think this will prevent any more deaths? I doubt it. What it will do is have nurses refuse to over ride the pyxis leading to delayed pt care and worse outcome.

There you go. Future behavior of other people is being altered by this verdict and sentence. That's what deterrence is.

And it's a stretch of a weak argument that nurses refusing to override the Pyxis will result in "worse outcomes" - we're not talking about a verbal ACLS order for epinephrine while chest compressiona are going on.

 

[kidthor]

As for deterrence, all you have to do is read this thread and all of the angst and concern over how OUR future conduct might create criminal liability. Right or wrong, it's definitely having an effect, which is the heart of deterrence.

The deterrent effect here is manifesting in unusual ways, but it's definitely there. This case is certainly changing my mindset.

My personal concern is the danger of criminal prosecution when systems failures might set the patient (and myself) up for failure. At my job I'm constantly caring for ultra-sick patients with multiple systems traps/failures there every time. For example I've got to go to three Pyxis machines to get the drugs I need, I disagree with venue of cases (outpatient vs main hospital), the OR pharmacist can't be reached when I need pressors, my phone or OR computer fail, the OR bed stops working, the ICU team is "too busy" for signout, or "there aren't any more ICU beds so we have to do stepdown", the T&S expired but "don't worry there won't be bleeding and we can just give O- anyway" and so forth. All of these things seem like minor to moderate annoyances with plausible workarounds. Until something bad happens... and then everyone will point the finger at me not the system.

So now I think if I employ a few workarounds and have a bad outcome with a sick patient I could go to jail. And even more importantly the hospital systems don't really care about me or the patients enough to fix these issues. It's making me refuse more of these unsafe scenarios. But sadly I'm probably an outlier so the system will just persist as is.

Honestly it's telling me it might be time to leave medicine vs take a really low stress daytime-doc or surgery center job. Caring for ultra sick patients in an imperfect environment is less and less worth the risk.

 

[jwk]

There you go. Future behavior of other people is being altered by this verdict and sentence. That's what deterrence is.

So instead of admitting the error, however egregious, which this nurse apparently did, the deterrent effect is going to be "Duh, I have no idea what the hell happened". The deterrence will be no self reporting and nothing to review in a sentinel event. In this case, would anyone have figured out she gave the wrong medication if she hadn't said something?

What about M&M conferences? I've heard horrible mistakes discussed during those. Never heard prosecution discussed.

 

[nimbus]

So instead of admitting the error, however egregious, which this nurse apparently did, the deterrent effect is going to be "Duh, I have no idea what the hell happened". The deterrence will be no self reporting and nothing to review in a sentinel event. In this case, would anyone have figured out she gave the wrong medication if she hadn't said something?

What about M&M conferences? I've heard horrible mistakes discussed during those. Never heard prosecution discussed.

Yeah there will be a lot more useless blaming the patient…”must have had a bad reaction to blah blah blah” or the equally useless “must have been a PE” instead of looking for what really happened. The Vanderbilt case could easily have been called a PE or a 🤷‍♂️.


In our M+M’s during residency, the term “anesthesia clean kill” was occasionally used.

 

[pgg]

So instead of admitting the error, however egregious, which this nurse apparently did, the deterrent effect is going to be "Duh, I have no idea what the hell happened". The deterrence will be no self reporting and nothing to review in a sentinel event. In this case, would anyone have figured out she gave the wrong medication if she hadn't said something?

What about M&M conferences? I've heard horrible mistakes discussed during those. Never heard prosecution discussed.

I don't disagree. I don't like the fact that criminal charges were pressed, and I don't like the verdict, even though this particular case had some pretty egregious negligence.

I was just responding to the notion that a criminally convicted person shouldn't be sentenced because they were no longer a direct threat to society.

 

[anesussy]

This has good details. Per herself, she wasn’t busy and overwhelmed and they weren’t short staffed. esp pg 50 & 51

DocumentCloud

www.documentcloud.org

Interesting stuff in here. Further goes to show how stupid it is to refer to anything but its generic name.

It's midazolam, or midaz, not Versed. I will die on this hill.

 

[coffeebythelake]

In our M+M’s during residency, the term “anesthesia clean kill” was occasionally used.

You are saying these are from anesthesia M&M's?
Not surgery blaming anesthesia for bad outcomes?

 

[nimbus]

You are saying these are from anesthesia M&M's?
Not surgery blaming anesthesia for bad outcomes?

Yes…in anesthesia M+M where everybody in the room is thinking WTF??!

 

[coffeebythelake]

Interesting stuff in here. Further goes to show how stupid it is to refer to anything but its generic name.

It's midazolam, or midaz, not Versed. I will die on this hill.

The trade names for many drugs are burned into the minds of many prescribers, it will be hard to make that kind of change.

 

[anesussy]

The trade names for many drugs are burned into the minds of many prescribers, it will be hard to make that kind of change.

If people can learn the metric system for dosing, then they should be able to learn generic names. Besides, who are the prescribers that don't know the generic names? Every medical board exam uses generic names.

 

[nimbus]

Next time I do a crani, I’ll ask for some levetiracetam. Only stupidos call it Keppra.

 

[VisionaryTics]

Next time I do a crani, I’ll ask for some levetiracetam. Only stupidos call it Keppra.

Rest of the English-speaking world manages just fine. I did fellowship in a commonwealth nation and was pleasantly surprised to hear drugs referred to by their generic names much more frequently, especially by people trained in UK.

 

[nimbus]

Rest of the English-speaking world manages just fine. I did fellowship in a commonwealth nation and was pleasantly surprised to hear drugs referred to by their generic names much more frequently, especially by people trained in UK.

But in the good old USA, I’ve never heard the word said out loud.

 

[pgg]

Next time I do a crani, I’ll ask for some levetiracetam. Only stupidos call it Keppra.

Sure, I say Keppra too. But if the word Keppra hadn't been made up by a focus group of otherwise useless out-of-work telephone sanitizers in a marketing department, that's exactly what we'd be doing, and it would be no big deal.

We're highly educated doctors. We use big words all the time.

But we (and patients!) have been straight up ****ed by this bastardized system of multiple names, rich in Ys and Xs and Ks and Zs and nicely alliterating musical syllables, for the same drug. It's a ridiculous state of affairs and the only reason we put up with it is because it's always been that way.

 

[vector2]

ED nurse: Doc, we got a drunk dehydrated hobo in room 3

Doc: Nurse, please hang a 1000 milliliter solution of 0.9% sodium chloride enriched with a blend of thiamine, folic acid, magnesium sulfate, and a multivitamin ampule

 

[OptionOffense]

Had nothing to do with generic vs trade names. When you are an i***t there is nothing to guard against that.

 

[Dr. Rude]

ED nurse: Doc, we got a drunk dehydrated hobo in room 3

Doc: Nurse, please hang a 1000 milliliter solution of 0.9% sodium chloride enriched with a blend of thiamine, folic acid, magnesium sulfate, and a multivitamin ampule

ED NURSE:
You mean a banana bag?

 

[anesussy]

Next time I do a crani, I’ll ask for some levetiracetam. Only stupidos call it Keppra.

There’s an argument to be made for keppra over levitiracetam. As far as I know nothing in either name informs you about the drug class/mechanism if you don’t already know what the drug is. But the olam in midazolam tells you is a benzo. Then again, the curonium in vecuronium should have told the nurse that it was a nondepolarizing neuromuscular blocker.

At the end of the day, she was just incompetent, but the hospital also being incompetent certainly didn’t help.

 

[Mman]

Then again, the curonium in vecuronium should have told the nurse that it was a nondepolarizing neuromuscular blocker.

there is a very high likelihood she had never before administered a NMB to any patient so she probably had no idea what that drug generic name indicated

 

[anesussy]

there is a very high likelihood she had never before administered a NMB to any patient so she probably had no idea what that drug generic name indicated

I assumed nurses were more educated than that? I have no idea, though.

The more I think about it, though, the nurse really should have double checked what she was giving. She really thought VE was a sufficient identifier for the drug? What in the actual f? The hospital was def at fault to some degree, but NOBODY can argue in good faith that her actions were not recklessly negligent.

To everyone feeling sympathetic toward the nurse - would you be as forgiving if it were your own family member who died? I definitely wouldn't. And I consider myself a pretty forgiving person.

 

[deleted875186]

I remember intern year a nurse called me to push 5 mg metoprolol IV for a patient because “they never had a beta blocker, hosptial says doctor has to give the medicine”. I said ok, pushed the lip resist over a couple minutes, waited 5 mins, then left.

In addition to double checking dose, drug, patient, there are administration guidelines that admittedly we as anesthesiologists just ignore, some medications slow IV push over 5 mins, etc. this nurse had to reconstitute the vecuronium, and then failed to verify correct drug, and then disregarded looking at how to administer it, and then walked away.

 

[OptionOffense]

I remember intern year a nurse called me to push 5 mg metoprolol IV for a patient because “they never had a beta blocker, hosptial says doctor has to give the medicine”. I said ok, pushed the lip resist over a couple minutes, waited 5 mins, then left.

In addition to double checking dose, drug, patient, there are administration guidelines that admittedly we as anesthesiologists just ignore, some medications slow IV push over 5 mins, etc. this nurse had to reconstitute the vecuronium, and then failed to verify correct drug, and then disregarded looking at how to administer it, and then walked away.

they say a lot of things. Like give blood over one hour and you have to wait 30 mins between each bag. That sort of nonsense is incompatible with our practice.

 

[coffeebythelake]

Nurse Vaught Sentenced for Deadly Medical Error

Former Vanderbilt nurse gets 3 years probation for negligent homicide, adult abuse

www.medpagetoday.com

Updated, Nurse Vaught sentenced to 3 years of probation. No prison term.

 

[UscGhost]

Thanks to this idiot...I now have to type out "propo" to pull out propofol from the omnicell machine because it needs to be a minimum of 5 letters before it highlights the medication...

 

[NITRAS]

I’m glad she didn’t get prison. After thinking about this, I think it is a bad turn for everyone that she was tried and convicted of a criminal offense.

She made multiple egregious mistakes, but they still were mistakes.

 

[abolt18]

Thanks to this idiot...I now have to type out "propo" to pull out propofol from the omnicell machine because it needs to be a minimum of 5 letters before it highlights the medication...

Immediately after her conviction, our hospital suddenly added this requirement to the all the pyxis machines that required 5-6 additional button pushes to justify the use of ANY paralytics. Even intra-op pyxis machines.

I immediately sent out some mildly aggressive emails and that requirement was removed from the pyxis machines in the OR.

 

[OptionOffense]

I’m glad she didn’t get prison. After thinking about this, I think it is a bad turn for everyone that she was tried and convicted of a criminal offense.

She made multiple egregious mistakes, but they still were mistakes.

They were so egregious it had to be intentional

 

[DocVapor]

I’m glad she didn’t get prison. After thinking about this, I think it is a bad turn for everyone that she was tried and convicted of a criminal offense.

She made multiple egregious mistakes, but they still were mistakes.

People take a few hours of drivers Ed, make a few egregious mistakes, and rightfully end up in jail after killing someone.

This woman had years of training with "certifications" and yet still made a stack of egregious errors.

The only injustice here is that Vandy administrators weren't also put on trial.

 

[nimbus]

They were so egregious it had to be intentional

I think you underestimate the dumbness.

 

[Dr. Rude]

Nurse Vaught Sentenced for Deadly Medical Error

Former Vanderbilt nurse gets 3 years probation for negligent homicide, adult abuse

www.medpagetoday.com

Updated, Nurse Vaught sentenced to 3 years of probation. No prison term.

It is actually a diversion program. If she meets all the terms of probation her conviction will be expunged. Of course given the world we live in, everybody will know. But she won’t technically have a criminal record.

 

[anbuitachi]

It is actually a diversion program. If she meets all the terms of probation her conviction will be expunged. Of course given the world we live in, everybody will know. But she won’t technically have a criminal record.

a lot of admins are nurses. they'll probably fight to hire her for next job

 

[coffeebythelake]

a lot of admins are nurses. they'll probably fight to hire her for next job

Director of patient safety?