Former ICU Nurse Found Guilty Of Homicide In Drug Error

AP: Former Nurse Guilty Of Homicide In Medication Error Death
A former Tennessee nurse is guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the death of a patient who was accidentally given the wrong medication, a jury found Friday. She was also found guilty of gross neglect of an impaired adult in a case that has fixed the attention of patient safety advocates and nurses’ organizations around the country. RaDonda Vaught, 37, injected the paralyzing drug vecuronium into 75-year-old Charlene Murphey instead of the sedative Versed on Dec. 26, 2017. Vaught freely admitted to making several errors with the medication that day, but her defense attorney argued the nurse was not acting outside of the norm and systemic problems at Vanderbilt University Medical Center were at least partly to blame for the error. (Loller, 3/25)

The Tennessean: 'Zero Regrets About Telling The Truth': Ex-Nurse RaDonda Vaught Speaks Out Ahead Of Guilty Verdict
RaDonda Vaught has spent more than four years in limbo. A few more hours won't bother her much. The former ICU nurse spoke with the Tennessean outside a Nashville criminal courtroom on Friday morning while behind closed doors a jury deliberated on her fate. They ultimately found her guilty of criminally negligent homicide and abuse of an impaired adult. She will be sentenced on May 13. "Knowing what I know now — even if the jury finds me guilty, even if Judge Smith decides that prison time is the appropriate sentencing for this and it's the maximum amount of time — I have zero regrets about telling the truth," Vaught told The Tennessean on Friday morning. (Timms, 3/25)

KHN: Nurse Convicted Of Neglect And Negligent Homicide For Fatal Drug Error 
Vaught was acquitted of reckless homicide. Criminally negligent homicide was a lesser charge included under reckless homicide. Vaught’s trial has been closely watched by nurses and medical professionals across the country, many of whom worry it could set a precedent of criminalizing medical mistakes. Medical errors are generally handled by professional licensing boards or civil courts, and criminal prosecutions like Vaught’s case are exceedingly rare. (Kelman, 3/25)

In other news about health care worker shortages —

Side Effects Public Media: Two Years In: The Pandemic Through The Eyes Of A Health Care Worker’s Spouse
Nicole Oberhelman’s house is small, cozy and brims with character. Every corner tells a story. A painting of the first dance from her wedding is next to the TV. Up until early March, Christmas decorations were still on display. The holiday was extra special this year, because it was the closest to a normal one she’s had since the pandemic started. Nicole’s life has been upended by the pandemic in many of the same ways as others — she switched to remote work, quarantined from family members and wore masks in public. But her specific experience over the past two years isn’t shared by all — she is the wife of a health care worker who spent time on the frontlines. (Yousry, 3/25)

New Hampshire Public Radio: How A North Country Hospice Agency Hopes To Regrow Their Volunteer Program 
For years, the North Country Home Health & Hospice Agency has worked with community volunteers who spend time with end-of life patients. The volunteers offer companionship to patients, according to Alyssa Lennon, the director of hospice and palliative care at the agency. They also give family caregivers a break from their role and the time to run errands. Prior to the pandemic, Lennon said the agency had a robust volunteer program. But COVID-19 concerns, PPE requirements, and visitation limitation has caused volunteer numbers to dwindle. “We had less and less volunteers visiting homes,” Lennon said. (Fam, 3/28)

NPR: Addiction Recovery Has Money But Not Enough Workers In Oregon 
Like many people who work in the field of addiction, Staci Cowan is herself in recovery. She slid into heroin use years ago after she started taking opioids for an injury. The loss of her job and apartment followed. She found herself homeless when her mom was forced to draw a firm boundary. No more sleeping at her house. "The people on the streets, you think they're there for you," says Cowan. "But you quickly realize that no one is there for you except for yourself." Now, as a peer mentor at an addiction and recovery facility called Club Hope in the Portland suburb of Gresham, Cowan's job is to be there for other people. She celebrated four years in recovery recently. Listening to people is a big part of her job. She remembers what it was like to feel invisible. (Riddle, 3/28)

Also —

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Cobb 911 Operator Answers 20,000 Calls, Shatters County Record
A Cobb County 911 specialist was recently honored for handling more than 20,000 emergency calls in less than a year. County leaders paid tribute to Dana Bell, a call taker for the past 2½ years, during a commission meeting Monday. Commissioner Keli Gambrill presented Bell with a certificate of recognition that indicated she set a new county record for answering the most calls at Cobb’s Emergency Communications Center.“ E-911 call takers are crucial first responders during an emergency,” Gambrill said, reading from the proclamation. “(Dana) calmly provides a correct response and dispatch assistance during a dangerous time or serious situation, making our agency one of the best in the country.” (Bruce, 3/27)

The Washington Post: Thema Bryant, A Black Minister From Baltimore, Wants To Reshape Mental Health Care 
The day after the American Psychological Association’s newest leader pitched her vision for the organization to dozens of her colleagues in D.C., she walked into Maryland’s oldest Black church and stepped up to the wooden pulpit where her father and grandfather used to preach. “Hallelujah,” Thema Bryant, 48, said, smiling as her voice boomed through the century-old sanctuary at the Bethel AME Church in West Baltimore. “It’s good to be home.” (Tan, 3/27)

Stat: She Was Told ‘Girls Don’t Do That.’ Now Margaret-Mary Wilson Is A Top Executive At UnitedHealth Group
Long before she became a top executive at UnitedHealth Group, back in her native Nigeria, Margaret-Mary Wilson was discouraged from her dreams of becoming a doctor because “girls don’t do that.” But Wilson persisted, attending medical school in Nigeria, then receiving specialty training in the U.K. and U.S. She eventually entered a field, geriatric medicine, that people in her native country said there was no need for, because so many people died before they reached the age of 40. Hearing the stories of her grandfather, a nursing superintendent who had cared for hospital patients who were considered lucky if they saw a doctor once a month, Wilson thought there had to be a better way to deliver care. (McFarling, 3/28)