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A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
Date: Tue 7 Jul 2009
Source: Las Vegas Sun, Associated Press report [edited]
A Denver hospital said Monday [6 Jul 2009] it has asked every patient
who had surgery there over a 6-month period to come in for a blood
test amid allegations that a former technician exposed up to 6000
people to hepatitis C [virus infection] as she fed her painkiller
addiction. The 26-year-old technician [surgical scrub nurse] is
accused of injecting herself with painkillers meant for patients, then
filling the used syringes with saline solution. She was arrested
Friday [3 Jul 2009] and appeared in court Monday to be advised of the
charges.
Thousands of patients at 2 hospitals where Parker worked were exposed,
and 9 have tested positive for hepatitis C, according to state medical
officials and an investigator's affidavit. It was not known how many
had yet to be tested. U.S. attorney's office spokesman Jeff Dorschner
said he could not comment on the case because the investigation is
ongoing.
The former technician started working at Rose Medical Center on 21 Oct
[2008]. She was suspended on 13 Apr 2009 after authorities began
investigating her, and was fired 22 Apr 2009 after testing positive
for the painkiller Fentyl [Fentanyl?], the affidavit said. She then
went to work for the Audubon Ambulatory Surgery Center in Colorado
Springs. She was there from 4 May 2009 until Monday [6 Jul 2009].
Leslie Teegarden, a Rose Medical Center spokeswoman, said the hospital
is being abundantly cautious and has notified every patient who had
surgery while the technician worked there. Those patients are being
asked to come in for a free blood test.
Amy Triandiflou, a spokeswoman for the Audubon hospital, said they
hired Parker before she was fired from Rose. Triandiflou said state
health officials informed the Audubon hospital of the investigation
against the technician on 1 Jul 2009. Rose Medical Center officials
said the technician took a blood test before starting her job in
October [2008], and tested positive for hepatitis C. But her attorney,
Gregory Graf, said she did not find out she had the disease until
police contacted her, which was sometime in April [2009]. "If Rose
(hospital) is indicating that she knew, then the question is, why did
they allow her to continue work as a surgical scrub nurse," Graf said.
Teegarden said people with hepatitis C are not prohibited from working
at a hospital.
The technician, who remains in custody, will be in court again
Thursday [9 Jul 2009] for a preliminary hearing on charges of
tampering with a consumer product, creating a counterfeit controlled
substance, and obtaining a controlled substance by deception or
subterfuge. Bail is expected to be set at that hearing. If convicted
of all charges, she faces a maximum of 34 years in prison.
--
Communicated by:
HealthMap Alerts via
ProMED-mail
[Of all the cases of transmission of hepatitis C virus in hospital
settings (some of which are referenced below), this incident is one of
the most bizarre. A technician/nurse known to be infected with
hepatitis C virus should not have been employed on any task involving
the use of surgical procedures or the administration of drugs by
injection.
Fentanyl (fentanyl citrate) is a synthetic primary opioid agonist
commonly used to treat post-operative and chronic breakthrough pain
(see:
100 times more potent than morphine, Fentanyl is classified as a
Schedule II drug in the United States due to its high potential for
abuse. Intravenous fentanyl is extensively used for anesthesia and
analgesia, most often in operating rooms and intensive care units.
Finally, Fentanyl is often used in cancer therapy and other chronic
pain management due to its effectiveness in relieving pain. There is
no known opioid better than Fentanyl in reducing cancer pain, which
makes it the 1st choice for use in cancer patients.
Denver, in the state of Colorado, can be found in the
HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map of the USA at:
Mod.CP]
[Fentanyl, introduced through the ventilation system, was used by the
Moscow authorities to knock out Chechen terrorists who took 800 people
hostage in a theater in 2002 -- see
- Mod.JW]
[see also:
2008
----
Hepatitis C, dialysis-related - USA: (NY) 20080917.2917
2007
----
Hepatitis C, fibrinogen-transmitted - Japan: RFI 20071217.4063
Hepatitis C, physician-associated cluster - USA (NY) (04) 20071211.3988
Hepatitis C, hemodialysis unit - Spain (Barcelona) 20071209.3969
Hepatitis C, physician-associated cluster - USA (NY) (03) 20071207.3951
Hepatitis C, physician-associated cluster - USA (NY) (02) 20070628.2080
Hepatitis C, physician-associated cluster - USA (NY) 20070616.1965
Hepatitis C, single source outbreak, 1998 - Spain (02) 20070227.0705
2005
----
Hepatitis C, isotope contamination suspected - USA (MD) 20050105.0019
2004
----
Hepatitis C, nosocomial transmission - Spain (Madrid) 20040726.2046
2003
----
Hepatitis C virus, hospital acquired - Israel (03) 20030816.2038
Hepatitis C virus, hospital acquired - Israel (02) 20030814.2025
Hepatitis C virus, hospital acquired - Israel 20030813.2016
2002
----
Hepatitis C, clinic-acquired cluster - USA (NE) (02) 20021120.5857
Hepatitis C virus, clinic-acquired cluster - USA (NE) 20021017.5579]
....................................................cp/msp/jw
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