The Cochran Firm Legal Blog

A woman who worked at a Denver hospital has been arrested and accused of injecting herself with painkillers intended for patients and filling the used syringes with saline solution that was then injected into the patients. She was hired at the hospital in October and worked until April, when she was suspended, then fired after she tested positive for the painkiller Fentanyl. However, her career as a medical technician was not over, because she was hired on May 4 to work at a nearby ambulatory surgical center, where she worked until she was arrested.

Over the course of these two jobs, she may have taken painkillers intended for up to 6,000 patients, everyone who had had surgery, and in the process may have exposed them to Hepatitis C. Already, at least nine patients have been found to be infected.

When you are in the hospital, your life depends on doctors, nurses, and technicians. One form of medical malpractice is a failure to properly investigate potential hires to ensure that they are suitable for the position they may take. This means not only ensuring that they are qualified, but also screening them for drug addictions. It is tragic that the woman might be hired and work at a hospital for six months with this kind of addiction. It seems impossible that she could then be hired again, less than three weeks later, to work at another area hospital.

Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. Every day potentially dangerous doctors, nurses, and technicians are hired after negligent screening procedures. If you or a loved one has suffered injury from medical malpractice at the hands of one of these dangerous employees, you need skilled representation to protect your rights and punish those who put you at risk. Contact the medical malpractice lawyers at The Cochran Firm today.

Labels: main