The police department has provided few details of the investigation, including the number of patients who allegedly became sick or died when their medications were replaced with tap water, resulting in infections.
According to the Rogue Valley Times and KOBI-TV, a nurse is suspected of removing the painkiller fentanyl from patient’s IV bags and replacing it with tap water starting in late 2022.
A spokesperson with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration confirmed the agency is aware of the investigation, and that it has offered help to the Medford Police Department, but they could not confirm their involvement. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has also confirmed it’s aware of the incident.
MPD spokesperson Lt. Geoff Kirkpatrick said they’ve gotten calls from individuals and families wondering if they’ve been affected by the former employee’s actions. According to an MPD statement, Asante has identified all the patients who were involved and are in the process of contacting them or their family members.
Asante has provided no information into the investigation, other than confirming they have reported it to law enforcement and are working with them. MPD was contacted by Asante in early December regarding the suspected employee, who is still unnamed.
A representative from Asante would not confirm whether it conducts drug testing on nurses, including random drug testing during employment.
Research has shown that substance abuse increased among nurses during the high-stress years of the pandemic, according to the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.
From January to December of last year, the Oregon State Board of Nursing disciplined at least 24 nurses for substance use or stealing drugs across the state.
Asante had reported some of these infections in early 2023. The latest publicly available data from the Oregon Health Authority shows healthcare-associated infections only through 2021.
The number of central line-associated bloodstream infections, or CLABSIs, at Asante Rogue Regional were far lower than the standard from 2016 to 2021, except for a small spike in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. CLABSIs are caused when germs enter the bloodstream through a tube placed into a patient’s large vein to draw blood and give fluids and medications.
In 2021, the hospital reported just three infections, compared to a predicted 9.75 infections.
But, those numbers began to spike near the end of 2022. According to an internal report from Asante, the hospital saw 10 CLABSIs in the last four months of 2022, and another four in January and February of 2023. Most of those infections came from the intensive care unit.
The hospital addressed water quality rumors in April of 2023, confirming there was no known water contamination at the facility. After discovering this spike in infections, the hospital reported it had reduced the number of CLABSI cases by that spring.
Asante would not provide information on additional CLABSI infections in 2022 and 2023.
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