allnurses, LLC, 175 Pearl St Ste 355, Brooklyn NY 11201 When the cabinet did not produce Versed, Vaught triggered an override that unlocked a much larger swath of medications, then searched for "VE" again. But Vaughts case is different: This week she goes on trial in Nashville on criminal charges of reckless homicide and felony abuse of an impaired adult for the killing of Charlene Murphey, a 75-year-old patient who died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center on Dec. 27, 2017. Vaught, 37, of Bethpage, is accused of inadvertently killing Charlene Murphey, 75, of Gallatin, with a drug mix-up in 2017. Silver Spring, MD - Former Vanderbilt University Medical Center nurse RaDonda Vaught is being charged with reckless homicide and abuse of an impaired . The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. There wont ever be a day that goes by that I dont think about what I did.. Murpheys care alone required at least 20 cabinet overrides in just three days, Vaught said. Charlene Murphey was discovered about 30 minutes later by a transporter who noticed she wasn't breathing. Do what you do. I am currently a nurse writer with a background in Staff Development, Telemetry and ICU. Vaught was also charged and ultimately found guilty of gross neglect of an impaired adult and negligent homicide. Updated 11:50 p.m. I don't need a policy to tell me to monitor a patient after giving what I thought was a sedative. When I first heard of this case, I felt that the criminal charges were an overreaction to an unfortunate mistake, but failed to understand why RV's license hadn't been pulled. Every year there are approximately 400,000 medication errors involving hospitalized patients. The hospital also did not document the medication mix-up in Murpheys medical records and falsely told the medical examiner Murphey died a natural death from a brain injury. NO and any of you who have been here for awhile know exactly why I feel that way. Instead, they found her guilty of the lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide. As the trial begins, Nashville prosecutors will argue that Vaught's error was anything but a common mistake any nurse could make. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) A former Tennessee nurse who was convicted of homicide last year after a medication error killed a patient argued Tuesday that the state Board of Nursing acted improperly when it revoked her license. Many opposed RaDonda Vaught being charged with a crime, including the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN), the Institute of Safe Medicine Practice (ISMP), and the American Nurses Association (ANA). Nurses around the country rallied for RaDonda Vaught during her criminal trial, saying the risk of going to prison for a mistake made nursing intolerable. Jury selection begins Monday in Radonda Vaught trial Vaught's lawyer, Peter Strianse, did not respond to requests for comment. Ex-Tennessee nurse RaDonda Vaught sentenced to probation in patient For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you. This time, the cabinet offered vecuronium. She doesn't demonstrate enough insight to be safe. Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development. Has 30 years experience. In a Just Culture, discipline is not meted out for human error. Vaught, 38, admitted her mistake at a Tennessee Board of Nursing hearing last year, saying she became complacent in her job and distracted by a trainee while operating the computerized medication cabinet. Its going to become us-versus-them when it has to be for the safety of the patient all for one and one for all, she said. Statements from the American Nurses Association, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, and the National Medical Association each said Vaught's conviction set a "dangerous precedent."Linda Aiken, a nursing and sociology professor at the University of Pennsylvania, said that although Vaught's case is an "outlier," it will make nurses less forthcoming about mistakes. But he also argued the error was made possible by flawed procedures at Vanderbilt, which permitted nurses to routinely override medication safeguards. But Vaught also questioned how her case would affect nurses who will make errors in the future. RaDonda Vaught seeks return of nursing license after homicide A 2019 investigation by The Tennessean found the hospital failed to properly document the death in at least four ways. the Tennessee Department of Health's Board of Nursing charged Vaught with three infractions: unprofessional conduct, abandoning or neglecting a patient who required care . This could be me. The hospital did not report the accidental death to the state government, which was required by law, or the Joint Commission, which is recommended but not required. Two years later: What surprised us most about Covid-19, 2 free members-only resources remaining this month, free members-only resources remaining this month, Unlimited access to research and resources, Member-only access to events and trainings, The latest content delivered to your inbox. Former nurse sentenced for dosing error seeks license return Former nurse sentenced for dosing error seeks license return. Finally, just before injecting the vecuronium, Vaught stuck a syringe into the vial, which would have required her to "look directly" at a bottle cap that read "Warning: Paralyzing Agent," the DA's documents state. Response to the Conviction of Nurse RaDonda Vaught | ANA When this story first broke, I was shocked by the charges and also by the lack of professional discipline. Should RaDonda Vaught Have Her Nursing License Reinstated? Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. Vaughts lawyer Peter Strianse argued on Tuesday that a 2018 letter from the Tennessee Department of Health stating her conduct did not merit further action was a final decision and therefore TDHs further investigation was improper. Part of its mission is to help fund legal defense for nurses who, like Vaught, may face jail time for a medical error. Vanderbilt did not have a policy about monitoring patients after administering Versed (midazolam), and they covered up the incident. You rely on Marketplace to break down the worlds events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. Vanderbilt University Medical Center declined to respond to Strianse'sallegations. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Dismiss. "It's really hard to be happy about something without immediately feeling guilty. She was sent to Radiology Services to administer VERSED (midazolam) to Charlene Murphey, a 75-year-old woman recovering from a brain injury and scheduled for a PET scan. RaDonda Vaught's trial has ended. This timeline of the case explains Nurses are the true heroes of healthcare. Vaughts lawyer Peter Strianse did not respond to the Posts request for comment. Nice to meet you! Vaught worked in critical care at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, and she awaits sentencing May 13. 14 Best Stethoscopes for Nurses (Plus 7 Best Accessories), Pediatric Nurse: Job Description, Salary, and How to Become One. allnurses is a Nursing Career & Support site for Nurses and Students. We are not going to stand for this.. "I know the reason this patient is no longer here is because of me," Vaught said, starting to cry. Strianse, Vaughts attorney, argued Thursday that overriding the cabinet safeguard was not as unusual as it may sound. Surely the point is that the "override" function is to be used along with the Five Rights and other medication administration safety checks. Notably, Vaught's case sparked an outcryfrom nurses and medical professionals around the nationmany of whom have expressed worries over the likelihood of making similar mistakes under increasingly demanding working conditions. "There won't ever be a day that goes by that I don't think about what I did.". In February, Vaught was charged with reckless homicide and impaired adult abuse. American Nurses Association Responds to the Trial of Nurse RaDonda Vaught. RaDonda Vaught was a registered nurse in the neurointensive care unit at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Vaught was initially cleared by the Tennessee Board of Nursing, but local prosecutors pressed charges. The fact we still have a functioning healthcare system in America is due in a large part to the selfless willingness of nurses to work in the face of overwhelming odds to provide care in difficult and dangerous environments. It was normal at the time, she said. And Gen Z is loving it. Has 30 years experience. All Rights Reserved. remaining this month. Maureen Shawn Kennedy, the editor-in-chief emerita of the American Journal of Nursing, wrote in 2019 that Vaught's case was "every nurse's nightmare.". Vaught was also charged and ultimately foundguiltyof gross neglect of an impaired adult and negligent homicide. She did not shirk responsibility for the error, but she said the blame was not hers alone. Vaught, 38, admitted her mistake at a Tennessee Board of Nursing hearing last year, saying she became "complacent" in her job and "distracted" by a trainee while operating the computerized . "You couldn't get a bag of fluids for a patient without using an override function.". RaDonda Vaught, a former Vanderbilt nurse criminally indicted for accidentally killing a patient with a medication error in 2017, was stripped of her license by the Tennessee Board of. Prosecutors do not allege in their court filings that Vaught intended to hurt Murphey or was impaired by any substance when she made the mistake, so her prosecution is a rare example of a health care worker facing years in prison for a medical error. The name RaDonda Vaught is now well known by nurses nationwide. Has 18 years experience. Vanderbilt University Medical Center is led by a physician with expertise in pharmacology and anesthesiology. She knew better and CHOSE to practice in an unsafe manner. This study guide will help you focus your time on what's most important. The case involved a fatal medication error that occurred on December 26, 2017, while Vaught worked as a registered nurse at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. RaDonda Vaught brings civil case against Board of Nursing (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File). And the second kind are the ones who know this could happen, any day, no matter how careful they are. Your updates are made successfully. 5,918 Posts. When the cabinet did not produce Versed, Vaught triggered an override that unlocked a much larger swath of medications, then searched for VE again. Frankly - the only "fault" on the part of the hospital system is that vec could be over-ridden in the pyxis. RaDonda Vaught enters the courtroom ahead of her sentencing in Nashville, Tenn., on Friday, May 13, 2022. Vaughts trial will be followed by nurses nationwide, many of whom worry a conviction may set a precedent even as the coronavirus pandemic leaves countless nurses exhausted, demoralized, and likely more prone to error. RaDonda Vaught: Who prosecuted ex-Tennessee nurse in criminal case Why nurses are raging and quitting after the RaDonda Vaught verdict - NPR A nurse's fatal mistake ends in a guilty verdict. Now, the nursing "We know that when nurses work longer shifts, there is more room for errors. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File), FILE - People demonstrate outside the courthouse where the sentencing hearing for former nurse RaDonda Vaught was held on May 13, 2022, in Nashville, Tenn. Vaught, a former Tennessee nurse who was convicted of homicide last year after a medication error killed a patient, argued Tuesday, May 9, 2023, that the state Board of Nursing acted improperly when it revoked her license. So I think nurses get very concerned because they know this could be them.". Vaught's trial will be watched by nurses nationwide, many of whom worry a conviction may set a precedent as the coronavirus pandemic leaves countless nurses exhausted, demoralized and likely more prone to error. In Vaughts case, she mistakenly gave 75-year-old patient Charlene Murphey a powerful paralytic injection rather than a sedative with a similar name. Rather than feeling satisfaction over the destruction of a single nurses career and life, the district attorney and Boards of Health and Nursing should instead focus their attention on actually addressing the systemic defects which caused this tragic event by holding the hospital leadership andboard of directors to account for their institutions failure to establish a culture of safety, and subsequently ensure that these individuals and VUMC put appropriate processes and safeguards in place to keep such egregious events as this from recurring. Strianse additionally argued that the Board of Nursing hearing where Vaughts license was revoked was unfair. Dana S. Kellis, M.D., Ph.D., is a physician and recently retired chief medical officer for a large health system in Florida, and hasserved in similar positions in others systems and states. Michael Cohen, president emeritus of the Institute for Safe Medication Practices, and Lorie Brown, past president of the American Association of Nurse Attorneys, each said it is common for nurses to use an override to obtain medication in a hospital. And don't let this defeat you, mentally," she said. Click here to see the discipline charges. Contributing system errors were minimized, and RaDonda Vaught became the scapegoat, while Vanderbilt escaped full notoriety. Best I can tell, professional discipline from the state board of nursing up to and including loss of her license is the most appropriate response to her error. Fatal errors are generally handled by licensing boards and civil courts. Vanderbilt employees were instructed in emails to use the override function to get medications quickly, she said. How was that Vanderbilt's fault? You have She also did not recognize that Versed is a liquid but vecuronium is a powder that must be mixed into liquid, documents state. Strianse implied that outside pressure, including the fact that the Nashville district attorney decided to prosecute Vaught, led to the reversal, rather than any new evidence against her. We highlight the stories of Black Floridians seeking emotional healing and wellness. Its probably the most dangerous medication out there.. She also joined fellow nurses in Ohio establishing a nonprofit calledNurse Guardians. allnurses, LLC, 175 Pearl St Ste 355, Brooklyn NY 11201 1-917 . Her actions were reckless and a conscious disregard to (her) duty as a nurse, he said. Vaught may lose her nursing license and faces the possibility of jail time. The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. In response to a story like this one, there are two kinds of nurses, Garner said. The RaDonda Vaught case is confusing. We know that the more patients a nurse has, the more room there is for errors, Kennedy said. No matches populated the screen under the patient's profile, so RaDonda used the ADC override function and again entered "ve," this time mistakenly selecting vecuronium. Davidson County Medical Examiner Dr. Feng Li said he had to correct Murpheys death certificate changing her manner of death from natural to accidental once the truth came out. She faced up to eight years in prison. In the pandemic, she said, this is truer than ever. You couldnt get a bag of fluids for a patient without using an override function.. No one is saying she did that intentionally. The (ISMP) felt strongly that revoking her license was a travesty and that the severity of the outcome wrongly influenced the decision. Ultimately, on May 13, Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Jennifer Smith sentenced Vaught to three years in prison, but granted her supervised probation, meaning Vaught will avoid prison time.

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