On July 16, 2024, an indictment was issued against a licensed practical nurse (LPN) in Ohio. The LPN is accused of stealing prescription narcotic pain medications from three nursing homes. The charges include five counts of drug theft and one count of illegal possession of drug documents, all of which are felony charges. The LPN is scheduled to appear for arraignment in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court on July 30.
According to the indictment, the LPN took tramadol and oxycodone between October 11 and October 15, 2021, from a nursing home in Vandalia. Additionally, she took oxycodone on January 26, 2022, from a nursing home in Miamisburg. Furthermore, the LPN is accused of taking oxycodone and hydrocodone between August 21 and October 15, 2022, from a nursing home in Dayton.
Online records indicate that the Ohio Board of Nursing suspended her license on September 14, 2023, for a minimum of two years. Notably, she had no prior disciplinary actions.
Compliance Perspective
Issue
According to estimates, approximately 10–15 percent of the population in our nation faces challenges related to alcohol or drug dependency. Nurses, as part of this statistic, stand out because they have access to drugs within the workplace. Given that approximately one in ten nurses may experience substance use disorders, it is crucial for healthcare facilities to establish proactive diversion-prevention programs. The consequences of failure to do this include a negative impact on residents’ quality of care, legal and ethical concerns, and potential for high scope and severity citations once a diversion problem is uncovered. Nurses who divert medications have developed a number of ways to conceal diversion. Efforts must identify the types of medications most likely to be taken, signs that diversion has taken place, and signs of impairment.
Discussion Points
- Review your policies and procedures on preventing, identifying, and responding to drug diversion. Update as needed.
- Train appropriate staff on actions that can be taken to prevent, identify, and respond to any suspicion of drug diversion. Provide education on the impact of drug diversion on residents as a form of abuse and neglect, staff responsibility to report concerns immediately, and the consequences of theft of controlled substances. Document that the trainings occurred, and place the signed document in each employee’s education file. Med-Net Academy offers all clients three PowerPoint training programs in our Substance Use category. Visit MNA to access all three. Additionally, in the Fraud, Waste, and Abuse Category of MNA, a program titled Drug Diversion: What Every Facility Needs to Know is available for viewing by all clients.
- Periodically audit to ensure that all controlled substances are accounted for on each shift, and that proper documentation of controlled substances has occurred. Your consultant pharmacist can be included in this effort.
*This news alert has been prepared by Med-Net Concepts, LLC for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal advice.*
