Jack Yesner Week 20- Nurse on Trial for Deadly Malpractice
On December 24, 2017, 75 year-old grandmother Charlene Murphey was admitted into the prestigious Vanderbilt University Medical Center with a case of subdural hematoma (bleeding of the brain). Murphey stayed at the hospital for two nights and her condition quickly improved. On December 26, Murphey was prepared by nurse RaDonda Vaught to receive a bodily scan shortly before she was to be discharged, a major part of which being the injection of the sedative Versed. In that particular hospital, all medicines are dispensed from an electronic medicinal cabinet. Vaught typed in the letters “VE” into the cabinet search database, thinking that those letters were all that were needed to find Versed in the system. However, unknown to Vaught, the medicine was actually listed under its generic name, Midazolam, and when Vaught overrode the system to produce a larger variety of medications, a practice Vanderbilt Medical Center nurses claim is a necessity in daily operations, the medicine cabinet dispensed the medication Vecuronium instead. Unlike Versed, which is largely safe when taken by itself, Vecuronium is a deadly paralytic medication. Murphey was pronounced brain dead almost instantly after being injected with the Vecuronium, and died surrounded by family just hours later.
Although Vaught was fired from Vanderbilt Medical Center in early 2018 and her nursing license was later revoked, the hospital initially determined that no disciplinary action was warranted. This decision was reversed, however, in February 2019, when the case went public and Vaught was identified. She was charged by prosecutors with reckless homicide and felony abuse of an impaired adult and could face up to twelve years in prison. The state prosecutors alleged that Vaught bypassed multiple warnings and labels indicating the dangers of Vecuronium and administered the medication despite the risks. The trial was initially scheduled to commence on July, 13, 2020, however due to delays as a result of COVID, the trial instead commenced on March 21, 2022.
Whether or not Vaught is found guilty in this trial is less important to nurses nationwide than the sheer fact that she was brought to trial in the first place. This trial sets the precedent that all nurses and medical professionals that make a mistake in their jobs can face serious legal repercussions for their actions, even if it may not entirely be their fault. Many nurses work long, grueling hours, especially in the past two years due to COVID, and may be prone to making some mistakes. The possibility of imprisonment may unfortunately cause some nurses great distress, and it is not unlikely that many may choose to leave the profession, even as there is a critical shortage of nurses in the United States.
Do you think Vaught should be found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt? If you were a nurse, would you be frightened at the prospect of being jailed for a mistake?
I would be terrified if I was a nurse. Personally, I never wanted to pursue medical school because I would not want the responsibility of saving or losing someones life. I could not say if she is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, but I could easily see how easy it would be to make a small mistake like that and have lethal results.
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