Montana Drug Task Force Makes Arrests in Theft and Sale of Nursing Home Medications
A former employee of an assisted living facility was recently charged with felony drug distribution, drug possession, exploitation of an older person, fraudulently obtaining dangerous drugs, and misdemeanor theft.
The sister-in-law of the former employee was charged with four counts of felony drug possession with the intent to distribute, felony use or possession of property subject to forfeiture, and two counts of misdemeanor drug possession. A warrant was issued for the brother/husband for child endangerment, possession of property subject to forfeiture, two counts of drug distribution, two counts of drug possession with the intent to distribute, and two counts of misdemeanor drug possession. The couple’s two minor children later tested positive for exposure to opiates, morphine, heroin, and methamphetamine.
The facility’s manager reported that two fentanyl patches had been taken, but the date of the theft was unknown. The packages had been carefully opened and placed so that they appeared to be intact to the casual observer.
The facility’s medication logs indicated that the former employee could have been tampering with the entries for several months. An elderly non-communicative and incapacitated resident of the facility for whom the fentanyl patches were ordered is believed to have been suffering for some time due to the thefts.
When the county’s Drug Task Force was notified, it was learned that two fentanyl patches having the same lot number as the ones reported missing from the facility had been recovered during a search of a home on June 3. The residents of the home were the brother of the former employee at the nursing home, his wife, and a two-year-old child.
According to an affidavit, when the police searched the suspects’ home, they found 25 illegal items, including four guns, ammunition, heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana, hash oil, suboxone, drug paraphernalia, cash, and the two missing fentanyl patches.
Compliance Perspective
Failure to protect residents from the misappropriation of controlled medications, and the suffering and potential harm experienced by residents due to not receiving needed medications, may be considered provision of sub-standard quality of care, in violation of state and federal regulations.
Discussion Points:
- Review policies and procedures covering the protocols needed to ensure safe storage of controlled substances and the process for tracking dispensed medications to prevent misappropriation and medication errors.
- Train staff to carefully follow protocols for safe storage and reconciliation of controlled medications and reporting of suspected incidents or misappropriation to their supervisor or through the Hotline.
- Periodically audit medication logs to determine if there are discrepancies. Interview residents who can communicate to determine if their medications are controlling their pain levels.
