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41 Comments
- thoughtsonthis, on 07/11/2009, -1/+31A painkiller-addicted technician who had the disease is alleged to have passed it on to patients with dirty syringes. We have enough on our minds on the way to the hospital, without thinking something else will happen after a visit.
- tgc1, on 07/13/2009, -0/+23Syringes are single use man. SINGLE USE! It says right on the ***** package.
- ricodued, on 07/12/2009, -0/+14"I mean seriously throw your needles away when done using them people ... No im just kidding"
... What? You ought to be serious. - Wingin, on 07/12/2009, -0/+13This is quite bizarre. I wonder if the protocols in that hospital are widespread. When I've been injected, I've seen the syringe and needle being taken from unopened packets.
- yourmartdotnet, on 07/12/2009, -1/+11 No way this would happen in most hospitals. Most anesthesiologists are smart enough to know when fentanyl has been switched with normal saline. There are quite a few physiological changes associated with fentanyl in combination with other anesthesia/pain control medications. This is just another example of a sloppy outpatient surgery center out to make a quick buck without regard for patient safety. Hospitals are regulated by several different govt and professional organizations the majority of OUTPATIENT SURGERY CENTERS are not.
- fragMasterFlash, on 07/12/2009, -0/+10A liver transplant for a Hep C patient is about $250,000. This biatch may singlehandedly bankrupt the health care provider she worked for.
- LtD4n, on 07/13/2009, -0/+9My friend who underwent HOURS of cancer treatment surgeries is affected by this. She went through some really rough and emotional times.... now she gets to worry about this. Throw the book at this ***** bitch, please.
- twiztidsinz, on 07/12/2009, -0/+9I think this is limited to operations, where all the tools are prepped before hand and wheeled in on carts.
- steelreserve211, on 07/12/2009, -0/+8Must be Dr. Nick's wife.
- Xshadowmage666X, on 07/12/2009, -3/+9Woke up thhis morning and read this story first thing. Shocking to say the least! I mean seriously throw your needles away when done using them people, jeez its as simple as capping them and tossing them. No im just kidding this is horrible. I wonder how many people could possibly be infected. What kind of sick individual saves thier dirty needles knowing that they have hepatitis for any reason anyways?
- Suzuka09, on 07/13/2009, -0/+6Removing a BB from an ear is routine surgery?
- AtWorkSurfer, on 07/13/2009, -0/+6I disagree. I'm not an anesthesiologist or anesthetist but I am a surgeon and usually, if a patient doesn't seem to respond to an injected opioid or benzodiazepine, the anesthesiologist assumes that the patient just has a high tolerance as a result of chronic opioid or benzo abuse, because, let's face it, that's a much more likely scenario than the scrub nurse swapping out syringes. Not too infrequently, I'll come in to the OR and the anesthetist will inform me that "your patient must do a ***** of Xanax because we gave her 4mg of Versed and she barely blinked".
- invinciblenow, on 07/13/2009, -0/+5She deserves life in prison. Period.
- rawnzilla, on 07/13/2009, -0/+5What a ***** scumbag.
- phil1jones, on 07/13/2009, -1/+6In general, I avoid interacting with people who draw their eyebrows on with a marker.
- Morsetlis, on 07/13/2009, -0/+3In all the labs I've worked in, they recommend against recapping needles and just tossing them into a biohazard sharps container instead.
- LightPhoenix, on 07/13/2009, -1/+4I'm a little confused as to how it wasn't noticed the syringes were used. Usually needles and syringes are packaged and sterilized in package, and once opened can't be closed again. Why didn't someone notice that the packages had been opened? Or, barring that, why aren't they using disposable needles/syringes? It's not like they're terribly expensive... and certainly less expensive than a possible lawsuit.
- Nudar, on 07/13/2009, -0/+2One doctor may place or remove a dozen or more ear tubes per day. It's the exact same surgery except without the ear tubes.
- immatellyouwhat, on 07/13/2009, -0/+2Reminds me of that South Park Episode when they injected Cartman with AIDS...
"Are you sure?"
"I'm not just sure, I'm HIV Positive." - inactive, on 07/13/2009, -1/+3I guess they just meant it wasn't going to be a "big deal" type of surgery.
- nedy78, on 07/13/2009, -0/+2Same thing happened at Boulder Community Hospital a few months earlier, a respected hospital. Nurses have the ability to handle these narcotics and with the exception of anesthesiologists they are the only individuals administering drugs. The way this nurse was caught was the anesthesiologists noticed the increased heart rate, blood pressure etc. and patients discomfort post surgery. Eventually they pinpointed this individual and he was sentenced to seven years in prison, granted he tested negative for any transferable diseases. Point is it happens at hospitals that have strict regulatory boards. I agree with your comment about most out patient surgery centers.
www.dailycamera.com/.../victim-boulder-nurse-used-dirty-needles-steal-pain/ - cheekdog, on 07/13/2009, -0/+2doesn't this also mean that patients didn't receive meds they were supposed to receive, or received a smaller dosage than what they were supposed to be getting?
- Nudar, on 07/13/2009, -0/+2I'm an anesthesiologist, and I agree.
- Tobey, on 07/13/2009, -2/+4comcast.net? Really? Get back to us when you change your home page...
- Nudar, on 07/13/2009, -0/+2The syringes were already full when switched out. How are you supposed to notice a full used syringe versus a full new syringe without looking at the needle under a microscope?
- MrSparkle666, on 07/13/2009, -0/+2They look real to me. I had a girlfriend once who obsessively plucked her eyebrows into perfect thin little lines exactly like that. Coincidentally, she was a painkiller addict too.
I think the reason her hair is lighter than her eyebrows is because of all of the artificial highlights, not because here eyebrows were drawn on with a marker. - Wingin, on 07/13/2009, -0/+2That makes sense, thank you.
It's SCARY though! - twiztidsinz, on 07/12/2009, -3/+4I'm all for reforming the "justice" system that currently breeds better criminals in favor of helping / rehabilitating them rather than punishing them harsher, but this bitch should be locked up for life.
- boozinf, on 07/13/2009, -0/+1How much heroin or oxycontin would you have to do to get to the point where fentanyl has absolutely no effect? That seems barely conceivable.
- Wingin, on 07/13/2009, -0/+1It seems so, judging by the replies to yourmartdotnet further up the page.
- yourmartdotnet, on 07/17/2009, -0/+1I work for 20+ anesthesiologists I think 100% would spot the trend and ask questions. They might not know the exact situation but if happened more than once they would have me asking questions about the fentanyl itself and investigating further if they didn't like the answer.
- OMnicient, on 07/13/2009, -0/+1I figure it was probably a real unforgettable bummer for the undermedicated surgery patients. Waking up during an operation can be a real drag.
But why didn't they just use a strong magnet to pull the BB out instead? - yourmartdotnet, on 07/16/2009, -0/+1I can see your point, but if it's happening on a regular basis regardless of acuities, age, gender etc. your anesthesia practitioners should have had a clue. Vitals signs, BIS monitoring, or experience should have given someone a clue in this case.
- shiva14b, on 07/13/2009, -1/+26 hours? She needs a painkiller to combat the stresses of being on her feet for 6 HOURS and back pain from lifting patients? ***** YOU, I had a 12-hour shift when I worked at a goddamn BLOCKBUSTER. Standing with a cane. Because my right leg is crippled from advanced sciatica.
***** YOU you lazy bitch. - cheekdog, on 07/13/2009, -1/+1buried for lame taim.
- melivorous, on 07/13/2009, -0/+0no...way..it could happen??
ha!
its something so simple its inconceivable that it couldnt happen.
and an anesthesiologist may know what it looks like AFTER its administered but how could they tell beforehand?
you really think that they are so careful?
some hospitals are so busy that they just try to move on to the next case as soon as possible.
if its not hepatitis its heparin, or potassium poisoning, or look alike sound alike medications, or wrong operation sites, or just some other random blunder!
if you work in a hospital you hear about it all the time in other hospitals or other departments even.
its scary - melivorous, on 07/13/2009, -0/+0also, what if its a narcotic pharmacy drew out?
then theres more people involved.
it could have happened any number of ways, and theres no way to prepare for it - Morsetlis, on 07/13/2009, -2/+1Blah blah blah.
- inactive, on 07/13/2009, -2/+1|
- alamedaman, on 07/13/2009, -8/+2yeah ***** that I'm not click on a comcast link.
- Taim, on 07/13/2009, -9/+2Buried for lame browser support page (I run FF 3.5):
"We have detected that the browser you are using is not fully supported by the Comcast.net web site. You can view this site using your current browser but it may not display properly, and you may not be able to fully use all features.
Comcast.net is best viewed using the following browsers:
* Internet Explorer 6 and Internet Explorer 7
* Firefox 3
* Safari 3.2"
Then it's kind enough to dump you at "comcast.net," NOT the page you wanted in the first place.



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