DETROIT – Officials said a former registered nurse at a Detroit hospital extracted painkillers from vials and syringes and filled them with a different liquid.
Mary Cheatham, 42, of Ypsilanti, is a registered nurse who used to work in the critical care unit at a hospital in Detroit, according to authorities.
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Between March 2020 and August 2020, Cheatham would remove vials and syringes of injectable hydromorphone from medication dispensing machines at the hospital, officials said.
She used syringes to extract the hydromorphone, according to court records. Then, she would refill the vials and syringes with another liquid before returning them to the medication dispensing machines, according to authorities.
“Cheatham knew the vials and syringes of hydromorphone were intended to be administered to patients for the purpose of pain relief in the critical care unit of the hospital,” federal officials said in a release.
Cheatham pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product. She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
“Patients entering a hospital must have confidence they will receive the treatment they are promised,” United States Attorney Dawn Ison said. “Cheatham violated that trust and potentially exposed patients to unnecessary pain and suffering and must be held accountable for her actions.”
She is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 18, 2023.