Inmate Dies From Poor Medical Care
July 20, 2001
A recent investigation into the death of Orange County inmate Karen Johnson found several jailhouse nurses accountable for her death. Johnson died from withdrawal after going without the medication prescribed to help her break an addiction to pain killers. While Johnson was being booked into jail on May 23 for violating a home-confinement sentence, she lost consciousness. Officials took her to Sand Lake Hospital for treatment. Doctors considered her suicidal and continued to treat her with methadone, a drug used to break addicts of their habit.
Johnson was transferred to the Orange County Jail on May 30 with orders from her doctor to continue methadone treatment. However, Orange County policy does not allow county employees to administer methadone.
The investigation found that a nurse failed to notify the jail's physicians that Johnson was supposed to receive a daily dose of methadone. The report cited this registered nurse for failing to follow appropriate procedures and cited a second nurse who co-signed Johnson's admission orders.
After Karen Johnson suffered through 10 hours of constant vomiting, diarrhea and pain, a third nurse evaluated her condition. The evaluation was based on several factors including the severity and frequency of vomiting. Any evaluation assigned a rating over 10 requires immediate referral to a doctor. Johnson's numerical rating was a 15 but no further medical attention was sought.
Johnson was sent back to her cell. Approximately two hours later, she suffered a seizure, stopped breathing, and went into a coma. Johnson died five days later at a local hospital after being removed from life support. A medical examiner attributes Johnson's death to abrupt withdrawal from methadone.
-- Article Courtesy of InjuryBoard.com
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