Nurse accuses medical facility staff of stealing medication

A nurse at a California medical center claimed in a lawsuit filed on May 27 that her employers forced her to quit her job after she made complaints regarding the poor care provided to patients and for medication that would go missing. The lawsuit claimed that several other nurses were stealing controlled substances in order to send them to the Philippines.

In the complaint, the nurse stated that she was employed by the hospital in November 2011 and left in May 2013. She made her first complaint in January 2012 after a patient’s blood-sugar levels spiked. However, she alleges that the hospital’s nursing unit manager appeared to be unconcerned and no actions were taken. She made a second complaint four months later after she found controlled substances in the nursing station. The complaints were allegedly not investigated.

Nurses who were reportedly involved allegedly retaliated by making false claims against the plaintiff, stating that she was providing poor patient care. Eventually, the plaintiff’s supervisors also allegedly targeted her for retaliation by giving her poor performance reviews. She ultimately went to an accrediting organization with her claims. After receiving a number of threats, she finally left the hospital.

An employee who is fired after bringing the attention of wrongdoing to an employer or to a regulatory body may potentially have the grounds to file a wrongful termination case. Retaliation against reporting illegal activity of an employer is prohibited by a variety of statutes. An employment law attorney might investigate a terminated client’s complaints in order to determine whether a cause of action exists.

Source: Glendora Patch, “Nurse Claims Colleagues Stole Medicine, Sold in Philippines“, Mirna Alfonso, June 2, 2015