In Light of Criminal Charges Against a Nurse, How to Reduce Risk

The exodus of medical professionals may intensify after the criminal conviction of a former nurse for reckless homicide and criminal neglect of an impaired adult patient.¹

The nurse, who was sentenced to three years of probation, admitted to the mistake, was fired and lost her nursing license. But the institution did not report the medical error to regulators and only became known because of an anonymous tip. However, only the nurse was punished with criminal charges.

The verdict sent shockwaves through the nursing community and raised questions about how such rulings could possibly improve — or more likely, degrade — healthcare in the U.S.² For nurses and physicians, the jury’s ruling was just another reason to leave their jobs, if not their professions entirely.

And for hospitals and health systems, the conviction is a “wake-up call” to improve transparency and reduce medical errors.³

When checks and balances aren’t checked or balanced

Human failures happen in healthcare, often when medical professionals — usually under extreme time or performance pressure — circumvent standard safety checks and balances. That makes it no surprise medical errors increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, with 1,197 serious safety incidents reported to The Joint Commission in 2021 and 809 in 2020.²

Generally, medical malpractice occurs when medical errors cause patient harm. It constitutes a violation of safety protocols but is normally a failing of physicians and institution. Nurses are almost never accused of malpractice — and doing so can create conditions for additional errors.

This can be shown in the conviction of the nurse: She overrode protection codes on an electronic medication dispenser, but the hospital lacked a policy on such action. There was no requirement for a second signoff on the use of dangerous medications nor were there guidelines requiring patients undergoing sedation to be connected to a heart-lung monitor.

Because of the fear of job loss and the risk of criminal charges for a mistake, staff at health systems may be less likely to report incidents, and administrators won’t know what processes need remediation.

A call to action on risk management

The indictment and conviction have sent a chill through the nursing profession. Healthcare institutions must improve their risk management efforts and reduce medical errors.

Doing so will help nurses feel more comfortable at the workplace — and reduce the likelihood of them leaving nursing altogether.

HUB International’s healthcare experts are ready to help your organization respond to the opportunities and risks in a constantly changing healthcare environment.

¹ NPR, “Tennessee nurse convicted in lethal drug error sentenced to three years probation,” May 13, 2022.
² Becker’s Hospital Review, “‘We can’t punish our way to safer medical practices’: 2 experts on criminalization of medical errors,” March 1, 2022.
³ Fierce Healthcare, “RaDonda Vaught conviction should be 'wake-up call' for health systems on transparency, harm prevention efforts,” April 4, 2022.