A nurse has been sentenced to one year in prison for tampering with injectable fentanyl while working at a hospital in Jacksonville, Fla., the U.S. Justice Department said July 20.
An investigation determined that Monique Elizabeth Carter, 36, checked out fentanyl doses for patients and then canceled them before returning them to the hospital's pharmacy 24 times between Aug. 29 and Sept. 28, 2021. After being interviewed by hospital and pharmacy leadership, Ms. Carter admitted to removing fentanyl from syringes for her own use at home and replacing the drug with saline solution.
Ms. Carter no longer works at the hospital, and Florida's nursing board revoked her license June 21.
In April, Ms. Carter pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product. After her prison sentence, she will serve one year of home detention as part of a two-year supervised release. During this time, she will be banned from working in a position with access to prescribed medications.