Police are investigating at least one patient death at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford, Ore., according to reports from the Rogue Valley Times and NBC affiliate KOBI-TV.
Medford police confirmed they have launched an investigation after authorities were contacted about a patient's death at the hospital, according to a Dec. 31 report from the Rogue Valley Times.
Multiple sources who work at the hospital allege that the incident is tied to a nurse who had been taking fentanyl from IV bags and replacing it with unsterile tap water. According to reports from the Rogue Valley Times and KOBI-TV, "multiple sources" at the hospital who declined to be identified say the nurse's actions led to severe infections caused by pseudomonas that they say are behind multiple patient deaths.
Officials at Asante Rogue Regional confirmed to the Rogue Valley Times that police are investigating one death. Becker's reached out to the hospital regarding the allegations; the hospital provided the following statement sent to multiple news outlets and declined to comment further:
"We were distressed to learn of this issue. We reported it to law enforcement and are working closely with them," a spokesperson said in the Dec. 31 statement.
In a statement to the Rogue Valley Times, Lt. Geoff Kirkpatrick with the Medford Police Department said the investigation is in its "very preliminary stages and we have no further information we can release."
Families of two patients who died at the hospital over the past year told the Rogue Valley Times they were recently notified by Asante officials that the deaths of their family members were caused by infections after their pain medication was tampered with.
Becker's has reached out to the police department and will update the report if more information becomes available.