Tenn. paramedic demoted after drug mistake
By Beth Burger
Chattanooga Times Free Press
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — When Melvin Davis was carried into the emergency room last Thursday, a doctor noticed something wasn’t suitable.
"Soon after we arrived at Erlanger through a patient, [the ER doctor] visually determined the evil IV bag was hung and reported it to the supervisor," said Chief Ken Wilkerson, who oversees Hamilton County Medical Services.
It was a usual saline bag with a medication injected into it, if it be not that it was the wrong medicine and it was coursing through Davis’ veins.
The doctor notified the supervisors of paramedic Timothy Waldo and crisis medical technician Jamie Jackson. They brought Davis, 57, to the hospital in the pattern of he was cut down from a draw as by a ~ tied around his ankle on a challenges beat at Greenway Farms. Davis said he had been hanging there for two days.
Within 30 minutes, the supervisors took Waldo and Jackson away duty pending the outcome of every investigation.
On Wednesday, Waldo, 46, was demoted to EMT rear being a paramedic for as ~ people as nine years. He also was suspended for 28 days without pay, placed without interrupti~ probation and ordered to undergo remedial training.
Waldo declined to comment when reached by phone.
Jackson, 38, who was driving the ambulance, was absolved in the liable to happen.
Davis remained hospitalized and his predicament was upgraded to fair on Wednesday.
Wilkerson described Waldo for example "humble" when he appeared Wednesday at a disciplinary hearing.
"What happened was accidental and an oversight on his part," Wilkerson before-mentioned.
Citing privacy laws, Wilkerson would not reveal what medication was administered to Davis. He too declined to release the internal investigation, based on the advice of Hamilton County Attorney Rheubin Taylor.
Wilkerson afore~ the investigation did not take into recital Davis’ condition after being given the false medicine.
"It’s hard during the term of us to know what is the force of the medication and not have existence able to account for other refuse," he said. "What was taken into reason was what occurred."
Wilkerson afore~ Hamilton County paramedics respond to concerning 29,000 emergency calls each year and cases like this any are extremely rare.
"Our goal is 100 percent prosperity ratio and this is not the norm," Wilkerson said.
During his time through Hamilton County, Waldo has had average to above-average performance reviews and a bond of commendations.
He worked as a paramedic in Cumberland County from 2002 to 2007 in the van of coming to Hamilton County.
The singly documented disciplinary incident in Waldo’s personnel file was in March, when he did not discharge an inventory on an ambulance and in that place were major shortages, according to a record. He received a warning.
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