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A licensed practical nurse at Edison Manor is facing charges for allegedly overdosing at the local nursing home where she was employed.
New Castle police following a nine-month investigation allege in a criminal complaint filed Jan. 16 that Kathryn A. Jones, 52, of 715 Cunningham Ave., unlawfully and fraudulently obtained possession of multiple narcotics that had been prescribed to residents at the nursing home.
Police allege in the complaint that Jones was in charge of dispensing medications on the 3 to 11 p.m. shift, and that she became ill from an alleged overdose on April 4 last year while on duty. The police were called to UPMC Jameson Hospital on April 6 by a hospital security officer.
The security officer told police that Jones was taken to the hospital by ambulance for treatment of an overdose that had occurred at Edison Manor. He said that when she was transferred from the emergency room to the critical care unit, the hospital staff found several pill bottles in Jones’ belongings. Two of the bottles contained pills, according to the complaint. One bottle in Jones’ name contained 78 pills of various kinds, along with five half-pills, the report states.
Nursing home officials informed the police that they conducted an in-house investigation the night of the incident, which included interviews with staff and a complete count of the medication cart that Jones had been using. Nursing home officials also informed the police that the staff found discrepancies in the charting of some of the residents, who reported that they had not received their pain medications and some said it was not the first time, according to the complaint.
The nursing director advised police that Jones had signed out medications prior to the time they were scheduled to be given, and that some of them diverted by Jones were signed out at 11 p.m. when Jones already was in the hospital emergency room. The report states that Emergency Medical Services staff on the ambulance had treated Jones with Narcan.
Officers learned that when she was discharged from the hospital, Jones immediately went to a drug rehabilitation facility.
According to laboratory results, the pills confiscated from Jones included the narcotics Lorazepam, oxycodone, hydrocodone, methadone, alprazolam, and Clonazepam, the report states.
Jones was arrested Tuesday and charged with acquisition or obtaining possession of controlled substances by misrepresenting the labels, possession and possession with intent to deliver controlled substances, theft and recklessly endangering another person.
She was arraigned by District Judge Melissa A. Amodie, who released her on a nonmonetary bond, pending a Jan. 30 preliminary hearing in Central Court.