Monthly Archives: November 2011

Nurse’s Aide Charged with Murder of Elderly Woman in her Care

Posted on November 30, 2011 by McGowan, Hood & Felder, LLC

Police charged a nurse’s aide with the murder of an 82-year-old patient entrusted to her care, the Post and Courier recently reported. Nurses discovered the Rock Hill woman unconscious in the shower, and she was pronounced dead shortly thereafter. At first, it seemed like a tragic slip and fall in the shower until investigators discovered something more sinister. Police uncovered forged checks written to nurse’s aide Braquette Walton, 30, in the amount of $1,200 cash. Police charged Walton with forgery and murder, and she is being held without bail. Nursing homes must always perform background checks in order to ensure the people entrusted with elderly care do not have criminal backgrounds. The facility’s spokesperson reported they performed a background check on Walton; she received good reports from her past employers but had one criminal charge of driving under suspicion. Nursing home abuse and neglect cases are especially horrific as perpetrators…
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Lack of Quality Control Causing Major Headaches for Drug Company

Posted on November 29, 2011 by McGowan, Hood & Felder, LLC

Johnson & Johnson subsidiary McNeil Consumer Healthcare is under fire from the Federal Drug Administration for its continued lack of quality control in its plants that may have resulted in its recent rash of defective drug recalls. The company has recalled certain bottles of Motrin, Tylenol Arthritis Pain Caplets, Children’s Benadryl, Tylenol Infants’ Drops and Children’s Zyrtec. Consumers complained that many of these products had “musty smells” after opening. It was reported that the McNeil manufacturing plant had a large gap in the ceiling and had dirt and dust throughout. Earlier this year, the U.S. Justice Department was issued a federal-court approved consent decree to permanently enjoin McNeil’s manufacturing plant in Fort Washington, PA. The company agreed to have the FDA perform extensive inspections of its other plants in Las Piedras and Lancaster, PA. The temporarily shut down may have cost the company over $900 million in lost sales. Even…
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Pain Patch in Hot Water After Tragic Marine Death

Posted on November 28, 2011 by McGowan, Hood & Felder, LLC

Recently an investigation into the death of Lance Cpl. Ezequiel Freire revealed that the marine died due to a drug overdose of the pain medication fentanyl, which he was taking via skin patch sold under the trade name Duragesic. The 20-year-old marine being treated for Hodgkin’s lymphoma at Portsmouth Naval Medical Center had been prescribed fentanyl for pain management. Tragically, an innocent hot shower after application of the patch may have triggered the overdose, which led to respiratory failure and death. While warnings about heat-related complications have been on the patch since 2008, some may question if this is sufficient notice to patients. Many people suffering with chronic pain find that taking a hot shower helps to ease their discomfort. However, heat from hot showers or sunbathing will dilate blood vessels and potentially result in the skin absorbing toxic levels of the drug. This is not the first time the…
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