Vancouver nurse loses licence for dispensing 'incredible amount' of opioid painkillers
Leila Reshid was fired from Vancouver Coastal Health in 2015
A Vancouver nurse has lost her licence after it was revealed she'd been dispensing "an incredible amount" of opioid pain medication to people who weren't her patients.
Leila Reshid regularly withdrew hydromorphone from Vancouver General Hospital between November 2013 and December 2014, according to an audit by the College of Registered Nurses of B.C. (CRNBC).
Hydromorphone, also known as Dilaudid or Exalgo, is a narcotic painkiller that relieves moderate to severe discomfort. Misuse can lead to addiction and, in serious cases, death.
In December 2014, one of Reshid's colleagues told Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) that they'd noticed a suspicious pattern in Reshid's behaviour. The authority launched an investigation and Reshid was fired the next month.
VCH forwarded the findings from its investigation to the CRNBC and filed a formal complaint.
An audit by the college confirmed the authority's findings. Her nurse's registration was cancelled on Nov. 28.
'Unacceptable practice'
The CRNBC's investigation found that Reshid dispensed hydromorphone for patients that weren't hers, withdrew medication for more than one patient at a time, took out two doses at once and improperly stored the medication.
In a three-month peroiod, the nurse dispensed 1,546 vials of hydromorphone prescribed to patients.
By contrast, the next-highest number of withdrawals during that time frame was only 56 vials — 96 per cent less.
Cynthia Johansen, CEO of the CRNBC, called it an "incredible amount" of drugs.
"It's highly unusual and therefore very concerning," she told CBC News. "It's unacceptable practice. It's unsafe and it's not appropriate behaviour."
Johansen said the college wasn't able to confirm what Reshid did with the medication. As far as Johansen knows, none of the misallocated doses were administered to patients.
VCH looking to improve narcotic-storage system
Gavin Wilson, a spokesman for VCH, said the authority does have safeguards in place to prevent the theft of narcotics. The medications are kept in automated dispensing machines on the nursing units, and only authorized staff have access. Staff are required to keep detailed records.
Wilson said the medication is also kept in vaults and locked cabinets, and security cameras are trained on the storage units.
However, he said, thefts can happen.
"Despite all of our safeguards, if there's a determined individual who has legitimate access to narcotics but disregards professional and ethical standards ... they can still find ways to circumvent the system," Wilson said.
"We're always taking steps to improve the storage, distribution, and control of narcotics to try and prevent that from occurring."
Reinstatement 'a high mark to meet'
The CRNBC said Reshid had "no reasonable explanation" for her actions and agreed to give up her licence.
She'll be able to apply for reinstatement in five years, but Johansen had little confidence that the former nurse will get her licence back.
"One of the key considerations that our college would look to [for approval] is demonstration of good behaviour," Johansen explained. "I think that will be a high mark for her to meet, given this history."