Drug errors unacceptable: N.L. minister

Newfoundland and Labrador's health minister says drug errors connected to the serious illness and hospitalization of at least one 14 year-old boy are unacceptable.

"There need to be changes in our system," said provincial Health Minister Jerome Kennedy Thursday. "There is no question in my mind that we have to look at the way we are delivering our services. What has happened in this lab situation resulting in one individual being seriously… is unacceptable."

Wednesday, the province's Liberal opposition party accused the province's largest health authority of downplaying drug errors after the opposition party's leader spoke with the family of a 14-year-old who's in hospital in critical condition after he was given an incorrect amount of Cyclosporine, a powerful drug used to suppress a person's immune system.

Cylcosporine commonly is used to prevent the rejection of a newly transplanted organ but too much of it can result in kidney failure.

Errors revealed in February

In late February, Eastern Health announced it had a problem with Cyclosporine treatment after learning that a machine used to measure levels of the drug in patient's blood was calibrated incorrectly.

Thursday, Eastern Health CEO Vickie Kaminski insisted the health authority has not downplayed the problem. She said she did not speak about the 14 year-old because his family asked Eastern Health to protect his privacy.

Kaminski is rejecting allegations the mistake put him in the hospital.   "The person was very sick before they started to receive Cyclosporine. They received Cyclosporine. This didn't help them. In fact, it exacerbated their condition perhaps. We're not even sure of that," she said.

Kaminski also gave an update on the health authority's investigation into Cyclosporine errors at it biochemistry lab in St. John's.

She said 234 patients may have been affected by the problem. Of them, 221 are living. Kaminski said there is no reason to believe the deaths of 13 patients who received Cyclosporine are related to drug errors.

Eastern Health is having the test results of all those patients retested.

This latest fiasco comes a year after the Cameron Inquiry into botch laboratory tests for breast cancer patients in the province recommended sweeping changes at Eastern Health's Labs.

Thursday afternoon the province's health minister said he's not jumping to conclusions about whether Eastern Health handled Cyclosporine errors correctly but he did say the government wants to see Justice Margaret Cameron's recommendations implemented.

"We have gone through the Cameron Inquiry. We have learned the lessons of the Cameron Inquiry and if people cannot learn those lessons, or live within the lessons learned, then there will be changes made," said Kennedy.