RaDonda Vaught, a former Vanderbilt nurse charged with homicide in connection with a patient’s death, on what this means for the victim’s family and the healthcare community as a whole.
After a prescription error contributed to the death of a patient in 2017, a jury found former Nashville nurse RaDonda Vaught guilty of criminally negligent homicide and mistreatment of an incapacitated adult on Friday.
In a trial watched by nurses and medical experts from throughout the country, the jury pondered for about four hours, with many concerned that Vaught’s case might set a precedent for medical blunders leading to criminal charges.
The American Nurses Association believes that criminalizing medical errors will discourage reporting and procedural improvement.
While nurses must be held accountable for their individual practices, the Code of Ethics for Nurses stipulates that errors should be repaired or remedied, and disciplinary action should be done only when necessary.
COVID-19 has already drained and overburdened the nursing personnel to the point of exhaustion. Nurses are keeping a close eye on this case, fearful that it will set a hazardous precedent.
The American Nurses Association warns against trying unintentional medical blunders in a court of law.
How long was RaDonda Vaught a nurse?
According to the information available to us, her period of working as a nurse is not available.
