A nurse from New York was sentenced to five months in prison for tampering with fentanyl and hydromorphone in the Connecticut hospital where she worked.
Kristen Carotenuto, of Pelham, N.Y., copped to removing several vials of the drugs from a Stamford surgical center’s secure storage area that she had access to in December, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
“She then took the vials home, removed the controlled substances using a syringe and used the drugs,” the DEA said in a press release Tuesday.
Prosecutors said the 35-year-old nurse then refilled those vials with saline or water and returned the containers to the surgical center’s storage area. However, there’s no indication the substituted liquids were administered to any patients.
Carotenuto pleaded guilty last week to tampering with a consumer product. She was released on $25,000 bond but is required to report to prison by Oct 1. She was also ordered to surrender her nursing license.
The National Institutes of Health describes hydromorphone as “a potent opioid medication for managing moderate-to-severe acute and severe chronic pain in patients.” Fentanyl is a “very powerful” synthetic drug used to treat severe pain and is known to be highly addictive.
Originally Published:
