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A staff member who allegedly stole drugs from eight clients at the Benedictine Living Community of Duluth told an investigator it was easy to do so because “storage and management of medications was poor.”

The Minnesota Department of Health’s Office of Health Facility Complaints on Tuesday reported a substantiated finding of maltreatment at the complex’s Marywood assisted-living facility because of a staff member who allegedly “diverted medications from multiple clients.”

The administrator of the Benedictine Living Community of Duluth said his team discovered the theft, reported it and took steps to prevent it from happening in the future.

The state’s report, by special investigator Darin Hatch, found the staff member took 222 units of hydrocodone/acetaminophen, 42 units of an anticonvulsant and an unknown amount of liquid units of hydromorphone, among other medications. Most were opioids or other forms of pain reliever.

Based on interviews with staff, Hatch concluded that “staff members rarely counted the medications, key control was not exclusive and access to medications were often uncontrolled.”

“We are truly saddened by this alleged incident,” wrote Brian Pattock, administrator of Benedictine Living Community of Duluth in an email. “Because we place a high priority on the safety and security of our residents, we launched an extensive internal investigation when we became aware of the potential theft of medications. We reported the incidents to the police, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the appropriate state agencies.”

The staff member substituted acetaminophen tables for hydrocodone/acetaminophen tablets, Hatch reported, and someone diluted the liquid medications.

The staff member admitted to diverting hydrocodone and possibly diverting hydromorphone and a cough syrup, the report states.