Incidentcase29

A former nurse received probation Friday after pleading guilty to stealing a small amount of the synthetic opioid fentanyl while employed at Saint Vincent Hospital.

Stephanie L. George pleaded guilty to a third-degree misdemeanor count of theft by deception and an ungraded misdemeanor count of procuring drugs by fraud.

Erie County Judge John Garhart immediately sentenced George to two years of probation and prohibited her from working in nursing or at a healthcare facility.

George’s nursing license expired in October, according to information presented in court.

Under questioning from Garhart, George acknowledged that she took the fentanyl for her own personal use. Garhart ordered her to receive a drug and alcohol evaluation.

State drug investigators charged that George fraudulently obtained 100 micrograms of fentanyl while she was working in Saint Vincent’s emergency department on Jan. 3.

Investigators charged that, after another nurse had logged into an automated medication dispensing system, George used the woman’s profile to create a false medication “wasting” report using the other nurse’s identity.

The other nurse was not aware George was using her identity and reported the incident to management when she discovered the fake report, according to the affidavit of probable cause.

George had removed fentanyl from the medication dispensing system for a patient, but no orders were given for the patient to receive fentanyl, according to the affidavit.

After the charges were filed in May, Saint Vincent spokeswoman Monica Lewis said George was no longer an employee of the hospital.

Under George’s plea agreement with the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, a felony count of acquiring or obtaining a controlled substance by misrepresentation and first-degree misdemeanor counts of identity theft and forgery were dropped.