CHESAPEAKE, Va. — Chesapeake Regional Healthcare is alerting patients who received care from a former Chesapeake Regional Medical Center nurse who was reusing needleless syringes, according to a release from the health system.
An investigation involving CRMC, the FDA and other agencies uncovered that the former nurse was reusing the needleless syringes while administering IV medications, the release says. They reached the conclusion that the employee's "improper actions" violated training, hospital policy, and regulatory standards. They no longer work at CRMC.
“Chesapeake Regional Medical Center is committed to the highest standards of patient safety, transparency, and accountability. We deeply regret that this incident occurred and are taking every necessary step to support those affected and prevent any recurrence," Chesapeake Regional Healthcare said in its release.
The health system doesn’t have information that shows if any individual patient received medication from a reused syringe. Out of caution, CRMC is contacting all at-risk patients who received care from the nurse in the hospital’s Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) between July 24, 2023, and January 20, 2025.
The health system says while the risk is extremely low for infection transmission, they recommend that all patients who they’ve reached out to should get tested for bloodborne pathogens.
Testing is free by appointment for patients who’ve been contacted by the hospital.
Details for notified patients to get free testing:
Where: Testing is available at two locations on Chesapeake Regional Healthcare’s campus
- Jennings Outpatient Center, located at 844 Battlefield Blvd.
- The Lifestyle Health and Fitness Center, located at 800 Battlefield Blvd.
When: Available from now until July 31, 2025.
To make an appointment: Notified patients are asked to call 757-312-2189.
As of this writing, there haven’t been any reported cases of patients getting sick from the nurse’s actions.
