Edward Devlin
22 Jul 2014 · Coroner Crispin Oliver · County Durham & Darlington
The coroner's concerns
1. medication diversion under locked cell doors
“It was stated by a nurse that he had, while dispensing medication to Mr [name redacted] and other patients on F Wing, slid strips of medication including dihydrocodeine under locked cell doors instead of handing it to the patient.”
2. forged dispensing records
“The concomitant concem with 3, 4 and 5 above would be that the system whereby the dispensing of drugs is recorded by signatures of nurse and patient is either being ignored or subject to forgery.”
3. medication trading within establishment
“Depending on the type of medication, this may be traded within the establishment raising security concerns.”
4. stockpiled medication overdose risk
“The drugs could be stockpiled with a view to creating a potentially lethal overdose.”