Dallas: 12 people believed harmed by tainted IV bags

DALLAS — A Dallas anesthesiologist informed a colleague that hospital supervisors have been making an attempt to “crucify” him over an alleged medical mistake shortly earlier than he allegedly injected nerve blocking brokers and different medicine into affected person IV bags at an area surgical procedure middle, leading to no less than one demise and as many as 11 different cardiac emergencies, based on a felony criticism unsealed Thursday.

Raynaldo Rivera Ortiz Jr, 59, faces as much as life in jail if convicted on federal fees of with tampering with a shopper product inflicting demise, and intentional drug adulteration at Baylor Scott & White Surgicare North Dallas, positioned 12230 Coit Road.

Dallas police arrested Ortiz in Plano Wednesday on a federal warrant. He is at present within the Dallas County jail. He is predicted to look earlier than a federal decide Friday. It’s unclear if he has an lawyer.

The Texas Medical Board briefly suspended his license final Friday, Sept. 9, calling him a menace to public security.

“The safety of the nation’s pharmaceutical supply is critically important,” stated Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton. The Justice Department “will vigorously prosecute this case consistent with the evidence gathered by our law enforcement partners.”

Last month, after figuring out two cases of alleged IV bag contamination, Surgicare North Dallas “personnel determined that there were approximately ten other suspected incidents since late May 2022 where patients experienced unexpected cardiovascular complications during otherwise unremarkable surgeries,” the felony criticism states.

On June 21, Dr. Melanie Kaspar, 55, a fellow anesthesiologist who had additionally labored at Surgicare North Dallas, took a saline bag from the power to her Lakewood house to deal with herself for dehydration. When she gave herself the IV, she “experienced a major medical event and died before emergency medical personnel arrived on the scene,” the felony criticism says.

Don Tittle, lawyer for her husband John Kaspar, informed WFAA that as many as 15 sufferers have been affected by tainted IV bags.

“We’re following the investigation closely and John is relieved to hear that progress is being made,” Tittle stated. (*12*)

Surveillance video from the middle’s working room hallway allegedly confirmed Ortiz putting IV bags right into a stainless-steel bag hotter shortly earlier than different docs’ sufferers skilled cardiac emergencies, the criticism states.

Ortiz has twice been disciplined by the Texas Medical Board – as soon as for failing to report a conviction for taking pictures a neighbor’s canine in Collin County, and once more for not administering life-saving measures to a affected person in misery in 2020 on the North Garland Surgery Center. The second incident resulted in Ortiz shedding medical privileges at that Garland facility.

A 3rd disciplinary inquiry is detailed within the felony criticism. On May 19, 2022, considered one of Ortiz’s sufferers at Surgicare North Dallas stopped respiratory throughout a routine process, the criticism states. According to a assessment by the power, Ortiz failed “to maintain the patient’s airway,” which was just like the 2020 incident in Garland, the criticism states.

Ortiz “was aware” of the most recent investigation into the May incident, and “expressed his unhappiness with it” to a colleague, the criticism states. “He expressed to a fellow doctor that (Surgicare North Dallas) was trying to ‘crucify’ him” and that shedding the flexibility to work on the facility “would be financially ‘devastating,’” the criticism states.

Read the total criticism beneath:

“There appears to be a likely correlation between Ortiz coming under scrutiny for medical errors and the adverse events affecting other anesthesiologists’ patients,” the criticism states.

Hospital officers say they turned conscious of the tainted IV bags on Aug. 24 and “paused all operations” and notified “the appropriate local and federal authorities.”

That day, the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s workplace launched its post-mortem and toxicology take a look at leads to Kaspar’s June demise. They dominated she died not from a coronary heart assault, however from an overdose of bupivacaine, a drug used to numb sufferers in surgical procedure. Also that day an 18-year-old man having routine surgical procedure at Surgicare North Dallas “started bleeding out of control and his blood pressure spiked to around 200/150,” the felony criticism says. The teen was intubated and transferred to an area ICU.

Investigators analyzed the IV bag used within the 18-year-old’s surgical procedure and located traces of the potent stimulant epinephrine, in addition to bupivacaine and lidocaine.

Two different suspected compromised IV bags from the power’s hotter additionally examined optimistic for bupivacaine and lidocaine, the criticism states. Investigators additionally discovered small puncture holes within the clear plastic packaging bags that encase the IV bags, the criticism states.

Investigators say along with the 18-year-old, different sufferers went into cardiac misery at Surgicare North Dallas on May 26 and 27; June 27; July 7, 15 and 18; and Aug. 1, 4, 9 and 19, the criticism states.

In every case, the criticism stated medics have been in a position to stabilize the sufferers solely by means of the usage of emergency measures. Most of the incidents occurred throughout longer surgical procedures that used a couple of IV bag, together with a number of bags retrieved mid-surgery from a chrome steel bag hotter the place Ortiz was seen on video putting bags.

Investigators stated no cardiac incidents occurred from July 23-28 which is when Ortiz was on trip. The incidents began occurring once more after he returned round July 29, investigators say.

A nurse informed investigators that in an August surgical procedure the place Ortiz was the anesthesiologist “she retrieved an IV bag from the warmer to use during the surgery, but … Ortiz strongly refused to use the bag and physically waived the bag off.”

Prosecutors have requested a decide to carry Ortiz pending trial, saying he’s a flight danger.

“Our complaint alleges this defendant surreptitiously injected heart-stopping drugs into patient IV bags, decimating the Hippocratic oath,” stated Chad Meacham. U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, which is prosecuting the case. “A single incident of seemingly intentional affected person hurt can be disconcerting; a number of incidents are really disturbing. At this level, nonetheless, we consider that the issue is restricted to at least one particular person, who’s at present behind bars.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

“Patients expect that their doctors will use only safe and effective medical products during their surgeries,” stated FDA Office of Criminal Investigations Special Agent in Charge Charles L. Grinstead. “When illicit tampering occurs, serious harm and even death can result. Working with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to monitor, investigate and bring to justice those who would risk patients’ health and safety.”

If anybody has any extra information concerning the state of affairs, or had any adversarial reactions throughout surgical procedure, WFAA would really like you to electronic mail us at [email protected].