Nashville hospital medication error leaves at least 1 patient paralyzed after routine surgery, 3 others hurt
Four patients getting routine joint replacement surgeries at a hospital in Nashville allegedly had the wrong drug injected into their spines, leaving at least one woman paralyzed, according to her family.
Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown in Nashville on Friday acknowledged a "medication error" in its pharmacy that led to the patients being injected with potassium phosphate instead of a regular anesthetic and experiencing "adverse health reactions," according to multiple reports.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation confirmed to Fox News Digital Saturday that it is investigating the incident after receiving information Friday from the Tennessee Healthcare Facilities Commission.
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"The joint replacement went wonderful. Her knee is great. The rest of her is not," Kristina Dorton told WKRN-TV, saying her mother-in-law was left paralyzed. "It was supposed to be the anesthetic. It was supposed to be bupivacaine, and it was potassium, and we don’t know what quantity."
Dorton said her mother-in-law has no feeling from her breastbone down.
"We don’t know what recovery looks like or if there is recovery," she said.
The other three patients reportedly suffered serious complications from the mix-up, with CBS News reporting that a second patient is paralyzed.
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According to WSMV, Dr. Shubhada Jagasia, president and CEO of the hospital, released a statement earlier this week.
"Our hearts are with the four patients and their families impacted by this event," Jagasia said. "On behalf of our leadership and care teams, I am deeply sorry for the harm caused to our patients.
"We have met directly with each of the families to express our deep support, connected them with spiritual care teams and ensured they have access to all appropriate resources and ongoing care needed.
"Providing safe, high-quality care is at the core of everything we do, and any gap in meeting that standard receives our immediate, uncompromising attention. The day of the event, we self-reported to state regulators and launched a thorough investigation. We identified the cause and have implemented corrective safeguards."
She added that the hospital’s clinical teams are actively using enhanced safety protocols to "ensure the highest level of safety at Midtown."
But Dorton told WKRN the treatment to help her mother-in-law recover isn’t working.
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"This is life-changing. You don’t come out of this without some type of life-altering, catastrophic deficit," she said, adding that their family is hoping someone, somewhere will know how to help her mother-in-law.
"Time is of the essence here for recovery," she added.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the hospital for comment.