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Former Baptist nurse supervisor arrested for obtaining controlled substance

NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. — A former nurse supervisor at Baptist Medical Center Nassau has been arrested for obtaining a controlled substance by fraud.

61-year-old Kathleen Kirby was arrested on Wednesday following a months-long investigation by the Drug Enforcement Agency and Nassau County Sheriff’s Office.

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The investigation began in October of 2018 when Baptist Hospital contacted law enforcement about suspicious patient pain medication activity involving Kirby.  She was fired at the same time the hospital reported the activity.

According to Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper, investigators reviewed drug databases, electronic records and security video, and discovered that Kirby had obtained at least 134 Oxycodone dosage units by using patient names and diverting them for her own personal use.

No other employees were involved in stealing the controlled substances, according to Sheriff Leeper.  Kirby was released from Nassau County Jail on bond a few hours after her arrest.

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The Baptist Medical Center in Nassau sent the following statement:

We take concerns regarding employee misconduct seriously, and take prompt action whenever we identify suspicious activity related to controlled substances.  As a result, the team member was immediately terminated at the time of the incident in October 2018. We appropriately communicated to local law enforcement, and cooperated with their investigation. This event involved one former employee and to our knowledge patients were not affected.

We hope Ms. Kirby will seek appropriate care.