SC nurse charged for allegedly stealing fentanyl from medical center
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WMBF) - An Horry County nurse is facing charges after allegedly taking fentanyl from Conway Medical Center in November, according to the Department of Health and Environmental Control.
DHEC arrested 51-year-old Tammy Coyle after an investigation into possible fentanyl theft was requested by CMC. The medical center requested the investigation after documentation showed Coyle removed “an excessive amount” of fentanyl more than her peers between Nov. 1 and Nov 5, 2023.
Documentation obtained from DHEC shows that Coyle’s removal of the drug from the system didn’t correspond with her documentation of administering the drug to patients.
While working one night shift, the report states Coyle took 8 vials of 2 milliliters of the drug and didn’t document the use. In the following nights, DHEC said she either did override without a doctor’s approval or fraudulently put doctor’s orders without the actual order.
Documents show Coyle only removed the drug during four shifts but her actions were consistent with other controlled substance theft cases.
“Throughout the time-frame, questionable wasting procedures were seen by Coyle, consistent with other nurse diverters,” the report read.
Her actions also included assigning the fentanyl to patients who were already on an IV drip.
“On many occasions, records show that Coyle removed multiple vials of Fentanyl under a patient who was receiving Fentanyl by IV. Additionally, Coyle would often times increase the rate of the Fentanyl IV of the patient while obtaining Fentanyl vials from the ADM. The Fentanyl vials were sometimes documented as administered, yet other times the whereabouts of the vials were unaccounted for,” documents stated.
Coyle was arrested on Jan. 31 and charged with 5 counts of theft of a controlled substance and 5 counts of violation of drug distribution laws.
WMBF News reached out to CMC for a statement, they provided the following:
“Tammy Coyle’s employment with Conway Medical Center was terminated in November 2023. As this is an active law enforcement investigation, CMC has no comment at this time.”
Coyle was booked into J Reuben Long Detention Center and released on a $15,000 bond.
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