Coleen Thompson

Serial Killer

Coleen M. Thompson: The Shady Grove Hospital Neglect Cases

Background

Coleen M. Thompson was an intensive care nurse whose treatment of critically ill patients at Shady Grove Adventist Hospital in Rockville, Maryland, became the subject of criminal, administrative and civil investigations. Although some crime databases have labeled Thompson a medical serial killer or an "angel of death," that description exceeds what prosecutors proved in court. She was never convicted of murder, and authorities stated that they lacked sufficient evidence to establish that she deliberately killed any patient or that her conduct was the sole cause of a patient's death. What prosecutors did establish was that Thompson intentionally failed to provide necessary medical care to five vulnerable patients who died while assigned to her care in 2002 and 2003. The allegations included withholding prescribed medication, interfering with intravenous equipment, administering morphine without a physician's authorization, failing to report a dangerous decline in a patient's blood pressure and declaring a patient dead before cardiac activity had stopped.

Employment at Shady Grove Adventist Hospital

Thompson worked in the adult intensive care unit at Shady Grove Adventist Hospital, where many patients were already gravely ill, dependent on life-support equipment or suffering from conditions with poor prognoses. Her position gave her direct control over medications, intravenous pumps, monitoring equipment and communication with physicians. Concerns about Thompson developed after fellow nurses and patients' relatives reported disturbing conduct. According to allegations later presented by prosecutors, she repeatedly encouraged some families to allow their relatives to die and appeared to make decisions about continuing treatment that belonged to physicians and legally authorized family members. One colleague eventually reported suspicions that Thompson was interfering with patient care. The hospital suspended Thompson in July 2003, and the Maryland Board of Nursing suspended her nursing license. She was later dismissed from her position. Investigators and the Maryland medical examiner's office reviewed 211 deaths that occurred during the relevant period and selected five cases in which prosecutors believed they could prove intentional neglect. The review of 211 deaths did not establish that Thompson caused all, or even most, of those deaths. ...

Confirmed Victims: (5)

Harry L. Hancock Age: (69), Date of Death: 2003-07-05

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