Elizabeth Wettlaufer is a 49-year-old lady who has convicted eight first degree murders from 2007 to 2014 by administering certain drugs to the patient before the murder. She started her career in 1995 as a nurse in various care centers. She worked in Caressant care nursing and retirement homes in Woodstock, Ontario and Telfer place retirement home in Paris Ontario and also in Meadow Park Home in London, Ontario.
In 2016, she left her job and checked into Toronto’s Center for addiction and Mental Health where she admitted to a Psychiatrist and later Police that she has killed and hurt patients. She is now facing a total of 14 charges with eight murders, four attempted murders and two aggravated assaults. The investigation has begun in the month of September and in October she was charged for her murders. The investigators recorded documents of Elizabeth Wettlaufer stating that in 2014 she was fired from Caressant Care Nursing Home for incorrectly and overdosing the medication for a resident which resulted in Distress to the patient. She also had several warnings and 3-day & 5-day suspension letters. At a Care center, she was asked not to return because of her behaviour towards the other staff members. The Nursing care centers were Co-operating with the investigators to investigate the evidence. She is now serving a life sentence after confessing the murders.
The Health Care system and the Regulatory bodies are merely responsible for exercising autonomous authority over this action. It is their responsibility to assure and maintain the health and safety of the public by ensuring and providing them with proper standards of medical practise. She was not suspected at the centers where she was working until she has confessed it by herself. This could be due to the negligence of the Medication management system at the Care centers. Health Care System is made of so many pieces and no one in the system was alert of the possibility that it could be an intentional harm. They could have improved medication incident analysis service at the center. They could have strengthened the medication management system in nursing homes and also, they could have registered staff to monitor the medication overdoses to the patient frequently in order to avoid medical errors and protect the victims.
During the Investigation, Commissioner Eileen E.Gillese found out that the murders were not mercy killings but were made out of gratification and for no other reason. She was not under investigation, not even one offence was under suspicion until 2017 despite having killed or hurt 14 patients. We would not have known about the murders if she had not confessed it by herself. Elizabeth has disclosed that it was not accidental and also that it was not just one but 8 murders with her childhood friend. She was the instigator for her own prosecutions.
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The commission that led the public enquiry says it heard in 2018 January that Elizabeth had told the prison staff that she had attempted to harm two other patients. Commission says it is confident and has evidence to issue recommendations to prevent these tragedies from occurring again and is preparing a report.
Systemic failures in long term care allowed Elizabeth wettlaufer to commit crimes. I believe this to be the mistake of systemic vulnerabilities but not any individual or the staff. The health care providers could have checked upon her documents, remarks and termination letters before appointing her as a nurse. They could have reviewed the reason behind terminating the job at the previous workplace. The college of nurses of Ontario kept Elizabeth Wettlaufer’s termination on file but the licensing body took no action to suggest it had serious concerns about the care she had provided. Legislative bodies make laws that are needed to be followed by everyone but in this scenario the rules made were not looked upon properly. They could have taken steps for strict supervision of laws including regular monitoring.
The standards of practice provide knowledge and guidelines in order to practice safely. The standard of practice related to nursing were not followed in this case. Elizabeth did not follow any legal procedure related to medication for example administering overdose of insulin to the patients without prior information or permission from the higher authorities. No ethical principals were looked upon, no justice, no client autonomy.
The Professional conduct at the work place is maintained by professionally collaborating and respecting the co-workers and the patients which ensures a positive environment. Elizabeth wettlaufer misbehaved towards the other staff members at her workplace and failed to fulfill the norms and ethics of the professional conduct.
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