Wisconsin nurse accused of amputating patient’s foot without permission, wanting to display it at taxidermy shop

A Wisconsin nurse is accused of amputating a affected person’s foot with out permission and eager to show it in her household’s taxidermy store, in response to courtroom paperwork.

Mary Okay. Brown, 38, eliminated the frostbitten proper foot of a 62-year-old affected person at Spring Valley Well being and Rehabilitation Middle in Pierce County on Could 27, in response to a prison criticism. She was charged final week with elder abuse.

Investigators had been contacted in June concerning a loss of life on the assisted residing facility by the county medical expert, who stated that the physique was despatched for an post-mortem as a consequence of “the weird circumstances of his loss of life.”

The medical expert stated he seen the sufferer’s foot was not connected to his physique, “however was moderately mendacity beside him,” the submitting stated.

Pete Koch, a Pierce County sheriff’s investigator, interviewed employees on the rehabilitation middle and located that the sufferer was positioned there in March 2022. The sufferer was not recognized by officers.

He was taken to the middle as a result of he had fallen in his residence when the warmth went out, which precipitated him to have “extreme frostbite” on each of his ft. His ft grew to become necrotic, which means his physique tissue had died, in response to the criticism.

The medical expert reviewed the sufferer’s medical chart, which indicated a nurse had amputated his proper foot on Could 27, 2022. 

The criticism revealed Brown minimize off the foot in what she stated was an act of compassion due to the dire state of his ft.

In keeping with the accounts of nurses interviewed by Koch within the prison criticism, the foot was now not absolutely connected to the affected person’s leg, smelled and was “black like a mummy.”

Additional, within the weeks previous to the amputation, hospice nurses had visited him ceaselessly believing he’d cross quickly.

Tracy Reitz, the director of nursing for the middle, stated that just a few days earlier than the amputation, the sufferer’s proper foot “was useless, foul smelling, and was held on by a tendon.” She stated “she was capable of take his foot and put it again in,” the criticism stated.

The affected person’s foot was minimize off by Brown as she and two different nurses, recognized as Nurse 3 and Nurse 4, had been within the sufferer’s room.

She used scissors to chop a tendon, which amputated his proper foot altogether, the criticism said. The foot was then positioned in a bag in a freezer, to be despatched with him when he handed away. 

Brown instructed Koch that she had not obtained a physician’s order to chop off the foot and she or he ought to have.

She stated that the sufferer did not present any indicators of ache and she or he lined up his stump with gauze.

Nonetheless, Nurse 4 stated she was holding the sufferer’s hand and his grip was “extraordinarily tight and he was moaning a bit of bit” when the tendon was minimize.

And one other staffer, recognized as Nurse 1, stated she spoke with the sufferer two days after the amputation. In keeping with the criticism, he instructed her “that once they minimize his foot off he felt all the pieces and it damage very dangerous.”

Brown stated that she “was attempting to make the standard of life higher for him.” She defined that the affected person all the time complained concerning the odor and she or he thought he “would really like it higher.” She stated there was no blood within the process.

Nurse 3 instructed Koch that through the amputation, Brown talked about taking the sufferer’s foot house and “epoxying it,” which the nurse discovered to be unusual.

One other nurse, recognized as Nurse 5, who was not within the room for the amputation, recalled that Brown stated her household has a taxidermy store. Brown instructed the nurse “she was going to protect the foot and put it on show with an indication that stated ‘Put on your boots children.’”

Kevin Larson, administrator and CEO of the power, instructed Koch that Brown didn’t do a report on the incident. Larson stated no person wrote something within the sufferer’s chart on Could 27 apart from a notification about drugs.

Larson stated Brown had not requested him if she may take away the foot and there was no physician’s order to take action. He stated the very best apply ought to have been to get an order from a physician, which he believes they might have given. 

He stated he didn’t imagine Brown had any malicious motive.

Spring Valley Well being and Rehab Middle didn’t instantly reply to an NBC Information request for remark.

Brown was charged on Nov. 3 with bodily abuse of an elder particular person deliberately inflicting nice bodily hurt and mayhem, with elevated penalties because the sufferer is an aged particular person, in response to Pierce County Circuit Court docket information. 

It is not instantly clear if she has retained a lawyer. Brown couldn’t be reached for remark Tuesday afternoon.