Hospital to change its procedures after 2 deaths

INDIANAPOLIS -- The hospital where two babies died after receiving an overdose of blood thinner will double-check drug labels and remove certain doses of the medication under new procedures designed to prevent future mistakes.\nTwo premature baby girls died Saturday at Methodist Hospital, which is part of Clarian Health Partners, after receiving adult doses of heparin. The drug is often used in premature children to prevent blood clots that could clog intravenous drug tubes.\nFour other babies were also given overdoses of the drug. Three were hospitalized in critical but stable condition Monday at Methodist Hospital and were no longer showing ill effects from the heparin, said spokeswoman Jo Ann Klooz. The fourth was in critical condition and not stable at Riley Hospital for Children and continues to suffer from ill effects of the drug, she said.\nAutopsies were scheduled for Monday in the deaths, which the coroner has determined were accidental.\nThat's little comfort for families of Emmery Miller and D'myia Alexander Nelson, the two girls who died. The girls were born at 25 and 26 weeks' gestation; a normal pregnancy is about 40 weeks.\n"They couldn't give me enough apologies for what they have done," said Lena Nelson, whose granddaughter, D'myia, was five days old when she died. "They just took her away. It's like murder. She was just taken away from us."\nMethodist Hospital President and CEO Sam Odle announced procedure changes after a two-hour meeting with staff involved in the weekend incident.\nStarting immediately, he said, all Clarian hospitals -- which also include Indianapolis hospitals Indiana University Hospital and Riley Hospital for Children -- will no longer keep certain doses of heparin in inventory. All newborn and pediatric critical care units will require a minimum of two nurses to validate any dose of heparin. And nursing units will receive an alert when a change in packaging or dose is entered in the drug cabinet.\nIn addition, all employees will be required to sign a document about the importance of correct drug administration by Sept. 23.\nOdle stressed that the hospital is "among our nation's safest" and said Methodist would learn from the mistake.