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Infections remained high at Asante through 2023 despite claims of a decrease

A covered driveway entrance to a large, beige building, with stairs leading up from a parking lot. A standing sign in the parking lot says, "South Lobby" and a sign on the covered entrance reads, "Hospital Entrance B"
Roman Battaglia
/
JPR News
An entrance to Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford, January 4, 2024.

Oregon Health Authority data shows Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center had high numbers of infections in the last two years. That’s the same timeframe a nurse was allegedly replacing patients’ fentanyl with tap water.

The number of central line-associated bloodstream infections at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford remained high in 2023 despite hospital claims of a decrease. That’s according to Oregon Health Authority data on health care-associated infections provided to JPR through a records request.

These infections, also known as CLABSIs, happen when there’s some contamination while using a catheter. An investigation is underway by the Medford Police Department involving allegations that a former Asante nurse replaced the opioid painkiller fentanyl with tap water, causing an unknown number of infection-related deaths and illnesses.

In July of 2023 the hospital released a statement reporting that staff’s “diligence brought a drop” in CLABSIs after a spike during the winter. There were nine observed CLABSIs from January through June of 2023 compared to 15 the previous year.

But in 2023’s remaining months the hospital recorded five more cases. That brought the year’s total to 14, nearly double the 7.99 predicted infections, according to OHA data.

Non-sterile tap water can cause a CLABSI infection but it’s unknown whether the cases documented by OHA could be related to the allegations the hospital is now facing, although the spike in infections occurred during the same timeframe.

The hospital saw far higher infections in the last two years compared to 2016 through 2021, which had fewer CLABSIs than predicted. There was a jump in cases at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. But even then the hospital only had seven cases.

Asante has refused to comment besides saying they’re working with police.

Justin Higginbottom is a regional reporter for Jefferson Public Radio. He's worked in print and radio journalism in Utah as well as abroad with stints in Southeast Asia and the Middle East. He spent a year reporting on the Myanmar civil war and has contributed to NPR, CNBC and Deutsche Welle (Germany’s public media organization).