Drug Addicted Woman Gets 30 Years For Infecting Patients with Hepatitis C
Here’s a case of drug addiction ruining not only the life of the addict but those around her: a woman in Denver was recently sentenced to 30 years in prison for exchanging drug-filled syringes with used syringes that were contaminated with hepatitis C.
A former hospital technician, Kristen D. Parker took syringes that had been prepped for surgical patients and full of sedatives and painkillers that they would need to endure the surgery, used the drugs herself and then filled the used (and now hepatitis C contaminated) needle with saline or water and put it back on the tray.
Her personal “needle exchange” at Rose Medical Center where she worked infected at least 18 patients during 2008 and 2009, according to the New York Times.
The Victims of Drug Addiction
Those who were harmed by Parker’s were the focus of the courtroom and the focus of Judge Robert E. Blackburn’s decision. Her severe sentence is more than what the federal prosecutor first agreed to because the judge decided that 20 years simply wasn’t enough to pay for what she had done. The judge called Parker’s crime “as incomprehensible as it is unconscionable” and said Parker showed “a terrible selfishness.”
Hepatitis C – Common Consequence of Heroin Addiction and Intravenous Drug Use
Parker likely contracted hepatitis C when she shared needles with another heroin addict who was also infected with the disease. A lifelong disease, there is no cure for hepatitis C, which can cause liver failure and other chronic issues that can shorten your lifespan and increase your health problems. Though it is sometimes possible, depending upon the strand, to treat the disease with a regiment of interferon, a drug used in chemotherapy, it doesn’t always work to wipe out the problem.
Guilt and Consequences of Drug Addiction
Parker’s case is a severe one, but almost everyone who lives with an active drug addiction hurts not only themselves but the people they work with, those who depend on them, friends, and family members. The physical harm Parker inflicted upon herself by contracting hepatitis C is something that almost every intravenous drug user will deal with, and it can be transmitted to others sexually or through sharing needles.
Parker made a statement before her sentencing and said: “I was a drug addict. I put getting my next fix above my career, my family, taking care of my son and the safety and well-being of my patients. I have hurt an uncountable number of people.”
Heroin Addiction Treatment and Detox
If you or someone you love is living with heroin addiction, the best way to break free before you find your health in dire straits and before you hurt those closest to you is to undergo a heroin detox and heroin addiction treatment. Through medical assistance at a certified facility, you can stop using heroin safely and then follow up with continued detox for optimum health as well as addiction treatment counseling to help you remain clean and sober after you return home.
Michael’s House offers heroin rehab to those who are ready. Contact us today for more information.
