A nurse was charged Sept. 1 as the possible source of a hepatitis C outbreak among patients at a Washington state hospital after a five-year investigation.
In April 2018, MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup acknowledged an outbreak of hepatitis C among patients and recommended that 2,762 patients be tested for the infection.
In April 2019, Cora Welberg, a former nurse at the hospital, admitted to diverting fentanyl and hydromorphone. She said she would give patients injectable narcotics and often take the leftovers home for her own use. The CDC says it likely contracted the virus this way, using leftover anesthetic injected into people with chronic hepatitis C infection.
The agency said: “It is possible that Nurse A contracted the virus from a patient with chronic HCV infection during her visit on November 8 and was infectious between November 22 and December 26, 2017, during which time she treated At least 12 patients were infected,” an April 2019 report stated.
On September 1, 2023, a court document charged Ms. Welberger with one count of tampering with a consumer product. Her arraignment and plea hearing are scheduled for September 5, and she pleads guilty. Her sentencing is scheduled for November 30.