VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Sentara Princess Anne Hospital officials have increased security measures after someone stole medications from a locker in the facility.
A hospital pharmacy technician noticed that the drugs, including Morphine, Valium and Ativan, were missing while she was replenishing the boxes in the emergency medical services (EMS) room, The Virginian-Pilot reports.
Emergency responders use the EMS room to exchange used drug boxes for new ones; however, to gain access to the lockers, they must obtain a key from an on-duty emergency room nurse. The nurse can only obtain the key by logging into a secure computer system.
The latest incident comes a month after medications were stolen in five break-ins from ambulances at two rescue stations.
Officials continue to investigate the incident, and have increased security procedures including more frequent equipment checks.