On 07/31/2024, University of Minnesota (U of M) Police took a report of a drug diversion from staff at the U of M’s Equine Center veterinary teaching hospital ([ADDRESS REDACTED]) in Falcon Heights, Ramsey County. Staff at the hospital reported that they believed someone had diverted morphine by opening morphine vials, replacing the morphine with saline, and then re-sealing the vials’ caps. The hospital maintains its morphine and other prescription drugs in a “Pyxis” machine. Pyxis is an automated medication system used to securely store, track, and dispense medications.
The Pyxis utilizes biometric (fingerprint) and unique identification numbers (PINs) that medical personnel use to access and obtain drugs from the machine. Pyxis electronically tracks each access by personnel, the reason for each access is coded, and each transaction generates a printed receipt. A Pyxis “pocket” is a locked, tracked, mini-drawer that holds a specific medication inside the machine. During the ensuing investigation, law enforcement learned that on July 22, 2024 a Certified Veterinary Technician (CVT), JO, removed a vial of morphine from the morphine “pocket” in the Pyxis machine for an equine surgery.
She and the surgeon, DC, then discovered that although the morphine vial appeared to be unopened, it was empty. JO also noted that security caps on other morphine vials in the Pyxis “pocket” appeared to have a glue-like substance on them. Hospital staff and a Pyxis trainer immediately conducted a review of the Pyxis machine’s user transaction reports. Based upon their analysis, staff suspected that the person responsible for the drug diversion was Sarah Louise MYERS (10-07-1997). MYERS was a CVT who had been associated with the hospital since 2017. Prior to her employment as a CVT, as a student, MYERS studied/worked at the hospital treating equine patients.
MEYERS’ use of the Pyxis machine between July 6 and July 21, 2024 (the “timeframe”) was significantly higher compared to her peers and there were notable irregularities in MEYERS’ use. Specifically: MYERS accessed the morphine “pocket” in the Pyxis machine 35 times during the timeframe. No other staff accessed this “pocket” during the timeframe except three instances where pharmacy staff conducted inventory verification and restock. A review of the hospital’s records showed that MYERS was not assigned to treat any patients with morphine during the timeframe, and therefore, had no reason to be accessing morphine. 34 of MEYERS’ 35 morphine accesses were generically coded by MEYERS as "Surgery" instead of to a specific patient.
According to hospital staff, use of the "Surgery" code when removing drugs from the machine is extremely uncommon; transactions are always coded to the patient to which the drug was administered. 34 of MEYERS’ 35 morphine accesses were also subsequently coded as "Cancelled" by MEYERS. According to hospital staff, "Cancelled" transactions are extremely rare. According to hospital policy, each Pyxis receipt that is generated when drugs are accessed is forwarded to the Dispensary Technician so it can be paired with the patient’s medical file and billed.
