Overdose killed mental patient

RALEIGH -- ******

CORRECTION

A story in the Triangle & Co. section Nov. 24 about the overdose death of a Cherry Hospital patient incorrectly said the hospital was working to regain certification to receive federal Medicaid funds. That certification, revoked last year after the death of a different patient, was restored in September.

****** An autopsy confirms that a man found unconscious on a Greyhound bus two hours after being discharged from Cherry Hospital died after ingesting a prescription painkiller given to him by the state psychiatric facility.

Jeffery Scott Swaim, 40, died July16 of acute Fentanyl poisoning, according to an autopsy report made public Friday by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Chapel Hill.

Fentanyl, a synthetic opiate 100times as potent as morphine, is the active ingredient in the slow release pain patch Swaim was prescribed at Cherry. The drug has been linked to hundreds of overdose deaths nationally and is often abused by those seeking a high.

Swaim was admitted to the state hospital in Goldsboro on July 3 after seeking treatment for alcohol abuse and suicidal thoughts, according to copies of his psychiatric records released to The News & Observer with his family's consent. He was discharged less than two weeks later.

Swaim had more than twice the amount of Fentanyl considered toxic in his blood when he died, according to the autopsy report.

"I'll never understand what they were thinking," Sheila Buckner, his mother, said Monday from her home in Southport.

The family is considering a wrongful death lawsuit against Cherry. A body shop mechanic who lived in Burlington before moving in with his mother in the year before his death, Swaim is at least the 11th person treated at the state hospital to die under questionable circumstances since 2003.

Philip Cook, the director of Cherry Hospital, said his thoughts are with Swaim's family.

"We are continuing to evaluate our response to this situation to determine what measures can be taken to reduce a similar tragic occurrence," Cook said in an e-mail message Monday. "We look at every situation as a learning opportunity, we don't want to miss a chance to learn ways that we can improve the care of our patients while they are in our care and after discharge."

Cherry's certification to receive Medicare and Medicaid monies was revoked in September 2008 after the death of patient Steven H. Sabock. Sabock choked on his medication, hit his head and was then left sitting in a chair without food, water or medical attention for nearly a day.

Cherry administrators are trying to regain federal certification. Every month the hospital operates without Medicare and Medicaid approval costs state taxpayers about $1million in lost revenue.

Years of heavy drinking left Swaim with acute pancreatitis, an inflammation that can cause severe abdominal pain. He also suffered from depression and uncontrollable mood swings, according to a written assessment by Cherry staff members.

A doctor at Cherry prescribed Fentanyl after Swaim repeatedly complained of pain. When he was discharged from the hospitalJuly 15, he was given two of the patches.

Two hours after Swaim was discharged from Cherry, his mother went to pick him up at the bus station in Wilmington.

After he failed to get off the bus from Goldsboro, Buckner went onboard and found her son in a seat toward the back, slumped into the aisle and no longer breathing. Doctors at New Hanover Regional Medical Center later found one of the pain patches in his mouth.