CHAPEL HILL -- An 84-year-old nursing-home patient who died in February had toxic levels of morphine in her body, according to a medical examiner's report released last month.
The State Bureau of Investigation is looking into Britthaven of Chapel Hill after several residents tested positive for opiates following Rachel Holliday's death on Feb. 16.
UNC Hospitals caregivers found more than 50,000 nanograms of morphine per milliliter in Holliday's urine. More than 2,000 nanograms would trigger a positive result in employment screenings, based on federal guidelines.
A medical examiner's report said Holliday had not been prescribed any opiate painkillers.
The state's Division of Health Service Regulation visited Britthaven after Holliday died and two other patients were hospitalized in February. Division director Jeff Horton said the division may renew its own investigation depending on what the SBI finds.
Horton said Britthaven has taken steps to protect residents though it remains unclear where the opiates came from.
Britthaven suspended all staffers in its Alzheimer's and kitchen units, director of operations Phillip Hill has said.
"They had thrown out quite a bit of food," Horton said. "They did quite a few measures to protect the residents, so we were satisfied."
The nursing home has had regulatory issues in the past few years and had been labeled a "special focus facility" for its substandard care. During inspections in 2008 and 2009, the nursing home was found to have put some residents in jeopardy by failing to protect them from abuse.
