Death Blamed on Cancer by Hospital Ruled an Overdose

A 74-year old Garden Grove woman whose death was officially attributed to her advanced case of breast cancer actually died when a nurse at FHP Hospital mistakenly administered a lethal dose of potassium chloride, the Orange County coroner ruled Thursday.

Although the coroner’s office has concluded that the overdose was accidental, Fountain Valley Police Sgt. Steven J. Williams said the circumstances surrounding Francis Johnson’s death, including the hospital’s failure to notify the coroner of the overdose, are under investigation.

FHP Hospital and corporate officials acknowledged the error Thursday, saying the nurse mistakenly administered the potassium chloride instead of a diuretic. Dr. Gary E. Goldstein, a regional vice president for the health maintenance organization, said the nurse, Maureen Daubert, 37, was deeply traumatized by the incident. However, she was fired several days later and remains under scrutiny by the California Board of Registered Nursing, a licensing agency, according to board executive officer Susan Brank.

Daubert could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Johnson died Nov. 14, 1989, at 5:50 p.m.--40 minutes after receiving the potassium chloride, according to Deputy County Coroner Bruce Lyle. Paramedics had taken her to the hospital a day earlier in a semi-comatose state. Hospital officials said her condition was extremely grave at the time of the overdose.

Lyle said the hospital should have reported Johnson’s death to his office, as required by state law, so an autopsy could have been performed.

Goldstein said hospital officials said they had no intention of hiding the overdose, but an internal review found the exact cause of death difficult to determine “because any one of several acute problems could have been at fault, including the cancer, heart failure and septic shock.”

Typically, an injection of potassium chloride, in the appropriate amount, would follow a dose of diuretic to replace lost nutrients. Given before the diuretic, especially in large amounts, can cause heart failure.