No charges in hospital death of Sisters woman

There will be no criminal charges associated with the medical error that killed Loretta Macpherson of Sisters at St. Charles Medical Center in Bend in December 2014.

"After a thorough review of the facts of this case, and a consideration of the steps St. Charles has taken to ensure a tragedy like this never happens again, I concluded that forgoing the initiation of criminal charges was in the interest of justice," said Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel.

Hummel met numerous times over the past two years with St. Charles administrators and particularly focused on St. Charles' implementation of the recommendations made to St. Charles by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices.

In December 2014, Macpherson was recuperating at home after undergoing successful brain surgery in Seattle. Her family took her to St. Charles because she was feeling anxious and her family

wanted to be sure the medications she was taking were correct and determine if she needed more medication. Staff determined that she would benefit from being given an anti-seizure medication.

Macpherson was given the wrong drug. The incorrect drug that was administered is called Rocuronium, which is a paralytic used in surgery. Macpherson went into cardiac arrest, suffered irreparable brain damage and died two days later.