One of the stories making the news here in Italy is the arrest of Daniela Poggiali, 42, a nurse who is accused of killing at least 38 of her patients because she found them or their relatives to be annoying. She was initially charged in the death of an elderly patient and now police believe that she is a serial killer.
The case of Rosa Calderoni draw attention of the authorities because she been admitted for a routine illness and when she died there were high levels of potassium in her bloodstream. At least 10 other deaths are now being listed as “very suspicious”.
Prosecutor Rossella Materia called her a sadist who “who draws pleasure in provoking the death of the patients in her care.” One picture on her phone reportedly shows her giving a thumbs up next to when of her patients who had died seconds before. The public statements are an interesting dimension since Italy prosecutes people for criminal libel, as in the abusive case against the parents of Amanda Knox that we discussed earlier. While comments against the police can bring a charge, it clearly does not apply when prosecutors make such comments against individuals.
Even a colleague described her as a “cold person who was always eager to work.” This included the allegation from a co-worker that Poggiali would give patients strong laxatives at the end of her shift to make work more difficult for the nurses taking over.
Poggiali told police that she is innocent and the victim of a conspiracy by her enemies.
The case could prove very difficult given the length of time that has passed.
Source: MSN
And, get some new material. Lame joke. But, your cheerleader squad will chime in soon w/ a LOL.
Olly – the Italian PD is not world-class. Actually, they are sub-fourth world. I have got to admit if you cannot see a pattern before 38 patients you are really not trying.
Attorneys a helluva lot smarter and more successful than you hire me, barrister.
What’s the difference between an attorney and God?
God doesn’t think he’s an attorney.
What do you call the surly guy muttering slurs at the bar convention?
The PI the lawyers hired for security.
PS, he took their money.
What’s the difference between an accountant and an attorney?
Accountants know they’re boring.
What do you call the smiling, courteous, intelligent person @ the bar convention?
The caterer.
nick:
Funny, Mespo’s source, Motherboard, has a piece on how the 21 day quarantine may not be adequate.”
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Funny, you like Italian food.
Deflect much?
DBQ, That’s on me. I made a forthright and honest statement lauding the unions for doing the right job @ 9:36. It was obviously like putting a bottle of vodka in front of a white knuckled, mean drunk, alcoholic. My bad, DBQ. My bad.
Nick and mespo – I think it is interesting that the lawyers need security.
Annie:
Fear is a great motivator. Look at all the breathless comments here.
Gerry Ford was a conservative and a dolt Republican. He made us all take swine flu shots with the same form of panic driven rhetoric. Older people died.
“Those who don’t understand history are doomed to repeat it.”
Mespo, the CDC is behind the times on Ebola as far as their recommendations for protective gear, but I bet they’ll get up to speed pretty damn quick after these two nurses.
Annie:
In the reptilian mind that is the conservative psyche anything that purports to help individuals however imperfectly is bad; anything that positively or even marginally helps the capitalist no matter how ruthless is good. Once you see and accept that perspective, it all makes scary sense.
Funny, Mespo’s source, Motherboard, has a piece on how the 21 day quarantine may not be adequate. I wonder if the Obama cultists will be so cavalier when they or their family are coughing up blood.
Woodrow Wilson downplayed the great flu pandemic of 1918-19. Wilson was a Progressive, attorney, and Ivy League professor. 675,000 people died from this less virulent strain of flu than Ebola, because of Wilson’s incompetence. “Those who don’t understand history are doomed to repeat it.”
Jack, thanks for reminding me of the NBC Ebola quarantine violation.
NJ Health officials force quarantine on NBC crew exposed to Ebola. Yeah, NBC crew and Dr. Nancy Snyderman did a “go screw you” thing.
New Jersey officials issued a mandatory quarantine order Friday night for members of an NBC crew that was exposed to a cameraman with Ebola after they said a voluntary 21-day isolation agreement was violated.
The crew included the network’s chief medical editor and correspondent, Dr. Nancy Snyderman, who lives in New Jersey.
It’s nurses unions that are looking out for nurses’ safety, NOT the hospitals and not the CDC. Can’t put away your own ideological prejudices against unions I see.
Karen S:
“mespo – this is not a call to panic, but rather a call to be effective.”
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Like the CDC and local health authorities are ignoring the problem? Come on.
I clearly recall covering Ebola in microbio. Awful, what it does to people. The urgency is the very short window we have to slam a lid down on it.
Annie:
“Mespo, and it’s all Obama’s fault. Don’tcha know?”
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Of course it is Annie. Because we all know that this President is responsible for all things bad from Russian military incursions to plantar warts whereas our conservative brethren saw no culpability at all for a national security adviser who couldn’t foresee a terrorist attack on American soil despite reading a memo entitled “”Bin Laden Determined to Attack Inside the United States.”
Instead of being run out of town on a rail figuratively, she’s now picking the NCAA D1 college football 4-team playoff. I’m guessing we’ll see Vassar College v. Wellesley College and Spelman College v. Mount Holyoke College in round 1.
mespo – this is not a call to panic, but rather a call to be effective.
Liberia’s epidemic is still out of control. We do not want that to happen here. Ebola is not a cold or a flu, and it needs to be contained.
DBQ – you are correct. There’s a whole roomful of people, including Obama, who have mishandled this.
Thank you Karen
And for all of those who can’t be bothered to get their heads out of their ideological holes…I have already laid the blame for this unprepared response to a potential national emergency with a disease that could possibly become a plague directly at the CDC and the SEVERAL administrations, not just Obama, who have let the agency drift from its responsibilities and its mission.
Sitting around and playing gotcha games, pointing fingers is not a response to an emergency. People f@cked up. The Hospital f*cked upThe agency f%cked up. Several administrations f#cked up. We get it lots of problems.
Laughing and scratching about unions, and making political hay is not the answer. People need to take this seriously and hold our government accountable, because this will not be the last instance of something like this.