The Washington herald., 1921-02-01
Patient Died of Poison
Carelessly Given,
Jury's Verdict.
NURSE WHO MIXED
DRUGS IS QUIZZED
Worked 13-hour Shift.
Grand Jury Action
Is Hinted At.

sponsibIe yesterday by a coroner
jury for the death Of Dornin Ellis
at the hospital last Friday due to
bichIoride Of mercury poisoning
The jury's verdict was reached after
brief deliberation at an inquest held
at the morgue-
"Dornin Ellis" reads the verdict
of the jury, came to his death at
the George Washington University
Hospital on the 28th of January
1921, from bichloride of mercury
poisoning. Furthermore, that same
DOrnin Ellis came to his death from
said poison carelessly administrated
by officials of the said hospital"
DR.. ]. Ramsay hewitt, coroner,
- who signed the findings Of the jury,
said last night:
This leaves the matter an open
question. 1t is possible that the
grand jury will take up the incl
dent but that is up TO Assistant
District Attorney Charles Arth. who
represented the government at the
inquest"
Conflicting Testimony Given.
Conflicting testimony on the part
Of physicians and nurses. who were
directly or indirectly responsible for
the accident. caused the coroner's
jury to reach this verdict, it was ad-
mitted after the inquest.
Testimony showed that Miss Jose
phine Victoria Mach, the nurse who
mistakenly gave Ellis the dose OF
medicine which hastened his death,
was at the time in charge of thirty
two patients on the fourth floor.
and that she was on duty for thir-
teen hours and five minutes thar
night before she vas relieved Etef
only assistant, q junior nurse, II
was also testified, was only capable
Of answering calls and taking tenn
peratures.
Miss Mach, the last to testify, told
the Jury that she had had too much
to do" and that she had had to at
tend two deliriOus patients on her
floor Just before she administered d
the doses to Ellis and one other pa
tlent.
says She Read Bottle Label.
While Miss Mach did not try to
shift responsibility for the incident,
she vehemently denied insinuations
that she had failed to read the label
on the bottle three times before
using as she had been instructed.
Testimony was given to show that
the bottles Of sulphate of magnesia
and of bichlOride of mercury should
have been in different rooms.
Miss Mach was closely questioned
concerning the two bottles. She
was asked why she should go to
the room where biChloride of mer-
curv was kept to obtain sulphate of
naEnesia Miss Mach explained that
ever since she had returned to the
hospital, early last January, the
bottle Of suIphate of magnesia had
been kept in the same room with
the bottle of deadly biChloride.
why didn't you put the bottle OF
suIphate in its proper ROOM she
vas asked by Assistant District At
torney Arth.
thought Bottle in Proper Place.
Because I was not sure but that
there had been a change of regu-
Iations, and that that was its proper
nIace. Also. l considered it the duty
Of the nurses in charge in the day
time to leave the various bottles
in their proper rooms"
II was developed that one reason
why the mistake might readily have
bean made was because the bottle
of bichloride OF mercury had not
been colored, as is the general Gus
AaT
rroved that both bottles were iden-
tIcal in size, shape, and in the pro-
nortions Of liquid they contained.
DR., Thomas H. Hays, physician in
charge Of the fourth floor, testified
that the first notice he had Of the
s6air was a telephone call from
nurse whose voice he could not
identify.
Later, Miss HarOver, a nurse, tes-
tifed that she personally awakened
Or Hays and that he told her to
live Ellis and the other patient
eggs and milk.
Ellis Doomed to Die.
DR., W. Cline Borden, dean Of the
r,edical department of the univer-
sitv in his testimony told TIE jury
that he had been advised that Ellis
had developed pneumonia and that
MS death was only a matter of
Few days This was corroborated
bv the report Of DR.. Joseph D.
Rogers, who performed the autopsy
on Ellis body.
All of the nurses who testified
vssterday in regard to Miss Mach's
character and ability said that she
mad always been very well thought
or and that her reputation was
excellent.
when Miss Mach came into the
room where the inquest was held
she was sobbing, but when 1t came
time for her to testify she told her
story in a brisk and straightfor-
ward manner.
IudEs J. Wilmer Batimer repre-
ssnted the hospital at the inquest
and. at the suggestion of Coroner
Nayftt, also represented Miss Mach.
owing to the difficulty in obtaining
, testimony from several of the en-
nIoyes Of the hospital the inquest
covered more than three hours.
Others to appear on behalf of the
bospitaI administration were Mrs.
irene Geyton and Miss Helen 1.
Pfaff. instructress of nurses. The
5r,rv consisted of James Riordan,
TOO c. Brooks. NJ. W. Kelly, w. II.
Boaze, II. C. thinner and c. J. Gill