Former nurse sentenced for stealing leftover fentanyl from Cape Girardeau hospital

A former Cape Girardeau nurse was sentenced Tuesday, Aug. 1, for stealing leftover fentanyl from Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau.

Lindsey Francis, 35, was ordered by U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. to serve three years of probation, provide 200 hours of public service work and to pay a $5,000 fine. She was also ordered to undergo drug treatment and will be subjected to random drug screenings.

On Jan. 15, 2022, a colleague at Saint Francis discovered a used syringe in an emergency department locker room at the hospital. After an investigation, a vial of fentanyl was confirmed to have been tampered with.

Francis, when questioned by hospital staff, said she had been injecting leftover fentanyl because of work and personal stress since mid-2021.

In total, the amount of fentanyl she had taken amounted to less than 4 grams.

Francis pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in May to a single count of unlawfully acquiring a controlled substance.