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Kansas nurse pleads guilty to over-drugging dementia patient, prosecutors say

A 37-year-old Atchison nurse has pleaded guilty to intentionally giving a nursing-home patient the wrong medication in an apparent attempt to keep her sedated, Leavenworth County’s top prosecutor said Friday.

Jennifer Lynn Reavis was convicted Friday of endangerment, unlawful administration of a controlled substance and battery in Leavenworth County District Court. She remains free on bond as she awaits sentencing, according to prosecutors.

“After a lifetime of taking care of their family, working, and contributing to the success of our community, seniors deserve to be treated with dignity and respect,” Leavenworth County Attorney Todd Thompson said in a statement. “We are grateful for the staff to assure this incident was prosecuted.”

In May 2019, administrators with Twin Oaks Rehab Center in Lansing contacted police after discovering that a patient had been getting evening medications along with Ativan and Benadryl when she was not supposed to. Reavis was later identified by authorities as the nurse giving out the extra medicine, an act described with photos and text messages.

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In one text message to the oncoming night nurse, prosecutors say, Reavis sent a photograph of the victim slumped over and apparently sleeping in a wheelchair.

“Your (sic) welcome! I hope she is asleep most of the day tomorrow,” the text message said. “Hint hint.”

The victim suffers from dementia and the medication caused her to become lethargic and be hospitalized, prosecutors say.

In an interview with Lansing police, Reavis admitted to giving the medicine to the woman, saying she frequently displayed “exit-seeking” behavior — meaning she tried to wander away from the nursing home.