RN charged with modifying surgical blades at home and returning them to JCMC for use

A certified registered nurse anesthetist employed by Paragon Anesthesia has admitted to taking home packaged, single-use blades, modifying them, and then returning them to Johnson City Medical Center for use during surgeries, according to documents obtained by WJHL. The nurse was identified as Jeffrey Dale Watson. Watson admitted to ‘cleaning’, but not sterilizing the blades, the documents said. Watson resigned from Paragon Anesthesia and allowed his Tennessee RN license and TN APRN certificate to expire. Ballad Health referred questions on the matter to Paragon Anesthesia, who has not issued a statement yet.