Muncie anesthesiologist accused of stealing, using drugs on the job
MUNCIE – Authorities allege an anesthesiologist at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital stole narcotics from the hospital, and on at least two instances participated in medical procedures after ingesting the stolen drugs.
Jose A. Ramos, 51, was arrested at his Fort Wayne home Wednesday morning by U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents. He was released from the Delaware County jail later in the day after posting a $32,000 bond.
Delaware Circuit Court 5 Judge Thomas Cannon Jr. had ruled that if Ramos was released from jail, he could "not engage in any practice of medicine."
In Delaware Circuit Court 5 on Wednesday, Deputy Prosecutor Zach Craig filed 10 charges against Ramos – four felony counts of possession of a narcotic drug, four misdemeanor counts of theft, and two counts of criminal recklessness, also a misdemeanor.
Delaware County Prosecutor Jeffrey Arnold issued a press release indicating the arrest followed “an intensive eight-month investigation” by the DEA and his office.
Ramos has apparently not worked at the Muncie hospital since allegations were raised last October.
According to an affidavit:
- The director of pharmacy services at the Muncie hospital contacted the DEA last Oct. 6 to report records from Ramos’ “surgical cases” at BMH over the past four months showed “multiple instances” in which controlled substances obtained by Ramos “were not charted as being administered to a patient.”
Records also determined Ramos had not returned those drugs, nor had they been “wasted” – a procedure used to discard unused medication.
The controlled substances “that appeared to have been stolen by Dr. Ramos,” the document said, included Demerol, Hydromorphine, morphine, Fentanyl, Ketamine and Midazolam.
- A nurse in the BMH labor and delivery unit in August 2015 said she witnessed unusual “wasting” of Fentanyl by Ramos.
- The BMH nursing staff observed “unusual behavior” by Ramos while he worked at the Ball Outpatient Surgery Center in the weeks prior to Oct. 5, including “going to the restroom between every case” and his reluctance to “make eye contact” by the end of a shift.
Nursing shift coordinators were told they “needed to keep an eye” on the physician.
- On Oct. 5, a day Ramos was “responsible for administering anesthesia in connection with seven medical procedures,” a staff member found a hypodermic needle cap and what appeared to be blood in a restroom accessible only to operating room staff.
A nurse that day notified supervisors Ramos appeared to be “drugged” or “high” while administering anesthesia during a procedure.
She said the physician seemed “drowsy, was not making eye contact, and was not answering questions or providing a report about the patient.”
Later review reflected Ramos had withdrawn more medication than necessary for that patient and another treated on that day, the affidavit said.
- That evening, Gerald Costello, medical director of the hospital’s anesthesiology division, met with Ramos and asked him to submit to a drug screen.
Ramos agreed, and said he anticipated he would test positive, adding that he had “an addiction to pharmaceutical controlled substances.”
He also repeatedly told Costello “his career was over,” the report said.
- Authorities allege that the blood and urine samples taken that night showed that, when he provided anesthesia to two patients during surgeries that day, Ramos “was under the influence of marijuana, morphine, Meperidine, Hydromorphine and Fentanyl.”
After Oct. 5, Ramos took a leave of absence from BMH and “entered into an inpatient physician addiction treatment program in Florida,” the affidavit said.
In an Oct. 22 telephone interview with DEA investigators, he allegedly “admitted to taking controlled substances from IU BMH.”
“While we are not able to provide information on the situation,” a hospital spokesman said Wednesday, “we are cooperating fully with authorities.”
In their release, prosecutors thanked IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital for “their complete cooperation during the course of this extensive and lengthy investigation.”
Deputy Prosecutor Craig said he did not believe the persons reported to have been treated by Ramos while he was under the influence of drugs – identified in court records only as "Patient A" and "Patient B" – had yet been notified of the allegations.
The physician's only prior contact with local authorities came in the form of two speeding tickets issued in 2015. In related court records, he is listed as a resident of Santa Barbara, Calif.
Authorities said the investigation was ongoing, and asked anyone with related information to contact the DEA at 317-226-7977, or the Delaware County prosecutor’s office at 765-747-7801.
Contact news reporter Douglas Walker at (765) 213-5851. You can also follow him on Twitter: @DouglasWalkerSP.
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