Baltimore nurse sentenced for diverting morphine from 10-year-old heart surgery patient

BALTIMORE — A Baltimore nurse has been convicted and sentenced for diverting morphine from a 10-year-old patient recovering from open-heart surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center.

Kaitlyn Elizabeth Chalmers, a licensed registered nurse, was assigned to care for the child in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) on June 25, 2025. Chalmers documented in the patient's medical records that she administered intravenous morphine at 8:30 a.m. At about 9:18 a.m., the child complained of severe pain to her care team.

A nurse asked Chalmers whether she had given the child any additional morphine since the documented 8:30 a.m. dose. Chalmers said she had given the child a second dose at about 11:30 a.m. — but that dose was never documented in the child's medical records.

Chalmers claimed the child's pain was not responding to the prescribed morphine. The care team rejected that belief, noting the child was opioid naive and that her pain had been well managed the previous day.

Prosecutors said during the same shift, a nurse observed Chalmers exiting a staff bathroom with bruising and bleeding on her arm that could indicate intravenous drug use. Other PICU nurses later reported that Chalmers exhibited signs of impairment.

UMMC requested a drug screening, which Chalmers refused. She was immediately removed from the PICU floor and fired.

On June 20, Chalmers pleaded guilty to obtaining morphine by fraud. Morphine is a Schedule II controlled substance used to treat severe pain.

On Sept. 9, Judge Alan C. Lazarow sentenced Chalmers to 1 year, suspending all but 30 days, with 2 years of supervised probation. Chalmers is prohibited from caring for children during her probation and is excluded from participating in state and federal healthcare programs.

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