The redemption story of RaDonda Vaught

It started with one request to speak to a group of risk analysts. Former Vanderbilt nurse RaDonda Vaught reluctantly told her story on a stage for the first time — she was still on probation from her felony conviction.

“It was emotionally overwhelming and a little cathartic, but I’m gonna tell you, you could have heard a pin drop,” Vaught tells This Is Nashville.

She’s gotten used to recounting the incident and the courtroom saga that followed, but she still chokes back tears when talking about the family of Charlene Murphey, the 75-year-old patient who died. Vaught’s medication error, which involved overriding a safety system, resulted in losing her nursing license and being convicted of a felony.

“There won’t ever be a day that goes by that I won’t think of this. My life will never be the same,” she says in a wide-ranging interview on her sheep farm in Sumner County.

This episode was produced by Blake Farmer.

Further reading:

• KFF: In Nurse’s Trial, Investigator Says Hospital Bears ‘Heavy’ Responsibility for Patient Death
• NPR: Former nurse found guilty in accidental injection death of 75-year-old patient
• Nevada State: Protecting Against Error: Lessons Learned From the RaDonda Vaught Case