Treatment granted for nurse accused of stealing drugs from Kettering nursing home
Apr. 15—A nurse accused of stealing prescription painkillers and forging signatures at a Kettering nursing home where she worked was granted treatment in lieu of conviction.
Deja Marie Thomas of Fairborn was ordered to receive rehabilitation treatment for at least a year and no more than five years, according to Montgomery County Common Pleas Court records filed Monday.
The order was issued April 10 after Thomas pleaded guilty to theft of drugs and two counts of forgery.
Thomas is a licensed practical nurse whose license is active with board action pending, according to the Ohio Board of Nursing.
The incidents happened Feb. 28, 2023, at Oak Creek Terrace — a residential nursing, rehabilitation and assisted living facility at 2316 Springmill Road in Kettering — her indictment stated.
She stole oxycodone pills from her former employer, according to the Montgomery County Prosecutor's Office. Oxycodone is an opioid commonly prescribed to relieve moderate to severe pain; however, the drug has a high risk for addiction and dependence, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.
The prosecutor's office had filed a motion in opposition to intervention for Thomas because she has a case pending in Clark County and faces action against her LPN license for similar drug theft and forgery allegations in March 2022 from her time working at a Miami County care facility.
Among ILC conditions ordered by Judge Dennis Adkins, Thomas is not permitted to work in any position where she may have access to narcotic medications, dangerous drugs of medical supplies during the time she is under rehabilitative treatment.
In Clark County, Thomas has a trial scheduled for May 22 on five felony theft charges, records show.
