2nd Nurse Sentenced for Giving Laxatives to Nursing Home Residents

By Daniel Hawn

Published on August 03, 2005

Susan Mejak was found guilty of conspiring to make nursing home patients sick in order to get even with another nurse at Willowood Care Center in Brunswick. She gave laxatives to five of the nursing home's patients with the intent that nurses working the next shift would be forced to deal with the consequences.

Court records showed that the five patients suffered severe diarrhea and dehydration from the incident.

Mejak pleaded no contest to the charges.

Mejak's co-conspirator, Kim Koah, devised the plan to make the patients sick in order to get back at a nurse with whom she had a falling out. Earlier this year, Koah was also sentenced to 10 months in jail for her role in the incident.

Mejak claimed she didn't do anything to directly harm the patients. She said she was only guilty of failing to warn anyone of Koah's actions. She said she wasn't sure what to do because Koah was both her supervisor and her friend.

Judge Daniel Collier did not express any sympathy for Mejak, claiming that Mejak treated the patients as less than human.

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