Cape Cod Nurse Faces Charges For Stolen Pills: DA

YARMOUTH, MA — A Cape Cod nurse is charged with falsifying medical records at an East Boston healthcare facility so she could steal Oxycodone pills, the Suffolk District Attorney's Office said.

Kaitlin Tipton, 34, of West Yarmouth, was charged in East Boston BMC Friday with drug larceny and drug obtained by fraud.

Judge Debra DelVecchio released Tipton on personal recognizance and ordered her to stay away from the location of the offense. Tipton is due back in court on Sept. 10 for a probable cause hearing.

An investigation by a Massachusetts state trooper assigned to the Department of Public Health’s Drug Control Program discovered that from Nov. 15, 2023, to Feb. 23, 2024, Tipton diverted more than 50 oxycodone pills from Advocate Health Care (AHC) by falsifying the drug book and other medical records, officials said.

AHC is a long-term care and short-term rehabilitation facility in East Boston where Tipton worked as a licensed practical nurse.

Investigators found that Tipton diverted the medication by not documenting doses, removing more medication than ordered by doctors and making false entries on dates when she was not working, officials said.

Tipton told police that she had a friend with back problems who turned to her for help. She said she diverted medication from the facility for her friend and was unsure exactly how many times she did so.

“We’ll likely never know where these pills ended up, but we do know that substances like oxycodone and oxycontin are huge contributors to dependency issues we see in Boston and every other community. So diversions from dispensing facilities must be taken seriously,” said Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden.