NEWS RELEASE: Air Force announces charges against Wilford Hall Medical Center Nurse Published March 17, 2009 By Capt. John Severns AETC Public Affairs RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Capt. Michael Fontana, a nurse at Wilford Hall Medical Center, has been formally charged by the United States Air Force with 3 counts of violating article 118 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice involving the deaths of terminally ill patients due to the deliberate administration of lethal amounts of medication, and one count of violating article 133 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, conduct unbecoming an officer for changing a medical document. The charges are the result of an Air Force investigation that occurred after irregularities were discovered in Capt Fontana's administration of medications which may have resulted in the death of an end-of-life patient. Upon suspicion of a breach of the standard of care, Capt. Fontana was immediately removed from patient care and a Quality of Care investigation was initiated. The Air Force Office of Special Investigations was also notified that a possible crime had been committed, and their investigation immediately took priority. During the thorough investigation of that incident, other potential incidents were uncovered, which resulted in two other charges of a similar nature being filed. In the military justice system, an accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The next step in the process is to hold an investigatory hearing, at which an investigating officer will examine the evidence and make a recommendation to the commander regarding disposition of the case. This proceeding is called an Article 32 hearing and is somewhat similar to a civilian grand jury proceeding. The Article 32 hearing will likely be scheduled in the next few weeks. At this point, the commander will decide whether or not the case goes to court martial. From the beginning of this investigation, our priorities have been the safety of our patients, respect for the families potentially involved, the integrity of the investigation and the judicial process, and the personal and professional well-being of the suspected individual. For all of these reasons, the details concerning this investigation were not previously released. We are committed to openness with our patients and the public, and as releasable information becomes available, we will release it. The hospital has been in periodic contact with the family members of the involved patients, and as of this moment, they do not wish to be contacted by the press. Please respect their request for privacy. The health and well-being of our patients is the number one priority of every single member of the Wilford Hall Medical Center team - as it has been for decades of service here in San Antonio and around the world in deployed locations. We are committed to providing the highest level of healthcare to our patients, and whenever we have reason to believe that the standard of care has not been met, we investigate and take the steps necessary to address the issue, as we have done in this case.