In most major surgeries, a doctor will prescribe, at most, 20 micrograms of fentanyl, a powerful opioid pain killer. At most, as an “adjunct to general anesthesia,” 20-50 micrograms are used. Doctor William Husel of Columbus was administering, in some cases, 1,000 micrograms. After prescribing these lethal doses to at least 27 patients, justice may finally be coming for him. The Ohio Department of Department of Health confirmed Friday that it was launching an investigation into the shocking revelations regarding Dr. Husel. The investigation came after a Monday report that the critical care physician had prescribed these unprecedented doses of fentanyl to 27 patients. The earliest death, as discovered, appears to have taken place in March 2015. Jan Thomas, a near-death patient, was prescribed 800 micrograms of the opioid. Thirty-one minutes after the lethal prescription was administered, she was declared dead. As of reporting, the doctor faces at least four lawsuits, representing more than a dozen of the affected families. While the prescribing doctor is at fault in every one of these instances, the nature in which the deaths occurred raises additional and serious questions. Whenever a doctor requests a large amount of a controlled substance, like fentanyl, there is an extensive process of approval that…
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