Chattanooga
Partly Cloudy
H 81°
L 58°
77°
Altamont
Sunny
H 82°
L 57°
79°
Athens
Partly Cloudy
H 80°
L 56°
77°
Benton
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Chatsworth
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Cleveland
Fair
H 82°
L 56°
76°
Dalton
Partly Cloudy
H 82°
L 57°
80°
Dayton
Sunny
H 76°
L 53°
73°
Dunlap
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Murphy
Partly Cloudy
H 80°
L 56°
77°
Pikeville
Sunny
H 76°
L 53°
73°
Scottsboro
Fair
H 80°
L 57°
83°
Summerville
Fair
H 83°
L 57°
80°
Ringgold
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Trenton
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Chattanooga
Partly Cloudy
H 81°
L 58°
77°
Altamont
Sunny
H 82°
L 57°
79°
Athens
Partly Cloudy
H 80°
L 56°
77°
Benton
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Chatsworth
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Dalton
Partly Cloudy
H 82°
L 57°
80°
Dayton
Sunny
H 76°
L 53°
73°
Dunlap
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Murphy
Partly Cloudy
H 80°
L 56°
77°
Pikeville
Sunny
H 76°
L 53°
73°
Summerville
Fair
H 83°
L 57°
80°
Ringgold
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Trenton
Partly Cloudy
H 83°
L 58°
77°
Digital Producer/Trends Producer
The victims in this case were a family visiting Chattanooga from Florida, who were struck at an intersection along Frazier Avenue in Chattanooga in November 2023.
The victims in this case were a family visiting Chattanooga from Florida, who were struck at an intersection along Frazier Avenue in Chattanooga in November 2023.
A nurse was fired in 2025 for taking waste fentanyl for his personal use from Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga. According to a Tennessee Board of Nursing consent order, the hospital’s artificial intelligence drug-monitoring software should have flagged the missing waste, but it didn’t.
Waste fentanyl is unused medication remaining after a prescribed dose is administered to a patient in a healthcare setting, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It adds that waste fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid and its disposal is therefore strictly regulated to prevent diversion, accidental exposure and environmental contamination.
The nurse, John Stevenson, is registered with the State of Tennessee as a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA). He was employed by Anesthesiology Consultants Exchange (ACE), which contracts with Erlanger to provide anesthesia services, according to the consent order.
Around June 30, 2025, staff reported that Stevenson had slurred speech, appeared extremely tired, swayed and had a hard time keeping his eyes open while working in the surgery center, the consent order explained.
The next day, the consent order says he took a urine drug screen, which returned positive for fentanyl. ACE then terminated Stevenson, who was also prohibited from returning to any Erlanger facility.
According to the consent order, Stevenson agreed to have his “advanced practice registered nurse certificate and license to practice as a registered nurse in Tennessee SUSPENDED and the multistate privilege to practice in any other party state DEACTIVATED, beginning the effective date of this Order.”
An audit of the nurse’s medical dispensing records from March to June 2025 revealed five instances of missing waste that were not flagged by the hospital’s AI software, Sentri7. At the time, the software was in its initial learning phase.
Sentri7 has AI-powered drug diversion software designed to proactively identify and mitigate diversion risks.
The consent order says the Chief CRNA reviewed the nurse’s anesthesia charts and found additional inconsistencies between drug dispensing and waste documentation that the AI system didn’t flag.
The nurse agreed to enter treatment with the Tennessee Professional Assistance Program (TNPAP) on July 18. Then, in September, the nurse admitted he had been taking fentanyl for personal use from Erlanger Medical Center.
He began using fentanyl around March 2025, once or twice a week, according to the consent order. By June, he was using it daily.
The consent order says he sometimes self-medicated by taking unused fentanyl that would have otherwise been wasted after surgical procedures.
In October, the nurse entered a monitoring agreement with TNPAP, which will last a minimum of 60 months. If Stevenson remains in full compliance with the terms of his monitoring agreement, then his suspension shall be stayed, and his license certificate shall be placed on probation.
Read the full consent order here.
A consent order is a proposed disciplinary agreement in which the nursing board sets conditions and restrictions on one’s license. When all parties sign a consent order and it is signed by a judge, it becomes a legally binding court order.
Digital Producer/Trends Producer
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