A quadriplegic man died after smoking fentanyl and taking oxycodone at Mark Zuckerberg’s hospital after his mother warned nurses he had a stash of drugs.
Christopher Saylor, 33, was found dead after nurses at Zuckerberg General Hospital in San Francisco found him lying next to a piece of aluminum foil, a lighter, a straw and a “white powder.”
In 2020, Christopher, who also went by Chris, was paralyzed from the neck down after a horrific motorcycle accident.
His heartbroken mother, Barbara Scholes, told him The San Francisco Standard She told medical staff they needed to confiscate the stash of drugs hanging from her neck in a small red box.
The day before his death, nurses found Chris high on fentanyl because he “refused to search his belongings.” He was then prescribed oxycodone, his death report revealed.
Christopher Saylor (pictured before his accident), 33, died after nurses at Zuckerberg General Hospital in San Francisco found him lying next to a piece of aluminum foil, a lighter, a straw and a “powder.” white”.
Her mother said medical staff at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital (pictured) did not confiscate her medications even after she informed them about her stash.
His mother arrived at the hospital on December 17, 2022, the day Chris died, and was handed over her son’s belongings, including the red box that still had fentanyl inside.
“What a damn joke,” Barbara said. ‘They handed me their belongings and there was the red box. I opened it and sure enough, there it was.
—Don’t you check them for drugs when they are known drug users? “That’s pretty stupid,” she added.
Barbara believes her son would still be alive if medical staff had confiscated his medications.
It was later revealed that the day before he was found dead, Chris told hospital staff that a “visitor” had brought him fentanyl. His mother believes the person was a drug dealer.
Barbara said she thought about taking legal action against the hospital after losing her son, but couldn’t afford a lawyer.
The circumstances of how Chris died have baffled his family, as he had little to no mobility after the accident.
His father, Richard Saylor, has been trying to understand how his son, who “couldn’t use his hands,” was able to light a lighter just before he died.
“Someone had to have lit it for him,” Richard said.
His mother arrived at the hospital the day after Chris died and was handed over her son’s belongings, including the red box that still had fentanyl inside. (in the photo: Chris before his accident)
Meanwhile, Barbara said she believes her son could have lit the lighter himself, as he found a way to do so when he was a patient at Laguna Honda Hospital after his accident.
Heather Bollinger, an emergency room nurse at the hospital, said she and her colleagues have refrained from taking patients’ medications, fearing it could lead to their medical licenses being revoked.
“We don’t have the mechanisms in place to remove drugs from people,” Bollinger said.
“If this was a member of your family and they were in the hospital, you would say, ‘Why are you allowing them to do this?’
Hospital administrators have maintained that drug use is not permitted in or near the hospital.
The hospital told the San Francisco Standard that drug users can dispose of substances, but did not provide further details.
“We have an ideology that we really want to support, but we don’t have the resources to make it successful,” Bollinger said.
“Now we have a patient who can’t get what they need and we have a nurse who is at risk.”
After his accident, Barbara said that her son only had mobility in his arms and that his hands were permanently clenched into fists.
Richard said his son’s accident really hit him hard.
“The doctor told him he had no chance of walking again, so they stopped giving him therapy,” he said. “They destroyed the guy’s hope.”
In 2020, Chris (pictured before his accident) was paralyzed from the neck down after being hit by a car while riding his motorcycle in San Francisco. The accident broke his C5 bone and the doctor told him that he “had no chance of walking again.”
His mother said she remembers her late son for his generosity and sense of humor. (in the photo: Chris before his accident)
After his death, a GoFundMe The page was created to help his family “cover the tragic unexpected loss.”
Although the fundraiser has now closed, it raised $870 for Chris’ family. Organizer Ashley Valente detailed the incident that left Chris paralyzed.
“A little over two years ago, Chris was riding his bike in San Francisco and got hit by a car and broke his C5 bone, which then paralyzed him from the neck down – we didn’t think he would make it. [out] alive but he was saved by a miracle,’ Valente wrote.
“This never stopped Chris from being a kind and loving person with great qualities.” His mother said she remembers his late son for his generosity and sense of humor.
He added that many of his friends knew him as ‘Crazy Chris’, while his father said his funeral was full of loved ones.
“He was always funny, he joked. Always trying to help,” Barbara said. “Then he started doing drugs, and my God.”
DailyMail.com has contacted Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital for comment.