First Baltimore Victim of Hepatitis C Infected hospital tech comes forward

BALTIMORE - In 1966 Linwood Nelson served in Vietnam and that earned him the right to seek treatment at the Veterans Administration Hospitals,.

He says the Baltimore VA has been great....

Treating him over the years for many things, more recently lung disease.

That's why he was really surprised when they contacted him for a meeting a few weeks ago.

"It was a phone call from the chief of staff of the hospital's office telling me information about Mr. Kwiatkowski and said that I needed to come in and be tested and a week later they called and told me that I have tested positive for Hepatitis C."

Nelson appears to have been a victim of David Kwiatkowski, a temporary medical technician that worked in hospitals in seven different states including four here in Maryland.

Authorities’ say Kwiatkowski took syringes of heavy painkillers injected himself with the drugs then filled the same syringe with saline to cover up.

Kwiatkowski was the tech on duty during two visits Nelson made to the Baltimore VA four years ago.

"I thought about my kids and all of my loved ones my brothers my kids my companion just wondering if in the four years I've walked around unknowingly hugging and kissing my kids and grandkids and wondering if any of them could have contracted that from me." Nelson says.

No one else in Nelson's family has the disease he says the VA has offered him help but he's not sure if treatment for the disease could interfere with treatment for his lung condition.

In an update on their website the VA says it contacted about 168 people including Nelson who treatment involved Kwiatkowski.

Nelson, who's hired an attorney, says he's not mad at the VA but he wants this set right for all the people whose lives were impacted by Kwiatkowski.

"They just need to put safeguards in so that this can't happened to any other veteran or no other person in any hospital and people have to be vigilant about their health care." Nelson says.  “When you're lying in that hospital bed and everyone comes up to you in that hospital gown or badge you trust them when they you have to give you a needle know where that needle came from."