'It was hell:' Ketamine shot sends Minneapolis man into intensive care, renews calls for investigation

For the second time in two years, Hennepin Healthcare and the Minneapolis Police Department are facing public backlash for the use of ketamine, this time over allegations that paramedics sent a man to intensive care for two days after needlessly injecting him with the powerful sedative.

The patient, Max Johnson, suffered a diabetic seizure on July 26, according to a Facebook post from his girlfriend, Abby Wulfing. Minneapolis police and Hennepin Healthcare paramedics responded to Wulfing's 911 call and repeatedly pressed her on Johnson's drug use, unconvinced of Wulfing's explanation that low-blood sugar caused the seizure, according to the post. Experts and advocates called Johnson's ordeal "stunning" and evident of a systemic problem despite calls for reform.

"This happened because Max is a 6'5" Black man," wrote Wulfing, a therapist in Prior Lake. "My whiteness was not enough to save him from the Hennepin Healthcare EMS and MPD's egregious racism and life-threatening decisions."

https://www.startribune.com/ketamine-shot-sends-man-to-icu-renews-calls-for-probe/571997552/