Latest news with #BoardofNursing
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Counselor sanctioned after refusing intoxication test at child advocacy center
The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing administers the state's Board of Nursing and Board of Behavioral Health Professionals as well as other licensing boards. (Main photo by Getty Images; logo courtesy State of Iowa) A Quad-City social worker who was fired after refusing to be tested for intoxication at work has been sanctioned by state regulators. The Iowa Board of Behavioral Health Professionals recently charged social worker Jaime L. Roggenbauer of Bettendorf with knowingly making misleading or untrue statements in the practice of social work, or engaging in unethical conduct harmful to the public, by attempting to practice social work while intoxicated. The board also accused her of interfering with her previous employer's information technology systems. According to the board, Roggenbauer had provided counseling services at a children's advocacy center located in Rock Island, Illinois, since January 2022. She was fired on March 19, 2024, the day her co-workers reported that she appeared chatty, animated and unsteady — a departure from her typical demeanor. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The board alleges that Roggenbauer was fired after she refused a chemical test for intoxication. According to the board, she then changed the password to the center's therapy documentation system, which locked other part-time providers out of the center's database. Roggenbauer denied the allegations, but to resolve the case she recently agreed to a settlement that entails her license being placed on probation for two years, during which time she will work with a practice monitor. Court records show that in 2022, Roggenbauer was convicted of first-offense drunken driving. Other Iowans recently sanctioned by the Iowa Board of Behavioral Health Professionals include: — Kelly Sachau of Sioux City, who is alleged to have maintained a relationship with a patient from April 2021 to the present. According to the board, the patient received therapy services from Sachau while the two maintained a personal relationship. In October 2022, Sachau ended her relationship with the practice group where she worked and took the patient's therapy records and notes with her to her new practice without the patient's written consent. She was charged with failing to comply with ethics guidelines related to patient boundaries and records. Sachau denied having a dual relationship with the patient and denied improper handling of client records and information. To settle the case, she agreed to pay a $750 civil penalty and have her license placed on probation for two years during which time she will work with a practice monitor and complete training on ethics, clinical documentation and professional boundaries. — Trisha Tonelli of Des Moines, who allegedly disclosed confidential information related to the care of a client. She was charged with failing to comply with ethics guidelines on confidentiality, and was issued a warning that similar conduct in the future could result in further disciplinary action. As part of her settlement agreement with the board, Tonelli agreed to complete six hours of ethics training. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Board of Nursing has cleared hundreds of cases of questionable documentation for nurses
(Photo by) The Maryland Board of Nursing said it has cleared almost all of the 259 nurses and nursing applicants who may have obtained a Maryland license using fraudulent documents from a scheme revealed in Florida more than two years ago. The board said that it found 'no cause to take disciplinary action' against 205 of the Maryland cases linked to 'Operation Nightingale,' a multistate investigation by federal official in 2023 of a Florida-based wire fraud scheme that provided bogus documentation of nursing credentials. The board did revoke the 'privilege to practice in Maryland' for three nurses and voted to issue charges against seven others, who were referred to the Office of the Attorney General for prosecution. Three nurses voluntarily surrendered their licenses, another 12 applicants withdrew their applications for a registered nurse license in Maryland and the board voted to dispose of another three without taking action. Those numbers were included in the board's response to an Office of Legislative Audits report released last week that was a followup to a 2024 inquiry into several boards and commissions that oversee health care facilities or practitioners. Among the findings of the report, which covered the period from September 2019 to July 2023, was that the agencies often failed to investigate complaints against licensees in a timely manner — a problem the auditors said could be due to staffing shortages during that period. The report said that the 20 boards and commissions it studied had a total of 4,916 open cases as of February 2024, but that 3,051 of those had been open more than two years. The Board of Nursing, the largest by far of all the boards, had 2,411 cases that had been open more than two years, it said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The auditors also reported in February 2024 that the nursing board could not provide documentation that it had investigated any of the 259 nurses whose names came up as part of Operation Nightingale — a claim the board disputed at the time, and again last week. The board now says it is missing documentation for just 26 of those 259. While that is a significant improvement, the OLA report adds on to other audits that raise concerns in oversight and documentation of Board of Nursing and the Department of Health over several years. The Operation Nightingale investigation became public in a January 2023 post from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. It said its investigation, along with the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office, uncovered three Florida nursing schools tied to 'bogus' nursing degree diplomas and transcripts that were sold to 'aspiring' Registered Nurses (RN) and Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse (LPN/VN) to qualify for the national nursing board exam. 'Upon successful completion of the board exam, the nursing applicants became eligible to obtain licensure in various states,' the HHS statement said. 'Once licensed, the individuals were then able to obtain employment in the health care field. The overall scheme involved the distribution of more than 7,600 fake nursing diplomas and transcripts. These schools are now closed.' Former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Markenzy Lapointe said at the time that the wire fraud scheme 'erodes public trust in our health care system.' 'Not only is this a public safety concern, it also tarnishes the reputation of nurses who actually complete the demanding clinical and course work required to obtain their professional licenses and employment,' Lapointe said in the 2023 statement. The Maryland Board of Nursing was notified of 287 nurses or nursing applicants who may have received licensure with false credentials, with the expectation that the Maryland board would look into those cases. By February 2024, the board said it had reviewed most of those cases, even though the OLA said it lacked documentation at the time for that claim. At that time, 131 of those nurses had been working within the Maryland health system, the OLA said. The Board of Nursing agreed that the audit's findings were factual and has since located much of the missing documentation regarding those 259 nursing licenses — though documentation for 26 cases are still missing. 'Board of Nursing has located a substantial amount of the records documenting the work conducted to screen and process the 259 individuals who may have obtained licensure in Maryland using fraudulent credentials,' the board responded in the April audit report. The board believes that it will resolve the outstanding 26 cases by July. The Board of Nursing has a list of the actions it has taken related to nursing licenses involved in Operation Nightingale. ola_boardofnursing
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Bill mandating child abuse education for health providers rejected by New Hampshire House
House Bill 493 would've required physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants treating patients age 18 or younger to complete child abuse and neglect education. (Getty Images) The New Hampshire House of Representatives voted, 193-177, Thursday to kill a bipartisan proposal aimed at strengthening child abuse and neglect training among medical providers. Rep. Carol McGuire, an Epsom Republican, called the bill 'a very well-meaning bill that is totally impossible to implement' and 'unnecessary.' House Bill 493, sponsored by Concord Democrat Rep. Gabby Grossman, would've required physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants treating patients age 18 or younger to complete child abuse and neglect education. That education would've had to be at least one hour, and be accredited and recognized by the New Hampshire chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics as addressing the necessary subject matter. The bill was amended since it was first introduced. McGuire took issue with the fact that the bill has the Board of Medicine mandating the training for nurse practitioners, who are governed by the Board of Nursing. She also noted that the Board of Medicine and Board of Nursing can both already require this training themselves, and she said she's heard from the employers of doctors and nurse practitioners who say they already often require their employees to do this type of training. She pointed out that a version of the training has already been made available for free online — by HB 493's sponsors — that providers can decide to do on their own. Still, supporters wanted the training mandated and didn't want to wait on the boards or employers of providers. 'This bill is the result of findings that include that there are New Hampshire children that have been abused or neglected but have been missed or not reported by New Hampshire health providers with tragic outcomes,' one of the bill's supporters, Derry Republican Rep. Jodi Nelson, said. 'And that voluntary training in identifying and reporting child abuse and neglect has been made available to New Hampshire health care providers but very few have enrolled.' Nelson said she'd heard stories of infants arriving at the hospital with atypical bruises and debilitating disabilities that weren't reported to the authorities at the Division for Children, Youth, and Families. She said the issue 'isn't New Hampshire specific; it's a problem throughout the U.S.' This isn't the first time lawmakers have tried to enact this rule. In 2024, House Bill 1590, a similar piece of legislation, was introduced in the House but failed to become law. It referred the bill to interim study, and as a result, lawmakers brought forth HB 493 in 2025, an altered version of the previous attempt.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
I-Team: Connecticut nursing school closure impacting nurses in western Massachusetts
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. (WWLP) – A nursing school with multiple locations in Connecticut shut down suddenly two years ago. Now, some graduates of Stone Academy are being told they cannot work in Massachusetts. Two women from western Massachusetts are going through this. They spoke anonymously to the 22News I-Team about their current situation. They are both working as nurses, but they have to commute to Connecticut every day because they are unable to get a job closer to home in Massachusetts. State education board weighing minimum coursework requirements Stone Academy closed its three locations in East Hartford, Waterbury and West Haven abruptly in February of 2023. According to the Connecticut Office of Higher Education, Stone Academy had unqualified instructors, 'invalid' clinical experience opportunities and didn't adequately record student attendance. The school also reportedly had low pass rates. Practical nursing programs are required to have a pass rate of 80% on the National Council Licensure Examination known as the NCLEX. Instead, pass rates at Stone Academy ranged from 43% to 70%, according to Connecticut's Office of Higher Education. The two women who spoke to the 22News I-Team say they disagree with the state's assessment, and they both passed the NCLEX on their first try. 'The school was accredited. We took the national state boards and we passed. There is no reason we should not be able to work in the state we live in.' 'I work in a surgical center. I am in the OR. It's just me and a surgeon. If I wasn't qualified, I wouldn't be able to be the only other person in there with him.' A spokesperson for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health told the 22News I-Team that the Board of Nursing did an extensive review of all Stone Academy applicants to make sure they are eligible for licensure under state regulations. In a statement to 22News, the Department of Public Health said, 'The Board of Nursing implements a rigorous evaluation process of all nursing applications which includes review of educational criteria.' The Department of Public Health says the Nursing Board is now assessing whether the education received at Stone Academy was adequate, and if graduates need to complete another program that meets the Board's regulatory standards. Both women say they want the Massachusetts Board of Nursing to reconsider their evaluation of Stone Academy graduates so they can work closer to home. 'I'm restricted to where I can work. I can only stay local because I have children. If I could work close to home, I could work anywhere. But I'm very stuck in one place.' 'I want them to look at the students and realize they are not the school. It may have had problems, but we took our education into our own hands and made sure we learned everything we needed to learn to be able to be successful.' WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Nurse surrenders Iowa licenses, continues working in Nebraska
The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing administers the state's Board of Nursing and Board of Behavioral Health Professionals as well as other licensing boards. (Main photo by Getty Images; logo courtesy State of Iowa) An Iowa-licensed nurse has agreed to surrender his license after being accused of defying a previous board order aimed at restricting his practice. Iowa Board of Nursing records indicate that in July 2021, the board charged registered nurse and advanced registered nurse practitioner James 'Davin' Dickerson with practicing outside his scope of authorized practice by treating patients with complex mental health issues despite his lack of certification in psychiatric mental health. In January 2022, the case was settled with Dickerson agreeing to pay a $1,000 fine and to immediately stop treating patients with complex mental health issues. The agreement stipulated that Dickerson could continue to work as a generalist ARNP. In July 2022, Dickerson's case manager at the Board of Nursing reported Dickerson had successfully complied with all of the board's directives. In October 2024, however, the board alleged Dickerson had continued to see psychiatric patients at a mental health clinic in Omaha while also providing mental health services to Iowa patients while working from his home through telehealth technology. Those patients had complex mental health conditions, the board alleged. At the time, the board charged Dickerson with professional incompetency related to a willful or repeated failure to practice within his scope of licensure; professional incompetency for failure to meet telehealth standards; unethical conduct related to a failure to comply with an order of the board; and unethical conduct for distributing drugs to patients or who are outside his area of specialty. In order to settle the allegations, Dickerson recently agreed to surrender his RN and ARNP licenses with the state of Iowa. He can apply for reinstatement in one year. The decision has no direct impact on Dickerson's license to practice in Nebraska, where records indicate his RN license remains unencumbered. The website of Omaha's Counseling Connections & Associates currently indicates Dickerson works there as an 'independent contractor' and that he 'has experience working with numerous psychiatric disorders including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and attention deficit disorder.'
