That Nurse Might Be a Felon
On September 22 we featured an Asbury Park Press story, "Dozens of Felons Driving School Buses." Today we highlight a Los Angeles Times investigation, "Criminal Past Is No Bar to Nursing in California," by ProPublica's Tracy Weber and Charles Ornstein.
Dozens of nurses convicted of crimes, including sex offenses and attempted murder, have remained fully licensed to practice in California for years before the state nursing board acted against them, a Times investigation found.
The newspaper, in a joint effort with the nonprofit investigative news organization ProPublica, found more than 115 recent cases in which the state didn't seek to pull or restrict licenses until registered nurses racked up three or more criminal convictions. Twenty-four nurses had at least five.
In some cases, nurses with felony records continue to have spotless licenses -- even while serving time behind bars….
At times, the board's slow pace has put patients at risk.
Some nurses with convictions for drug or alcohol-related crimes later were accused of taking drugs intended for patients.
Before one nurse lost her license, she was twice convicted of drunk driving, failed to complete a rehabilitation program and later appeared drunk at three separate nursing jobs, according to the board's complaint against her.
latimes.com/news/local/la-me-nurses5-2008oct05,0,6417887.story
propublica.org/article/criminal-past-is-no-bar-to-nursing-in-california/