May 30, | nursing, med, NURS, Paper
Florida Fake Nursing Degree Scandal
Florida Fake Nursing Degree Scandal
Three Florida nursing schools sold over 7600 nursing degrees and transcripts worth millions in a scheme. It enabled aspiring nurses to become licensed nurses without going through professional training. The plan risks patient safety as nursing training aims to protect the public by setting minimum qualifications and consequences.
In this blog, you will learn about the nursing degree scandal, the nurses involved, and what schools have fake nursing degrees.
What is the fl nursing degree scandal?
Three schools in Florida are charged for selling over 7600 fake diplomas in the Florida Fake Nursing Degree Scandal. The people who purchase counterfeit degrees and transcripts sat for the national nursing board exam and attained a license without taking the required nursing training.
More than 24 people, including school directors, are accused of taking part in that illegal licensing and employment shortcut. An operation was carried out led by the justice department and the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG).
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The purchasing and selling degrees and transcripts to unqualified individuals is a crime, and it endangers the health and safety of patients and insults the honourable nursing profession. Such fraud disintegrates public trust in the healthcare system.
The scandal enabled people to obtain licenses and jobs in various states as registered nurses and vocational nurses. The schools in Florida which were involved in selling fake diplomas were closed, and the defendant was imprisoned. The department of justice and the inspector general’s health and human services office did an investigation called “Operation Nightingale.”
How many nurses have fake degrees?
Over 7600 people from the US acquired fake transcripts and degrees for which they paid an average of $15000. About 2400 nurses passed licensing exams as practical and registered nurses in several states. A nursing license aims to protect people from harm by placing minimum qualifications and competencies.
A special agent, Omar Perez, said, “Purchasing and selling nursing diplomas to unqualified and willing nurses is a crime that puts the safety and health of patients in danger.” The HHS-OIG continue investigating bad actors who ignore the well-being of others to enrich themselves.
The increased expenses of education tempted people to advance their careers by engaging in illegal activities instead of facing financial challenges and struggling to become nurses. The nurses’ names were not realised, but it was reported that many immigrants live in South Florida.
The fake nurses are not being charged, and the state nursing board is finding and annulling the licences. Delaware has annulled 26 licenses and Georgia 22, while 77 licenses are being reviewed in Washington. The affected states’ regulatory board is investigating the cases and acting according to the law.
Are the 7600 nursing degrees fake?
Yes, over 7600 aspiring nurses bought fraudulent diplomas and transcripts from the three nursing schools in Florida. Many of the nurses had been working in healthcare as certified nurse assistants or other positions, according to special agent Omar Perez Aybar.
The nurses paid between $10000 to $15000 for the fake degrees and transcripts, which made them qualify to sit for the NCLEX exam. About a third of the aspiring nurses, passed the exam, gained a license in different states, and later secured jobs at healthcare facilities. The scandal calls for state nursing board practices that could not detect fake licenses for many years.
The nurses with fake credentials work in pediatric homes, veteran’s hospitals, and assisted living centres in various states, which include Texas, Ohio, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, and Georgia.
What are the three fake nursing schools in Florida?
Three nursing schools sold fake nursing diplomas to more than 7600 aspiring nurses, allowing them to avoid the required training of becoming licensed nurses. Twenty-five defendants, including diploma recipients and school directors, were charged and imprisoned for 20 years if convicted.
Three schools in Florida sold 7600 diplomas worth $100 million. Schools involved are Siena college, Palm beach school of nursing, and Sacred Heart international institute, which are now all closed.
Siena college in Broward country
Siena college is in Broward country, licensed by the state board of nursing to offer a bachelor of science in nursing programs and practices. Eugene Sanon, who runs the college, and three other people were charged with recruiting aspiring nurses.
According to the criminal complaint, Sanon sold 2016 fake diplomas and transcripts, claiming that the students had completed the required training at the college, but they had not. Siena and others sold credentials to aspiring nurses who used them to obtain LPN/VN licenses in different states and secure jobs.
Palm beach school of nursing in palm beach country
Seven nurses obtained fake diplomas from the sunshine academy, Florida college of health, Quisqeya, and Palm Beach School of nursing, all owned by Johanah Napoleon. The seven nurses were licensed in New York, Ohio, Massachusetts, and New Jersey using fake diplomas.
The nurses acquired jobs in nursing homes that took in Medicaid and Medicare patients, where one of them worked at a Veterans Affairs-run home. Ten were involved in recruiting people to obtain fake degrees. Napoleon received large amounts for selling fake degrees and pleaded guilty to wire health care fraud.
The objectives of Palm Beach school of nursing were to prepare students to meet the licensing nursing board requirements to take the exam to work as registered nurses. The applicants used the credentials they purchased to look for nursing jobs throughout the country. Napoleon has pled guilty to committing health care fraud and wire fraud.
Sacred heart international institute in Broward country
Sacred heart international institute is a Broward county school licensed by the Florida board of nursing. The school offered a nursing program to prepare students for employment as practical nurses. The candidates used the fake diplomas they purchased to obtain licenses in different states and obtained jobs as healthcare providers.
According to court filings, Charles Etienne, the owner of sacred heart international school, sold 588 fake diplomas and transcripts with two others. The two other defendants, Gerald Adrien and Woosvelt Predestin completed online classes on behalf of purchasers. Adrien and Predestin are also named in the Siena college case.
How did they find out about fake nursing degrees?
The HHS-OIG, FBI, and the department of justice carried out a multistate operation named “Operation Nightingale” to get the people involved in an alleged scheme of selling nursing diplomas and transcripts. The operation was named after the founder of modern nursing, who developed the first science-based training.
The law enforcement and HHS-OIG executed search warrants across several states, including New York, Texas, Delaware, New Jersey, and Florida. More than 7600 registered and licensed practical nurses looked for jobs with fake diplomas in several states. The certification indicated that the individuals completed nursing training and coursework and acquired licensure. Yet they did not attend classroom or practicals.
Selling nursing degrees and transcripts to unqualified individuals is a crime, and it endangers the patient’s life and insults the honourable nursing profession. The alleged scheme aimed to provide a shortcut for many people to become nurses. The fraudulent credentials were first noted when an audit in Florida found out that the schools involved in the alleged scheme had poor passing rates.
What will happen to the nurses with fake degrees?
Many nurses with fake credentials find jobs in different states, which risks patients’ health. The investigation found no evidence of patient harm due to fake nurses. However, almost a third of the nurses still provide patient care. This fraud scheme was said to tarnish the reputation of nurses who complete the demanding coursework and clinical to obtain licenses and employment.
According to Delaware Nurses Association, some fake nurses are suspected of being affiliated with Delaware and may practice in the state. Delaware was the first state to announce that licenses had been cancelled. Investigators have identified some facilities where the fake nurses might be working and sharing the information with the state board of nursing.
The board of nursing is supposed to act against counterfeit nurses and ensure they are not practising. Forty-six nurses are discounted from working in New Jersey. The division of consumer Affairs cancelled the license of 20 nurses and temporarily revoked 26 others indicated in the “operation nightingale” database.
The nurses will make their cases to the board of nursing to reinstitute their licenses by proving they have acquired appropriate training and education. Participants are being persecuted in five separate cases. In each case, defendants face wired fraud-connected charges, which are imposed when a defendant communicates fraud using interstate electronics. The alleged scheme work in three parts;
The recruiters assisted aspiring nurses in acquiring fake transcripts and degrees
The qualified fraudulent recipient sits for the national nursing exam to acquire the license
After passing exams, the nurses become licensed in several states and get employed as licensed nurses.
Bottom line
The fraudulent nursing degree scandal demonstrates the attitude of healthcare systems. Charges were brought not for patient concern of safety but to protect the nursing reputation and profit interest. Some aspiring nurses with fake credentials work in healthcare systems, risking patients’ lives.
Nursing is an honourable profession that deals with human life and well-being, so you must undergo the required training and education without shortcuts and avoid issues similar to the Florida Fake Nursing Degree Scandal.
May 30, | nursing, med, NURS, Paper
Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay
Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay
Nursing documentation forms an integral part of the professional nursing practice. In the last few decades, the nursing profession has witnessed a change in the way documentation should be handled with countries all over the world adopting more sophisticated record-keeping systems. New systems have been designed, old ones re-evaluated and the nurses’ level of compliance with the legal framework monitored. Home health care involves a variety of healthcare services that are administered at home for ill or injured patients. In developed countries, home care is just as efficient as the care received in a skilled nursing facility, and it is relatively cheaper. Home, health care professionals, offer services such as wound care, patient education, therapy whether intravenous or nutritional, administer injections according to the treatment plan and monitor the progress of seriously ill and unstable patients. As home health care professionals, we ensure our patients get better, ensure they become more dependent and self-sufficient.
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Documentation in the nursing profession encompasses a wide range of issues and topics. Recordkeeping is perceived as an important element that enables practitioners, home care nurses and other health professionals to continue offering quality care, enhance patient safety and comply with the set recordkeeping guidelines. Proper documentation should be factual, up to date and comprehensive to ensure consistency in the various assessments conducted, healthcare provided, and a detailed evaluation of how the patient is responding to care (Keenan, Yakel, Tschannen, & Mandeville, 2008). According to Scruth (2014), modern documentation systems are designed to ensure continuous and quality patient care as legally required. Accurate and complete clinical records serve as a reliable source that aids communication, enhances research and assists the policymakers in designing a suitable legal framework. Inaccurate and incomplete documentation, on the other hand, fails to provide the necessary foundation for quality care provision, improvement and effective decision making regarding resource allocation (Obioma, 2017). Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay
Hypothesis
Errors in documentation can impede evaluation of the nursing care provided since it is incomprehensive and incomplete thus leading to poor patient outcomes, liability issues for the caregiver, and unnecessary health care costs to the patient. Poor documentation also prevents the health care provider from noticing when a patient’s condition worsens hence causing adverse events in health care. Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay.
Problem Statement
Home health care providers have to contend with heavy workloads in the modern world ranging from managing patient electronic health records, poor working conditions, difficult patients to lengthy and exhausting shifts. Documentation errors in home-based patients can also be contributed by poor environmental conditions, inadequate training, infrastructural challenges and lack of communication among other factors. The documentation procedures taught during initial training are usually inadequate since they contain un-updated information regarding documentation. Poor documentation hinders effective communication of the health status of the patient with other health care professionals leading to wrong decision making and poor patient outcomes.
Purpose of the Paper
The purpose of this research paper is to provide insights into documentation issues in the nursing profession, especially for home health care providers. The study will highlight the common documentation errors in nursing and how health care professionals can avoid and handle them. The paper analyses information from the various literature on documentation in nursing and is meant to enhance home care nurses’ knowledge and competence in matters pertaining to effective documentation of patient care. The paper is aimed at improving the nurses’ documentation skills and fill the knowledge gap left by previous research on the topic. Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay.
Theoretical Framework
Florence Nightingale is considered the mother of Nursing since she developed the first nursing theory. Florence’s theory focused on manipulating the patient’s surroundings to give the most comfortable recovery environments. The interpersonal model was introduced by Hildegard Peplau which perceives the interpersonal process as trying to develop a nurse-patient relationship. On her part, Ida Jean Orlando developed the three nursing elements that comprise a nursing situation; the elements include client behaviour, the nurse reaction and action. Other notable theorists introduced different concepts and models. For instance, the adaptation model by Sister Callista Roy views a human being as a unified bio-psychosocial system that requires constant interaction as environments change. According to the model, the goal of nursing is to assist the patient to adapt to his physiological needs during ill health (Fawcett, 1984).
Conceptual Framework
The nursing process model is an internationally accepted concept which dates back to the general systems theory and which formed a basis of scientific inquiry in the mid-20th century. Orlando (1961) was the first to describe the nursing process model through her problem-solving approach to nursing practice and documentation. The nursing process model was initially a four-step process that involved assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation. The fifth step, nursing diagnoses was added in a later version of the model, and the five-step approach is accepted to date. According to Meleis (1997), the nursing process model is the centrally accepted concept for both the nursing practice and documentation. The model is considered as the process where the caregiver and the patient interact and where the caregiver gets to understand the patient’s needs. The VIPS model is another commonly used model. Researchers argue that the VIPS model enhances a nurse’s understanding of the nursing process model (Meleis, 2011).
Literature Review and Synthesis
Previous studies have identified barriers to proper documentation and the source of errors in documenting patient records. According to Bjorvell (2002), most nurses perceive barriers to documentation as lacking adequate charting system, tight schedules, lack of value and inability to use correct phrasing. In another study where 14 registered nurses (RNs) were interviewed, reasons for errors in the documentation included overwhelming administration forms, insufficient time to document, inadequate knowledge regarding the practice and lack of a standardized nursing terminology. Among barriers identified by Bjorvell included an unwillingness to accept change, inability to understand the importance of documentation, inconsistent routines and schedules, unsupportive leadership and difficulties in recording (Wang, Björvell, Hailey & Yu, 2013). Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay.
Scholars have been attempting to enhance documentation in nursing by exploring and describing the methods of improving comprehensiveness in the documentation. Research in the area has been emphasized since documentation is an area of priority and forms an integral part of nursing practice. Most of the past studies have however been carried in a hospital setting. The few studies that focused on community health explored the overall comprehensiveness of nursing documentation in a home health care. According to Gjevjon & Helleso (2010), more studies need to be directed towards documentation errors in community settings since home-based care differs significantly from facility-based nursing. Previous research was conducted using paper-based medical records, but currently, most of the home health based patients are now electronic (Wang, Björvell, Hailey & Yu, 2013). Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay.
Nursing documentation has amassed significant interest among scholars and practitioners who have been putting efforts to its quality. Hughes (2008) argues that recent interventions in the field are as a result of deficits noted in home health record keeping. A recent study by Gershater et al. (2010) showed that there was insufficient documentation in home nursing. The inadequacy has led to a myriad of both professional and economic consequences. To reduce documentation errors, researchers suggest that educational training programs for healthcare professionals be introduced. Another study by Saranto & Kinnunen, (2009) involved an assessment of change in nurses’ behaviour especially regarding documentation practices after undertaking the educational and training programs. The study identified several documentation errors emphasizing the need for the introduction of such programs in the nursing profession (Wang, Hailey & Yu, 2011). Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay.
In a study by Urquhart and Currell, (2004) which compared variations in nursing record systems and their effect on the profession and the patient outcomes, it concluded that health caregivers experienced tension between the patient’s needs and the hospital’s heavily structured documentation system. In another literature review by Langowski where he compared the quality of health care and electronic health record (EHR). The study indicated that the quality of documentation improved with EHR (Green &Thomas, 2008). According to the American Nursing Association, some of the common nursing documentation errors include; failure to fill in the date, time and the signature of an entry. Another error arises when the nurse’s handwriting is sloppy or illegible which results in communication problems and confusion. Undocumented or omitted medications or treatments is another common error which might cost a patient their lives or a nurse her job. Omitted medications must be explained and signed against to avoid confusion. This should apply to medical charts or forms which have blank spaces left. Other common documentation errors include adding late entries, using inappropriate abbreviations and entering information in the wrong chart among others (American Nurses Association, 2010). Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay.
Conclusion and Recommendations
The study supports our hypothesis. Effective nursing documentation especially a system that focuses on the relevant health care aspects does actually result in better patient outcomes. The study also finds proper documentation as an aspect that enhances communication with colleagues and other healthcare professionals. Literature review reveals that errors in nursing documentation can be reduced through the introduction of educational and training programs to home health caregivers. Most of the studies that compared the documentation systems and patient’s outcomes revealed that training caregivers to use the structured documentation system enhances their record keeping and patient care planning skills. Training, however, must be used alongside other methods since the nursing profession is broad and covers a wide range of issues. The study also revealed the little amount of research on improving record keeping in home health care settings. Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay.
To bridge the knowledge deficiency in the nursing documentation issues especially in home healthcare settings, future research needs to focus on the topic so as to suggest ways in which we can improve the situation. New knowledge acquired through the different studies should be disseminated to the nursing professionals through training and educational programs since they have been found to address the information deficits. Both the VIPS and the nursing process models structures have been found to home health care alongside other minimum standards of nursing documentation. However, I would not recommend it in other settings since it is non-flexible in terms of documentation structure. Documentation in a home health care setting should include observations and regular assessments which indicate the patient progress and aid decision making. Errors in Home Care Nursing Documentation Essay
