Since the pandemic, there has been a growing number of people who are falsely claiming to be licensed nurses or working without valid credentials, The Washington Post reported Aug. 28.
Here is what to know:
1. Often referred to as “impostor nurses,” these individuals obtain positions commonly by using the credentials of someone with a similar or the same name. These people then treat patients, often without having any training or experience. Some have previous healthcare experience, while others bounce between facilities to avoid scrutiny.
2. There is no centralized database tracking reports of nurse impostors, making the scope of the problem difficult to identify. However, several states have begun keeping lists of people who have presented themselves as a nurse without evidence of a valid license or certificate to practice. Arizona lists more than 130 people between 2000 and 2024. Georgia has a list of more than 40 and Texas a list of 140 who were reported between 2003 and 2024.
3. The rise of identity theft to obtain nurse employment has been exacerbated by staffing shortages following the pandemic, differing regulations among states that often became more lenient to meet staffing needs, underfunded state nursing boards and lack of oversight in some healthcare facilities, Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, PhD, RN, president of the American Nurses Association, told the Post.
4. Enforcement of nursing vetting and credentialing is difficult as many state nursing boards, which hand out licenses and investigate complaints, tend to be understaffed and underfunded. This leads to delays that can allow suspected fraudulent nurses to flee to another state before being found out.
5. Becker’s has covered several nurse impostors in recent years. Nurse impostors made headlines in early 2023 after a Justice Department investigation charged 25 people with coordinating a scheme to sell 7,600 fake nursing degree documents. Fallout from Operation Nightingale had systems scrutinizing their nurses credentials and some state boards restricting licensing rules in an attempt to make it harder for nurses with fake diplomas to pass the National Council Licensure Examination.
In the two years since then, nurse impostors not connected to Operation Nightingale continue to be found across the country.
- In August, a Florida woman was arrested on charges of posing as a nurse and treating more than 4,000 hospital patients without a license.
- A Maryland woman was sentenced to five years of probation after she falsely represented herself as a registered nurse and worked as a nursing home’s RN supervisor in 2023.
- A Texas woman pleaded guilty to fraudulent use of identifying information after being accused of working as a nurse supervisor at two facilities.
- A woman was charged with 33 felony counts after police said she worked as a nurse at three skilled nursing facilities in Michigan without a license.
- An Ohio woman was charged with identity theft after she was accused of working as a nurse and physical therapist without proper credentials.
