By Wanja Waweru
four Kenyans are among ten people who have had their licenses revoked by the Washington Department of Health (WDH) as a result of a fake diploma scandal that has shaken the nursing industry.
The impacted registered nurses, some of whom were duped, did not adequately substantiate their eligibility for licensure.
The revocation comes in response to January revelations that three South Florida-based schools had issued an estimated 7,600 bogus credentials that permitted students to sit for national nursing board exams and acquire licenses as registered nurses in a number of states.
“In conjunction with ongoing investigations into the legitimacy of multiple Florida-based nursing schools, the Washington State Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission (NCQAC) has taken non-disciplinary action to rescind the nursing (RN) license of the following individuals…” said WDH in a statement.
The licenses of Ndungu Gabriel, Waithera Irene, Kamau Ruth, and Nganga Elizabeth, four Kenyans, have been revoked.
In addition, the NCQAC has refused four more people their right to practice as registered nurses in Washington because they couldn’t demonstrate their credentials.
When the commission began getting applications for licensure with school transcripts that differed noticeably from the usual transcripts, officials became suspicious.
The FBI received help from nursing regulatory agencies in identifying the three Florida nursing schools accused of forging diplomas in return for fees ranging from $10,000 to $15,000.
The institutions are Palm Beach School of Nursing, Sacred Heart International Academy, and Siena College.
Concerns about public safety and how nurses are perceived have been voiced in light of federal prosecutors’ discovery of the fraud.
