Woman with no medical training caught 'working as hospice nurse for second time'
A woman with no medical qualifications or training has allegedly been caught working as a nurse for a second time.
Leticia Gallarzo was busted working as a senior in a Hospice Care facility in Michigan, despite being unqualified police have said. The 48-year-old was working as a unit manager and overseeing nurse assistants as they cared for patients receiving end-of-life care.
Gallazo allegedly applied for the job using a fake driver's licence number. She submitted a document claiming to be a 'Master of Science in Nursing' degree certificate from George Washington University before sending a photograph of a nursing licence belonging to another woman with the same first name to her employee.
She was hired but when her fingerprints were taken as part of a background check it was flagged that she had been previously "permanently excluded from working in a setting that provided direct services to a patient or resident of a nursing home, hospice facility or other similar facilities," a criminal complaint filed in the US District Court in the Western District of Michigan. detailed.
The FBI investigated the case and said that she had been previously excluded after a federal criminal conviction for impersonating a nurse in Texas. Gallarzo was convicted for practising nursing without a license in Texas from 2015-2016.
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Gallarzo allegedly worked in a Hospice in Michigan without qualifications or a licence (Getty Images)Police searched Gallazo's home and found a copy of a Michigan nursing license belonging to her co-worker as well as a forged state driver’s license. Investigators say that not only does Gallarzo not have a valid nursing license but that she had never attended the George Washington University at all and therefore has not undergone any medical training, the Detroit News reports.
“The allegations, in this case, involving a woman faking as a professionally licensed nurse are dangerous and put unsuspecting patients in harm’s way,” Grand Rapids U.S. Attorney Mark Totten said in a Wednesday statement. “My office takes these accusations very seriously."
"Any unqualified person who poses as a medical professional puts the lives of innocent patients at risk, as alleged in this case,” said Devin J. Kowalski, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan.
Gallarzo has been charged with identity theft related to the transfer of the means of identification of another person. If convicted, she faces up to 15 years in prison.
To become a registered nurse and work in Michigan applicants must have completed an approved professional nursing program and pass a licensing exam. Nurses must then ensure they have at least 25 hours working in contact with patience each year in order to renew their licences.
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