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The Iowa Board of Nursing has suspended the license of a Cedar Rapids nurse it had accused of using methamphetamine and stealing patient medications or supplies.
State records indicate that in 2023, Trenton R. Buchanan was working in Iowa as a hospital nurse. On Oct. 28, 2023, he was arrested at an Altoona campground near Adventureland after police were called to the scene in response to a report of an assault and a dispute involving a weapon of some kind.
Buchanan was searched and police allegedly found two loaded hypodermic syringes, three syringe needles, and two bags of a substance believed to methamphetamine. Police alleged Buchanan admitted to using meth over the previous two days.
Buchanan later pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of methamphetamine and was sentenced to one year of probation. He was then granted a deferred judgment that could result in the conviction being expunged from court records.
In January 2024, the Board of Nursing charged Buchanan with committing an act that may adversely affect a patient, misappropriating patient supplies or medications, unauthorized possession of a controlled substance, and the unauthorized use of drugs that may impair his ability to practice.
According to the board, the charges stemmed from Buchanan’s arrest and from the board’s determination that while working at an unspecified Iowa hospital in April 2023, Buchanan stole needles and syringes from the hospital and left the facility without notifying anyone. The board alleges a patient of Buchanan’s then “had an event that required advanced response.”
Board records give no indication as to the patient’s outcome.
In August, the board agreed to settle its case with Buchanan by dropping the disciplinary charges of misappropriating patient supplies or medications and the unauthorized use of drugs that may impair his ability to practice.
As part of the settlement, Buchanan agreed to a 24-month suspension of his Iowa nursing license.