(Photo courtesy of the Iowa Board of Nursing)
The Iowa Board of Nursing has suspended the license of a care facility nurse charged with stealing patients’ pain medications.
In November 2024, the board charged Cassie Forde of Mechanicsville, a licensed practical nurse, with misappropriating medications or supplies belonging to a patient or clinic; failing to properly document or perform the disposal of medications; performing nursing services beyond the authorized scope of practice; falsifying records related to nursing practice; and committing an act that might adversely affect the welfare of a patient.
According to the board, Forde worked at an unspecified care facility for 12 years, from April 2012 through May 2024. On May 4, 2024, she told a colleague at the care center that she had changed a resident’s fentanyl patch, used to deliver pain medication, several hours earlier than ordered and she instructed her colleague to sign out the patch and document that it was administered at the proper time, the board alleged.
When the co-worker refused, according to the board, Forde allegedly altered the medical records to indicate the patch was ordered to be changed at an earlier time and then documented she had disposed of the old patch without following the normal protocol of showing a witness the patch that was being discarded.
A subsequent check of the facility’s discarded patches allegedly indicated the patches Forde claimed to have discarded were not actually in the designated waste bin, according to the board.
The board recently agreed to settle the charges by suspending Forde’s license indefinitely pending the completion of a substance-abuse and mental-health evaluation. If her license is reinstated, it will be subject to one year of probation, during which time Forde will be enrolled in a chemical screening program.
No criminal charges were filed in the case. Online records posted by Iowa City’s Briarwood Healthcare Center indicate Forde worked at the facility in 2024.
Other Iowa nurses recently sanctioned by the board include:
Kayla Carlsten, a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner who practices in Muscatine, was recently charged by the board with participating in a relationship with a patient. According to the board, Carlsten admitted that she initiated an unspecified business relationship of some kind with a client she saw as a patient. She allegedly continued to see the client as a patient even after the business relationship was established. The board has ordered Carlsten to complete 24 hours of educational training on maintaining professional boundaries with patients.
Jaydan Landess, an emergency room registered nurse from Clarinda, was recently charged by the board with unauthorized use of a controlled substance. The charge was imposed after Landess allegedly admitted that he had tested positive for methamphetamine in March 2024, according to board records. The board issued Landess a warning and placed his license on probation for one year, during which time he’ll be required to enroll in a chemical screening program and participate in any recommended treatment programs. Landess, 28, told the Iowa Capital Dispatch he was working at the Clarinda Regional Health Center around the time of the drug test, and said the results had to have been a false positive as he has never used methamphetamine or any illicit drugs.