HJBR May/Jun 2023

40 MAY / JUN 2023  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE   Healthcare Briefs District member institution investigators, provid- ers, and employees. “With the generous support of the EDA and in conjunction with our partners at BRAC and Pen- nington, we are excited to offer this opportu- nity for our Baton Rouge Health District member institutions,” said Steven Ceulemans, MD, Baton Rouge Health District executive director. “This initiative will create a launchpad to strengthen innovation, increase a culture of health, and make Baton Rouge a destination for healthcare at the heart of a healthy and vibrant community.” With funding from the EDA – Build to Scale Program, the Baton Rouge Health District estab- lished the Baton Rogue Health-Tech Catalyst in collaboration with the Baton Rouge Area Cham- ber (BRAC) and Pennington Biomedical Research Center. The Launchpad Innovation Pilot Awards support collaborative proposals for novel approaches that further the Health District priorities of: • Healthy Place — to be a vibrant and acces- sible destination that promotes healthy liv- ing beyond the hospital walls. • Health Education and Workforce — to be a center for advanced education, clinical practice, and workforce development in healthcare. • Health Innovation and Research — to pro- vide a platform for innovation and research partnerships that improve health out- comes and contribute to care advance- ment through technology adoption and development. • Healthcare Coalition — to be a model for resource coordination to facilitate patient- centric, value-driven care. The 2023 Launchpad Innovation Pilot Awards succeed a successful inaugural funding cycle, which awarded three innovative projects with $30,000 each in May 2022. The May award win- ners are listed below: • BRG Fit! Total Health and Wellbeing — Baton Rouge General, in partnership with EBR School System. • Increasing Endometrial Cancer Awareness and Cure for Louisiana Women — Penning- ton Biomedical Research Center, in part- nership with Our Lady of the Lake Hospital, Woman’s, and LSU Health Science Center - New Orleans. • Palliative Care Program for Persons Living with Dementia — Pennington Biomedical Research Center, in partnership with Our Lady of the Lake Hospital. For more information and to access Launch- pad materials, visit www.brhealthdistrict.com/ launchpad. Karen Lyon, CEO, LA State Board of Nursing Comments on Fraudulent Nursing Degrees The Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office of Southern District of Florida, recently announced, that 25 defendants were charged in a scheme to sell and obtain fraudulent nursing degrees for the purpose of obtaining a license and practicing as a nurse. Louisiana State Board of Nursing CEO/Executive Director Karen C. Lyon, PhD, MBA, APRN-CNS, NEA, stated, “As of January 27, 2023, three individuals on the FBI list have connections to Louisiana. Louisiana State Board of Nursing staff acted swiftly in respond- ing to each of these individuals and is commit- ted to safeguarding the life and health of citizens of Louisiana by assuring persons practicing as Registered Nurses and Advanced Practice Reg- istered Nurses are competent and safe.” [Pub- lished online with Healthcare Journals of Baton Rouge and New Orleans on Feb. 7] As an update, Lyon added, “Operation Night- ingale (the FBI’s name for the investigation) con- tinues, and we are provided names of nurses who may be on the affidavits provided by the fraudu- lent schools and the defendants that have been arrested by the FBI. We received another list on Friday, and we continue to vet the names of any individuals who appear on the lists who may have Louisiana licenses.” In a recent Q & A with Lyon, she provided the following answers to Healthcare Journal’s ques- tions on the situation: Q: How many licensees were there in Louisiana? A: Only six were on the original list, and two of them were removed immediately because they were able to provide us their official documents, including legal transcripts and with documented course work. Of the four remaining, two appli- cants’ applications had expired, and they were not licensed. Of the remaining two, one never responded to our requests for documentation and that person was blocked from licensure. The remaining one did come in during the emergency COVID declaration by the Governor under the SNAP program. I do not know where the nurse practiced during the COVID emergency, but when their license came up for renewal in 2022, we did not renew them because they failed to provide us with proper documentation of licen- sure in any state. Q: How was the board informed about it? A: The FBI brought all state boards of nursing into the investigation in September 2022. At that time, they provided lists of names of nurses in all jurisdictions that appeared on the affidavits provided by the defendants in the case, includ- ing Louisiana. Q: How long had they been working in Louisiana? A: As above, only one worked here and it was dur- ing the COVID emergency. I cannot tell you how long the person worked here because the nurse came in under SNAP. Q: How many cases like this have there been in the past? A: To my knowledge, none. Q: From the board’s perspective, what should the healthcare industry know about this particu- lar situation, and what should the public know? Was damage caused? A: The responsibility for this alleged fraud rests squarely on the shoulders of the perpetrators. This was a brazen attempt to misuse nursing edu- cation programs. Nursing regulatory bodies are constantly working to ensure that all nurses and candidates are legitimate, and we are commit- ted to fully resolving this matter. This is an ongo- ing investigation and each individual is afforded due process. We cannot assume that every indi- vidual identified in the authorities’ investigations obtained illegitimate educational credentials. As with any case involving potential revocation or other action on an individual’s nursing license, we are following our state’s required processes, including appropriate due process steps. Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center Recognized by ASCO, ACR Mary Bird Perkins’ radiation and medical oncol- ogy services have earned recognition from the