Kingston, Ont. hospital says former employee lied about being a nurse

A Kingston, Ont., hospital says it has fired an employee and launched an investigation after it was revealed they lied about being a registered nurse.

Kingston Health Sciences Centre says it has launched an investigation following the termination of an employee found to have fraudulently gained employment with KHSC by submitting false information.

The hospital says the employee worked primarily in the post-surgical unit (Kidd 6) at the Kingston General Hospital (KGH) site from July 22, 2022, to Jan. 27, 2023.

They also worked some shifts on additional units between Dec. 1, 2022, and Jan. 27, 2023, including the Admission and Transfer Unit, Connell 10, Kidd 9, Connell 9, Davies 5, Kidd 5, Kidd 4, Johnson 3, Kidd 3 and Connell 3.

“This individual undertook significant efforts to fraudulently gain employment with KHSC including providing extensive forged documentation of their qualifications and credentials,” says Jason Hann, executive vice-president of patient care and chief nursing executive.

“The fraudulent activity was identified through a routine, scheduled check with the CNO, that is completed for all nurses employed at KHSC and we quickly took action to end the individual’s employment.”

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KHSC says it has informed the appropriate authorities, including the CNO and Kingston police. In addition to conducting its own internal investigation, KHSC says it will fully co-operate with any investigation by these external agencies.

The hospital says its internal investigation will focus on determining the impact on patients and their families.

It is in the process of contacting individual patients and families who were cared for by the former employee, to provide more direct information on its findings.

“We understand the stress and anxiety this news may cause for our patients and other KHSC staff. We will work directly with the impacted patients, families, and staff to address their concerns,” said Dr. David Pichora, president and CEO.

“We are committed to providing patients and their families with safe, high-quality care at all times and we are committed to speaking with each individual that reaches out to us using the contact information that has been provided to the patients who have been impacted.”