A Nurse I work with is faking their CCRN credentials

[Gr8Murse]

The title says it all. I am a RN with a CCRN and CEN and am proud of that fact, I have worked hard for these certifications. One of the RN's I work with on my unit has failed both test on multiple occasions. The employer we work for has a deadline for us to complete these certifications (2 years) and if not completed by then we are terminated .

One of the RN's we work with has falsified their CCRN and CEN certifications so that they would not get fired. First I suspect the AACN and BCEN don't take this lightly. The AACN site states that to verify an RN's certification a signed release form from the RN needs to be submitted with the request. We then checked the "AACN congratulations to our newest members" online. (every month in the AACN magazine they publish the newest CCRN nurses.) Their name was not published their.

Can someone please guide me in an appropriate and anonymous way to deal with this. If you have any insight into this matter that would be greatly appreciated.

[tracel1]

Why are you working so hard to get this person fired!!!! It doesn't personally affected you unless you are her pt. My biggest concern if she is faking her RN License (which is to protect the public) . No pt has been harmed/ she is not taking narcartics!! It may be an oversight. Unless you are her supervisor you have NO buisness in her personal affairs and let her manager address this issue without you minding her buisness. Cause to look someone up monthly , you are trying to get her fired. Jobs are hard to come by this days.

[agldragonRN]

why are you working so hard to get this person fired!!!! it doesn't personally affected you unless you are her pt. my biggest concern if she is faking her rn license (which is to protect the public) . no pt has been harmed/ she is not taking narcartics!! it may be an oversight. unless you are her supervisor you have no buisness in her personal affairs and let her manager address this issue without you minding her buisness. cause to look someone up monthly , you are trying to get her fired. jobs are hard to come by this days.

i know. this does not affect the op or the patient care. her patients are considered safe now under her rn license so what is the difference. plus she said she had the certifications already so what is the op's problem. don't you have to provide copies of your certifications or something not just verbal? please explain how is she faking her certifications?

i know op that you worked hard for your certifications, but can you provide proof of your accusations? let the management deal with this when problems arise. and checking the web monthly is just petty.

as long as she is not faking her rn license then i don't see a problem. i am not saying faking certifications is ok but you have no proof. so let it go and spend your time with some thing else.

angel, rn

[roser13, ASN, RN]

Strongly disagree with the above 2 opinions. Imagine the initial "cheater" telling 2 nurses, who tell 2 nurses, who tell 2 others et al......just how easy it is to fake a certification in order to obtain/retain a job.

Unfortunately, I don't have any insight into how to accomplish an anonymous notification. I would think that starting with the accreditation organization rather than your employer would be the first step.

[traumaRUs, MSN, APRN]

First, I would be absolutely positively sure that she forged these certifications.

And....if you are sure, I would tell your manager.

Anonymously is for high school - in the real world, you own up to your own statements or in this case, accusations.

Again, I would want to be very very sure before I start to make trouble.

[tyvin, BSN, RN]

Boy this reeks of "let's hang em"; if you're concerned ask her. Instead of you and your head hunters (you said we checked) wasting your time trying to discredit someone why not get to know them. You might be pleasantly surprised.

She has her RN and you don't know the whole story. This one leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Talk to her; be professional.

[nicole109]

I agree--I think you need to be professional about it...It seems to me that there might be some bad blood between you and this other nurse if you are going this far out of your way to get her fired. Especially when it doesn't really pertain to you. Do I agree with what she is doing? Of course not, but would I be spending all of my time checking the website to see if she passed? Nope...if you really want to do something about it though, you shouldn't want to stand behind closed doors and hide your identity though--you do need to own up to yourself, otherwise you are no better than she is...both are childish games.

[netglow, ASN, RN]

I agree with Trauma. You had better be sure. If you are wrong, you will have ruined your reputation. Good luck with that.

[MattiesMama]

I think that you should be absolutely sure, and hendle it professionally. But I disagree with those who say it's "not a big deal", doesn't affect pt care, etc. The certification process for CCRN and CEN appears to be very rigorous and demands a LOT of time and effort. Looking the other way while someone cheats their way through is a slap in the face to all of the nurses who have put considerable time, effort, and money into earning that certification. And I disagree that it has no effect on patient care...if someone is willing to commit fraud for their own personal gain, they are showing a lack of ethics and integrity. I wouldn't want someone like that taking care of my loved one. And I'm assuming that you work in a high acuity setting if the certification is required. Quite frankly, if you can't pass the certification exam after being given 2 years for preparation, maybe you don't belong in that specialty.

[vintagechic13]

I completely agree that you need to be completely sure that she has done this, if its not true it could destroy her career. However, I completely disagree with the above posts that say its none of your business. If she has the nerve to fake her credentials, what else is she falsifying?

[himilayaneyes]

First...how can you be absolutely sure that she's faking her credentials. You have to have evidence to present to your manager. At my hospital, our managers have to sign off that they visually saw our certifications including things like BLS cards, RN license, and ACLS. So this may be an oversight on the part of management. I'd be concerned if she was faking her RN license, but faking a CCRN. Most hospitals don't require certification and still have awesome ICUs. Is she endangering her patients by not being a CCRN, although she has a RN license? This seems more like a job for management to do. And if you're going to report her, don't do it anonymously. If you're bold enough to accuse someone, you're bold enough to let them know who did it..especially since the accused has a right to face their accuser. Just please know that if you do this, you may cost this woman to lose her job and if you're wrong, you'll end up looking like a fool in the end. Plus, you will have made yourself an enemy. You reap what you sow, so hope you're sowing the right things.

P.S. It sounds like your peers and yourself have a lot of time on your hands if you're looking up everybody's name on a website to see if they're faking their credentials. I guess the real question is do you this to everyone (is this an unit expectation), are you really concerned about patient safety...or are you just out to get this woman? Please examine your motives before you make a decision.

[klone, MSN, RN]

First, I would be absolutely positively sure that she forged these certifications.

Yes, this.

Not seeing her name listed on their "congrats to new members" webpage is NOT proof positive that she's faking it. You better make DARN sure you're certain, and that you have actual concrete proof, before slinging any allegations.

And be an adult and professional about it - confront the RN in question herself. Don't be juvenile and do this anonymously.