Are there any specific questions you could ask to seperate registered nurses from impersonators?

Nurses General Nursing

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I'm worried that someone is impersonating a registered nurse online and giving dangerous advice. Are there some questions that could be asked, where the answers aren't easily found on Google, that could help establish if they are really a registered nurse?

0 Votes
Specializes in orthopedic/trauma, Informatics, diabetes.

look the person up in the state they live and see if they are registered with the BON.

I see people giving "medical" advice all the time. I have 2 T1 diabetic kids and am in a support group. Oy, the things I see. I try to gently remind others in the group that contacting their physician/provider is best.

13 Votes
5 minutes ago, mmc51264 said:

look the person up in the state they live and see if they are registered with the BON.

I see people giving "medical" advice all the time. I have 2 T1 diabetic kids and am in a support group. Oy, the things I see. I try to gently remind others in the group that contacting their physician/provider is best.

They are doing it anonymously though. Is there just a standard procedure or operating practice question I could ask that would highlight that they are lying about being a nurse?

0 Votes
3 hours ago, Whistler8612 said:

I'm worried that someone is impersonating a registered nurse online and giving dangerous advice. Are there some questions that could be asked, where the answers aren't easily found on Google, that could help establish if they are really a registered nurse?

No, there are not. Hopefully people on the receiving end of the advice have some common sense.

The best you can do is make a suggestion that encourages others to be cautious and to seek assistance from their actual health care providers.

7 Votes
6 hours ago, Whistler8612 said:

I'm worried that someone is impersonating a registered nurse online and giving dangerous advice. Are there some questions that could be asked, where the answers aren't easily found on Google, that could help establish if they are really a registered nurse?

I hope that person is not here on Allnurses because per the TOS we are not allowed to give medical advice, nor can anyone put credentials beside their name that they did not earn. I suspect there are some fakes here though, they seem to pop up everywhere.

6 Votes
Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.
15 hours ago, Whistler8612 said:

They are doing it anonymously though. Is there just a standard procedure or operating practice question I could ask that would highlight that they are lying about being a nurse?

No. Most nurses know a lot about a few topics related to their specialty or about the practices of a particular employer -- but don't know a lot about other specialties. In most cases, the more experienced you are as a nurse, the more that is true. So there is no piece of information that you can count on every nurse knowing -- but that is so obscure that a non-nurse couldn't find the answer.

5 Votes
Specializes in orthopedic/trauma, Informatics, diabetes.
15 hours ago, Whistler8612 said:

They are doing it anonymously though. Is there just a standard procedure or operating practice question I could ask that would highlight that they are lying about being a nurse?

No. Other than getting a RN license # there is no way to confirm. Lots of people know a lot about a lot of different things.

If I were to find a nurse that said she was an ortho nurse, I could ask questions specific to orthopedic nursing (I am also certified) but even then, they other person may not have the same experience or different experience.

I don't think you are going to be able to absolutely confirm if someone is a nurse by questioning them

4 Votes
Specializes in Pediatrics, Pediatric Float, PICU, NICU.

There's a possibility that they actually are a registered nurse and are still giving horrible advice online.

17 Votes
Specializes in Med Surg, Tele, PH, CM.

I'd like to think that no reputable RN would offer advice online, but I see it all the time. I am a Case Manager and my online advice is the same as my face-to-face advice:" See your provider as soon as possible and make sure you tell them this, this and this". It's easier with case management, because you can follow up with the doc. You have no idea how much damage can be done by giving medical advice online.

6 Votes
Specializes in Psych, Addictions, SOL (Student of Life).

I guess I would ask their name and license #. I once outed a fake nurse on-line and figured out the name and state from their username and profile details ran it through Nursys and bingo no license.

and if they do have a license and are stupid enough to offer this kind of advice they really deserve to be caught.

1 Votes

unless they revealed their name and their state, there’s no way to know.

0 Votes
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