Group One background checks

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Okay, not from Texas, but very scared of Group 1.....sounds illegal though. Is this not slander? Could they not be sued in a huge class action suit for libel??? I think one of you needs to find a VERY prominent and hungry attorney (just open your eyes:) and look into this. I am sure this is very illegal. Anyone know of any other states that do this?? I just threw up in my mouth thinking about it.

One thing that keeps getting missed about Group One is that they aren't only there for the hiring of nurses....most of the hospital systems run EVERYONE through Group One...from environmental services to nurse practitioner to CRNA. I had a Group One file long before I went to nursing school, due to working in healthcare for 20 years. I've only known of one person who was denied employment due to Group One and she finally admitted that she lied on her application concerning a criminal charge that resulted in probation years ago...she answered NO to have you ever been convicted.

Jamie

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Most hospitals that are GP1 clients, run background checks on everyone from the president to the janitor. Anyone who has access to patients whether it is in the OR, the ER,the patient room or the cafeteria must have a background according to Texas state law.

GroupOne does not "blackball" people. It is not their decision to make whether you are hired or not. Each Hospital has it's own set of regulations. Some won't hire you if you have anything negative on the report. Others let a few things slide. Texas law prohibits hospitals from hire people with felonies and certain class c misdemeanors. Certain "crimes against humanity" will be reported forever. Some of these are Rape, aggravated assault, sodomy, child endangerment, cruelty to animals, etc. You can see the patern. If someone would do something like that, could you trust them with the infirm.

GroupOne just reports what it finds. Clients of GroupOne have a "get what you give" arrangement. Say for instance if a certain member hospital does not want to give "reason for termination", they will not see that information when they run a check. Many places only give dates of employment and job title. Not knowing why someone was let go could lead to that individual getting right back in to his prime target ground.

Now lets look at some hypothetical situations. What if Joe Pedifile gets hired as a patient transporter at the hospital. A GroupOne was run, but the reporting hospital didn't want to comment on "reason for termination". There goes Joe wheeling your young son or daughter down the hallway to x-ray or who knows where else. Ok, so that was a little drastic. How about an elderly lady who had her appendix out and has just ben put on solids. Her stomach is upset and she can't keep anything down. She rings the call light several times. Nobody comes because they are too busy taking up the slack for a "no show". She lies in her own vomit and cries for at one time she had dignity, now she is reduced to the status of an animal. Finally her roommate calles for help and is told that Ms, X already had been given something for her upset stomach and she would just have to live with it. Far fetched? No, I was the roommate who was getting sick from the smell. I am not a rat, so when asked how my stay was, I lied through my teeth and said "oh it was great", "my nurses were so nice and attentive".

But really, don't you think patients deserve a little respect? I know, I know, patients are rude, cranky and demanding.....but if it were your grandma, mother, child, wouldn't you want the very best, caring, nurses taking care of them. Jees, my husband and children are the worst cranks of all when they are sick, but I still give them my best. I would never let them lie in their own vomit.

And what is this "no show" business, like nobody is depending on you! You can just walk out or not show up, leaving the already short staff to take up the slack. Apparently you have never been on the other end of the stick. Never worked a 12 hour shift and are looking forward to going home only to find out that the person who was supposed to come in and relieve you decided this is not her "thing". You're right, I can't see why anyone would consider THAT irresponsible.

It boils down to the fact that groupOne is trying to get Quality nurses into the hospitals. If your employer reports something untrue about you, they are the ones you should be mad at not GroupOne. If you did do something stupid or irresponsible you have no one to blame but yourself.

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Specializes in ED, ICU, PACU.
Most hospitals that are GP1 clients, run background checks on everyone from the president to the janitor. Anyone who has access to patients whether it is in the OR, the ER,the patient room or the cafeteria must have a background according to Texas state law.

GroupOne does not "blackball" people. It is not their decision to make whether you are hired or not. Each Hospital has it's own set of regulations. Some won't hire you if you have anything negative on the report. Others let a few things slide. Texas law prohibits hospitals from hire people with felonies and certain class c misdemeanors. Certain "crimes against humanity" will be reported forever. Some of these are Rape, aggravated assault, sodomy, child endangerment, cruelty to animals, etc. You can see the patern. If someone would do something like that, could you trust them with the infirm.

GroupOne just reports what it finds. Clients of GroupOne have a "get what you give" arrangement. Say for instance if a certain member hospital does not want to give "reason for termination", they will not see that information when they run a check. Many places only give dates of employment and job title. Not knowing why someone was let go could lead to that individual getting right back in to his prime target ground.

Now lets look at some hypothetical situations. What if Joe Pedifile gets hired as a patient transporter at the hospital. A GroupOne was run, but the reporting hospital didn't want to comment on "reason for termination". There goes Joe wheeling your young son or daughter down the hallway to x-ray or who knows where else. Ok, so that was a little drastic. How about an elderly lady who had her appendix out and has just ben put on solids. Her stomach is upset and she can't keep anything down. She rings the call light several times. Nobody comes because they are too busy taking up the slack for a "no show". She lies in her own vomit and cries for at one time she had dignity, now she is reduced to the status of an animal. Finally her roommate calles for help and is told that Ms, X already had been given something for her upset stomach and she would just have to live with it. Far fetched? No, I was the roommate who was getting sick from the smell. I am not a rat, so when asked how my stay was, I lied through my teeth and said "oh it was great", "my nurses were so nice and attentive".

But really, don't you think patients deserve a little respect? I know, I know, patients are rude, cranky and demanding.....but if it were your grandma, mother, child, wouldn't you want the very best, caring, nurses taking care of them. Jees, my husband and children are the worst cranks of all when they are sick, but I still give them my best. I would never let them lie in their own vomit.

And what is this "no show" business, like nobody is depending on you! You can just walk out or not show up, leaving the already short staff to take up the slack. Apparently you have never been on the other end of the stick. Never worked a 12 hour shift and are looking forward to going home only to find out that the person who was supposed to come in and relieve you decided this is not her "thing". You're right, I can't see why anyone would consider THAT irresponsible.

It boils down to the fact that groupOne is trying to get Quality nurses into the hospitals. If your employer reports something untrue about you, they are the ones you should be mad at not GroupOne. If you did do something stupid or irresponsible you have no one to blame but yourself.

Sure sounds like you have a vested interest in Group One. The truth is that it is a guise acting under the name of a consumer reporting agency formed by many of the hospitals in the DFW area; therefore, these hospitals ARE responsible for creating a system that will blackball people. Criminal backgrounds are easily found out through the standard criminal background check so there is no need for GP1 to duplicate the effort. When a hospital employee (any manager for a hospital) or an staffing agency employee, has been given the ability to contact an agency formed by the DFW hospital association, with the intent to report a healthcare worker for a subjective offense, with the intent to make it public knowledge with the purposeful intent to restrict that person's ability to find employment with other "group" members-you have BLACKBALLING. All the sugar coating of terminology and trying to justify GP1 as a public service organization doesn't change the truth of what it really is.

Noticed that your only posts have to do with defending GP1-how about fessing up why you like them so much.

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I am not ashamed to confess why I support GroupOne. I know several people who work there. I know the man who started the company. And I go to church with a couple of ladies who work there. They are all normal people who have families, go to church (or not) play sports (or not) are on the pta (or not). They go through the same ups and downs in life that the rest of us do. Marriages, births, deaths of co-workers and family members. The group is as diversified as any group can be. Single mothers, to grandmothers. Every race to every shape. But, the two things they all have in common is that they must be licensed private investigarors, and they all have the desire to improve the quality of patient safety and health care. They put on the Annual Awards Luncheon each year. This is not a luncheon to honor themselves, but a luncheon to recognize outstanding health care professionals. As a nurse, I have attended several of these luncheons and have had the pleasure of meeting several of the GP1 staff who are always on hand to assist and give directions.

I don't know I just like the idea of someone looking out for the little guy.

In a perfect world we wouldn't need a "watchdog", but unfortunately that is not the case.

Oh and the posts about groupone are not the only ones I have made.

Anything else you want to know about me?

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I don't know I just like the idea of someone looking out for the little guy.

In a perfect world we wouldn't need a "watchdog", but unfortunately that is not the case.

Since when are multi billion dollar companies "the little guys" ? Am I missing something ? The one nurse who needs to pay their bills and can't because some sleaze supervisor made a pass at them and got their face slapped and now she can't find a job is the little guy. The guy who got reported because his supervisor didn't like the fact that he slept around ON HIS OWN TIME is the little guy. How about the nurse who mentioned the word union in earshot of the wrong person ? Nurses have enough watchdogs between Law enforcement, the board of nursing, patient advocate groups, the dept of aging , evening news etc. We are one of the most regulated professions in this country and a system used to depress wages and BLACKBALL nurses is not necessary.

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You do not need a lawyer to dispute your GroupOne background check.

1. Not all employers ask for a credit check. This is usually only if you will be handleing money or have access to it.

2. Write a letter to GroupOne requesting a copy of your "consumer report". In the letter include your full name, date of birth, ssn and daytime phone number. Make sure to sign the letter. You can also go to the window and fill out a form to get a copy. Once you have determined if anything on your report is negative, you may initiate a dispute. Employers have 30 days to respond to the item in question. As mentioned somewhere else on these forums, often hr people have changed, the office is too busy, etc and they don't get around to responding. Without their resopnse, Gp1 has to remove the information permanetly.

Everyone should get a copy of their GP1. Just like it makes good sense to get a copy of your credit report, it is important to know what is on your GroupOne. I got a copy of mine just to see what all was on it. Fortunately nothing negative was on it, but you never know what will show up. If you get a ticket and forget to pay for it, it could show up as an outstanding warrant. That happened to a friend of mine and it took her forever to clear it up.

One other bit of information. You must give your permission to have a background check run. If you get negative information on your groupone, ask the reporting employer for a copy of your "release". If they did not get one from you before conducting a background check, they could be in big trouble with the FCRA. That will give you plenty of leverage in getting them to remove the negative information.

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Specializes in Operating Room.

Upon hire, I was told the hospital had the right to turn a GN in to Group One if the GN decided to break the promised time frame of work after the internship.

(The particular hospital does not have a contract with the GN.)

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You do not need a lawyer to dispute your GroupOne background check.

1. Not all employers ask for a credit check. This is usually only if you will be handleing money or have access to it.

I am not sure but you must not be a nurse. I have been a nurse for 14 years now and every employer I have had has done a credit check. ALL OF THEM. From the hospital to the free clinic and I have NEVER handled money. They are nosy and want leverage.

One other bit of information. You must give your permission to have a background check run. If you get negative information on your groupone, ask the reporting employer for a copy of your "release". If they did not get one from you before conducting a background check, they could be in big trouble with the FCRA. That will give you plenty of leverage in getting them to remove the negative information.

And after you "get them in big trouble" they will hire you? I think not. If its like the credit check the release is on the last page of your application where you sign that you want a job and please process my application. They won't even consider you for a job without the release so what is the point of your earlier statement? The bottom line is that you can't refuse and are stuck. THATS the idea. That you can't work in area hospitals without being subjected to this. Its like electronic slavery. Do or say the wrong thing and you are toast. Life has a way of showing us up close and personal when we walk around with our head in the sand. Know that we will be here in the forums for you when the little guys come after you.

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Okay, I thought I could give valuable insight on how gp1 works and ways to fight the bad info reported about all of us, but it seems that no-one wants to listen to truth and would rather dwell on urban legends. I'll mind my own business from now on. Good-by and have great lives.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Rehab,Acute LTC ,PCU.
I am not ashamed to confess why I support GroupOne. I know several people who work there. I know the man who started the company. And I go to church with a couple of ladies who work there. They are all normal people who have families, go to church (or not) play sports (or not) are on the pta (or not). They go through the same ups and downs in life that the rest of us do. Marriages, births, deaths of co-workers and family members. The group is as diversified as any group can be. Single mothers, to grandmothers. Every race to every shape. But, the two things they all have in common is that they must be licensed private investigarors, and they all have the desire to improve the quality of patient safety and health care. They put on the Annual Awards Luncheon each year. This is not a luncheon to honor themselves, but a luncheon to recognize outstanding health care professionals. As a nurse, I have attended several of these luncheons and have had the pleasure of meeting several of the GP1 staff who are always on hand to assist and give directions.

I don't know I just like the idea of someone looking out for the little guy.

In a perfect world we wouldn't need a "watchdog", but unfortunately that is not the case.

Oh and the posts about groupone are not the only ones I have made.

Anything else you want to know about me?

...Hmm....You are very defensive of Group One... This entity has ruined so many good nurses work oppourtunities in North Texas because some supervisor got "****** off" and other petty crap....They disguise themselves a credit reporting agency. Some facilities won't even talk to you to discuss what is on this report. If their intentions were pure, they would have made themselves well known publicly when they first started. Most nurses were "suprised" to learn they had a negative report or had never even heard of Group One until a few years ago. By hiding themselves as a credit report, this allows them to get or to give out negative information about a nurse which would normally be illegal to obtain. As employers cannot release negative information about you that could stop you from gaining employment elsewhere. They also get salary information too. And it is a service that is not needed. You get a license verification from the BON, a criminal background check ,a drug screen and personal references, education check and in some instances proficiency tests, lastly face to face interview. All of this can be obtained, as it has been for many years, "without" Group One. And the abuses run rampant. And they walk hand in hand with HCA facilities and their agency minions.:angryfire

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i know, i know, i promised to stay out of this forum, and was even thanked to do so, but then it would be rude of me not to reply to something directed to me right?!. so this is really long-winded and it you have already set your mind that gp1 is the bad guy, don't even waste your time reading this.

i am truely sorry that some of you only see this big boogey man, but these are the facts no matter what you want to believe.

a. gp1 does not disguise themselves as a "credit reporting agency" they are a licensed "consumer reporting agency". they will only run a "credit report" if it is requested by the facility.

b. the fact that facilities won't talk to a person about his/her gp1 report is not the fault of gp1. if the facility won't discuss the issue with him/her and he/she wants to know what is on his/her report, by all means he/she should write in and request a copy.

c. gp1 is celebrating it's 20th year. since i have known about it for 20 years, it can't be that big of a secret. since it is based in north texas, i have seen interviews with the former president of the company and the current director on local t.v. and i have read several articles about it in "the dallas morning news". just because one is not aware of something doesn't mean it is a "secret society". i don't know anything about "pre-check", "sur-scan", "hireright", and all the other cras, but that doesn't mean they are "hiding themselves".

d. gp1 does not obtain information illegally. please read the fair credit reporting act for more information on what is legal to report and what is not legal to report.

e. to quote you: "and it is a service that is not needed. you get a license verification from the bon, a criminal background check, a drug screen and personal references, education check and in some instances proficiency tests, lastly face to face interview. all of this can be obtained, as it has been for many years, "without" group one"

my answer: who do you think has been doing this stuff for the past 20 years. do you think hr does this stuff? no, they outsource it to gp1, who verifies licenses through the board of nursing, checks criminal backgrounds through actual searching at county courthouse records, previous education and job verification with the information an applicant provides on their application.

what frustrates me, is that everyone gets mad at gp1. they are the ones who are following the laws. it is facility hrs that either don't get accurate information from applicants, type it in wrong, or omit pertinent information all together ie, maiden names, other last names, that an applicant may have worked or graduated under, correct phone #'s to former employers, etc. then when gp1 can't verify the information provided the facility recruiter will call the supervisor (which as a cra, gp1 does not do, because that is considered subjective information and gp1 only uses documented information from hr records) and start chatting and getting all the lowdown on the applicant. that is where your bad information comes from.

i approched the nurses station one afternoon where my supervisor was telling everything she knew to an hr director from another facility about one of my co-workers. i told her she could cause our facility to get sued for giving out that information because she was not authorized by hr. she told me to mind my own business or get written up. this is where the bad info comes from.

believe what you want to but i think we work for the boogey man!

please see the following information which was obtained with the minimum amount of effort on my part.

pre-employment screening in the us

laws

due to the sensitivity of the information contained in consumer reports and certain records, there are a variety of important laws regulating the dissemination and legal use of this information. most notably, the fair credit reporting act (fcra) regulates the use of consumer reports (which it defines as information collected and reported by third party agencies) as it pertains to adverse decisions, notification to the consumer, and destruction and safekeeping of records. if a consumer report is used as a factor in an adverse hiring decision, the consumer must be presented with a "pre-adverse action disclosure," a copy of the fcra summary of rights, and a "notification of adverse action letter." consumers are entitled to know the source of any information used against them including a consumer reporting agency

types of checks

there are a variety of types of investigative searches that can be used by potential employers. many commercial sites will offer specific searches to employers for a fee. services like these will actually perform the checks, supply the company with adverse action letters, and ensure compliance throughout the process. many employers choose to search the most common records such as criminal records, driving records, and education verification. other searches such as sex offender registry, credential verification, reference checks, credit reports and patriot act searches are becoming increasingly common. employers should consider the position in question when determining which types of searches to include, and should always use the same searches for every applicant being considered for one position.

reasons

they are frequently conducted to confirm information found on an employment application. they may also be conducted as a way to further differentiate potential employees and pick the one the employer feels is best suited for the position. laws exist to prevent those who do not pass a criminal check from working in careers involving the elderly, disabled, or children.

possible information included

the amount of information included on a check depends to a large degree on the sensitivity of the reason for which it is conducted--e.g., somebody seeking employment at a minimum wage job would be subject to far fewer requirements than somebody applying to work for the fbi.

criminal and incarceration records driving and vehicle records: employers in the transportation sector seek drivers with clean driving records. education records: these are used primarily to see if the potential employee had in fact received a college degree, graduate degree, or some other accredited university degree. employment records: these usually range from simple verbal confirmations of past employment and timeframe to reason for termination.

financial information: credit scores, liens, civil judgments, or bankruptcy may be included in the report.

licensing records: a government authority that has some oversight over professional conduct of its licensees will also maintain records regarding the licensee, such as personal information, education, complaints, investigations, and disciplinary actions. military records: although not as common today as it was in the past fifty years, employers frequently requested the specifics of one's military discharge. social security number: (or equivalent outside the us). a fraudulent ssn may be indicative of identity theft, insufficient citizenship, or concealment of a "past life".

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Specializes in ED, ICU, PACU.
i know, i know, i promised to stay out of this forum, and was even thanked to do so, but then it would be rude of me not to reply to something directed to me right?!. so this is really long-winded and it you have already set your mind that gp1 is the bad guy, don't even waste your time reading this.

i am truely sorry that some of you only see this big boogey man, but these are the facts no matter what you want to believe.

a. gp1 does not disguise themselves as a "credit reporting agency" they are a licensed "consumer reporting agency". they will only run a "credit report" if it is requested by the facility.

b. the fact that facilities won't talk to a person about his/her gp1 report is not the fault of gp1. if the facility won't discuss the issue with him/her and he/she wants to know what is on his/her report, by all means he/she should write in and request a copy.

c. gp1 is celebrating it's 20th year. since i have known about it for 20 years, it can't be that big of a secret. since it is based in north texas, i have seen interviews with the former president of the company and the current director on local t.v. and i have read several articles about it in "the dallas morning news". just because one is not aware of something doesn't mean it is a "secret society". i don't know anything about "pre-check", "sur-scan", "hireright", and all the other cras, but that doesn't mean they are "hiding themselves".

d. gp1 does not obtain information illegally. please read the fair credit reporting act for more information on what is legal to report and what is not legal to report.

e. to quote you: "and it is a service that is not needed. you get a license verification from the bon, a criminal background check, a drug screen and personal references, education check and in some instances proficiency tests, lastly face to face interview. all of this can be obtained, as it has been for many years, "without" group one"

my answer: who do you think has been doing this stuff for the past 20 years. do you think hr does this stuff? no, they outsource it to gp1, who verifies licenses through the board of nursing, checks criminal backgrounds through actual searching at county courthouse records, previous education and job verification with the information an applicant provides on their application.

what frustrates me, is that everyone gets mad at gp1. they are the ones who are following the laws. it is facility hrs that either don't get accurate information from applicants, type it in wrong, or omit pertinent information all together ie, maiden names, other last names, that an applicant may have worked or graduated under, correct phone #'s to former employers, etc. then when gp1 can't verify the information provided the facility recruiter will call the supervisor (which as a cra, gp1 does not do, because that is considered subjective information and gp1 only uses documented information from hr records) and start chatting and getting all the lowdown on the applicant. that is where your bad information comes from.

i approched the nurses station one afternoon where my supervisor was telling everything she knew to an hr director from another facility about one of my co-workers. i told her she could cause our facility to get sued for giving out that information because she was not authorized by hr. she told me to mind my own business or get written up. this is where the bad info comes from.

believe what you want to but i think we work for the boogey man!

please see the following information which was obtained with the minimum amount of effort on my part.

pre-employment screening in the us

laws

due to the sensitivity of the information contained in consumer reports and certain records, there are a variety of important laws regulating the dissemination and legal use of this information. most notably, the fair credit reporting act (fcra) regulates the use of consumer reports (which it defines as information collected and reported by third party agencies) as it pertains to adverse decisions, notification to the consumer, and destruction and safekeeping of records. if a consumer report is used as a factor in an adverse hiring decision, the consumer must be presented with a "pre-adverse action disclosure," a copy of the fcra summary of rights, and a "notification of adverse action letter." consumers are entitled to know the source of any information used against them including a consumer reporting agency

types of checks

there are a variety of types of investigative searches that can be used by potential employers. many commercial sites will offer specific searches to employers for a fee. services like these will actually perform the checks, supply the company with adverse action letters, and ensure compliance throughout the process. many employers choose to search the most common records such as criminal records, driving records, and education verification. other searches such as sex offender registry, credential verification, reference checks, credit reports and patriot act searches are becoming increasingly common. employers should consider the position in question when determining which types of searches to include, and should always use the same searches for every applicant being considered for one position.

reasons

they are frequently conducted to confirm information found on an employment application. they may also be conducted as a way to further differentiate potential employees and pick the one the employer feels is best suited for the position. laws exist to prevent those who do not pass a criminal check from working in careers involving the elderly, disabled, or children.

possible information included

the amount of information included on a check depends to a large degree on the sensitivity of the reason for which it is conducted--e.g., somebody seeking employment at a minimum wage job would be subject to far fewer requirements than somebody applying to work for the fbi.

criminal and incarceration records driving and vehicle records: employers in the transportation sector seek drivers with clean driving records. education records: these are used primarily to see if the potential employee had in fact received a college degree, graduate degree, or some other accredited university degree. employment records: these usually range from simple verbal confirmations of past employment and timeframe to reason for termination.

financial information: credit scores, liens, civil judgments, or bankruptcy may be included in the report.

licensing records: a government authority that has some oversight over professional conduct of its licensees will also maintain records regarding the licensee, such as personal information, education, complaints, investigations, and disciplinary actions. military records: although not as common today as it was in the past fifty years, employers frequently requested the specifics of one's military discharge. social security number: (or equivalent outside the us). a fraudulent ssn may be indicative of identity theft, insufficient citizenship, or concealment of a "past life".

and you take no blame for knowingly disseminating this garbage in?

please stop trying to pass the buck & satisfy your conscience. you haven't yet figured out your twisting of reality is falling on deaf ears because your arguments do not have substance based on unmanipulated truth. if you wish to work for them, please face up to the fact that you are considered by the majority of the workforce to be one rung below a used car salesman on the trustworthy/ethics scale. not much you can say to change the truth of things because the truth does speak for itself. about time you wake up to reality.

and, please, in the future, keep to what you say you are promising to do-doesn't look to good for your credibility, no matter how you try to justify it. if promises, by you, are made to broken, well then, how are you to be trusted on anything else you say?

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