Jaded past in AZ... Need advice, please?

Nurses Criminal

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hi, my question is complicated and i would appreciate even judgment. i don't want a character assassination. i want to be a nurse. once i get my mind stuck on something, it is extremely hard to deter me. however, i want to be realistic. okay, so i have a felony charge for possession and a couple misdemeanors from 2006-2008 (however, the last time i actually commited a crime was in 2007, it took them a while to charge me). i made some very bad decisions in my life at the age of 20 and now i'm 26 and have almost 3 year of sobriety. i am off probation on all charges (all community service done, fines paid, counseling done, and treatment done) and i am applying to have my rights restored as we speak and that shouldn’t be an issue because in the state of az (where i live) the first felony will always be expunged. i have applied for my fingerprint clearance card and i have been denied, obviously. i do have all of my information to send in and get a good cause exception. however, i will have a restriction on the card because one of the misdemeanors was dui. this will stay on the card 5 years from the time of conviction (in 2008, however it took them a year to charge so it was 2007 when it actually occurred). this means that it will be 2013 before i can get an unrestricted fingerprint clearance card, which is what is needed to go to maricopa community college nursing schools. i spoke to them and they told me if i can get an unrestricted card, i could attend their schools. however, will i be able to go through the clinicals required? i know the hospitals do their own background checks. so, does anyone know about this? i’ve already contacted the az bon and they say it has to be at least 5 years from the time of conviction to get a license. by the time i can even apply to school in 2013, i will probably have to wait 2 years to actually start (2015) and two years to complete (2017). therefore, it will have been 9 years since my last conviction before i can even apply for licensure. i may even have the opportunity to go to a private school so i don’t have to wait, even though they are more expensive. second question: do private nursing schools require fingerprint clearance cards? even if they do, i can maybe cut down the 2-year waiting list once i’m all cleared to go. i know i threw a lot of information at you but this is something i wrestle with all of the time and just writing about it helps! however, i would like some information from people that have been through it in az if at all possible. i am trying to cover all of the bases.

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Specializes in Hopice and School Nurse.

Have you started your prerequisites and co-reqs for the nursing programs yet? There are a lot of classes that are required for the MCCNP and some other classes that you can take that are part of a BSN program freshman and sophomore year that probably wouldn't require a fingerprint clearance card since there are no clinicals involved. This could take you a couple or three years and give you the time to get this all resolved. ASU, NAU and UofA are not as expensive as the private school route, but credits will transfer to a private university if you are not accepted into state programs when you get to your junior year. You can start out at the community college level for the pre-recs that are offered there, but you could possibly avoid the waitlist and just go right on for the BSN. Make sure to rock out As in your classes to better your chances of being accepted. And apply for scholarships. You just never know what scholarships are out there that are made just for you.

Another area you might consider is drug and alcohol counseling since you have first hand knowledge of what it takes to go through recovery successfully. In a way this is a health care career too and much needed in our society. I know some amazing counselors who have similar pasts and are making a difference in the lives of young people. It takes a special person to be a drug and alcohol counselor and if you have the passion to be a nurse you are probably that special person. It takes a master's degree, but that is 6 years instead of 9, right?

Don't give up on your dream!

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hi marlene, thanks for answering. yes, i have started my pre-reqs. i go online through rio salado and only have chm130 and psy101 to finish before i could apply for nursing school (besides all of the fingerprint clearance things). i plan on taking these classes this fall. okay, so something you've said has caught my attention. i can start to take classes for higher level nursing while i wait to get them out of the way? i never thought of that, could you maybe give me more information on where i can do that? i always assumed you had to have an rn license to even being those things. as for getting a's, i'm all about that. i put about 20 hours a week in my bio156 class and i know i'm not stupid, it's hard! it pays off though because i'm at an 89% about to tip it to 90%. you've read my mind! i forgot to mention, i will be going for my associates in chemical dependency while i wait for all of these things to work themselves out. i figured that my personal background with chemical dependency coupled with professional learning experiences along with nursing will make for a well-rounded career. i work for a treatment center now so i am constantly immersed in on-the-job experiences. what kills me is that with the way laws are: this felony will follow me everywhere! i refuse to throw in the towel and succumb to and let circumstances from my past dictate the person i want to be. who knows, maybe i'm just stuck on nursing because i want things i can't have. on the other hand, i've always been a hopeful person so who knows! thanks again for answering!

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Specializes in ICU hopeful!.

To the OP: don't fret or lose sight of your goals. If you are religious, then pray, if you're not, just have faith. :) I have read of a few people on these boards with felony convictions who were able to become nurses. If you DO have to wait, then there may be nothing you can do but perhaps follow the chemical dependency route for now, but keep in mind that with all the routes you can take in nursing, you can still be working towards your goal. Like you said, you refuse to throw in the towel....so don't! :) Stay strong. Also, it might help to search on the AZ BON website "guidelines for criminal conduct" as they have a matrix regarding how they make the decisions based on points - it takes into effect length of time since the conviction, any employment issues, if it was a crime against a person, etc. It might help you get some solidified info.

Good luck to you! I'm sure everything will work out just fine. You may run in to some bumps in the road but I guarantee that someone will stop and realize that people can change and that you have. Another thing you may want to consider, if time and financial obligations will allow, is doing a BS/BA in chemical dependency, and then going into an accelerated BSN or MSN program after that is complete. That way, you are still in school and will still feel like you are working towards your goals, yet it will allow you some time since the date of conviction so that the BON is more likely to grant the fingerprint card.

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It's good you're being honest and up-front with all during the process. Our class had a nurse with DUIs and other law run-ins, she may have been initially less than forthright with the AZBON. It took the AZBON over a year to investigate and finally ok her with a restricted license. She had lawyers involved (upwards of $100k) and finally got an unrestricted license but still had board actions listed on the license. All of this happened after she graduated. She graduated with honors almost 4 years ago and still had trouble getting a job.

I don't think the board investigates until you're ready to graduate so you may not be able to get around the investigation delay before working. Might be something to ask the AZBON.

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Specializes in PICU.

You need a fingerprint card on file for any healthcare work whether it is RN, LPN or CNA as well as to go into a nursing program (it covers the clinical portion). Like other people have said you can do all of your pre-reqs in the meantime. You shouldn't have a problem with clinicals as that is what the fingerprint card is for. Hospitals do not do background checks on every student that comes to them for clinicals, that is what the school is responsible for. It looks like you have done some good research to figure out how to get to where you want to be. My best advice along the way is to be honest. Don't try to hide anything as that will most definitely come back to you and you could lose any schooling and licensure you obtained. Good luck!

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Specializes in Hopice and School Nurse.
hi marlene, thanks for answering. yes, i have started my pre-reqs. i go online through rio salado and only have chm130 and psy101 to finish before i could apply for nursing school (besides all of the fingerprint clearance things). i plan on taking these classes this fall. okay, so something you've said has caught my attention. i can start to take classes for higher level nursing while i wait to get them out of the way? i never thought of that, could you maybe give me more information on where i can do that?

for a bsn there are a lot of other pre-req classes you need to take (like pathopsysiology) and they can be done ahead of time. i would suggest that you get a bsn course list from asu, or whatever university you would go to for your bsn, and figure out which classes you can take from that list without actually being in the rn program. or, check with asu and see if they will let you enroll for a bsn program and do the first 2 years and see where you're at legally after that. the first two years are pre-reqs anyway and you don't need a fingerprint clearance card for that. the last 2 years are the actual nursing courses (i believe, someone check me on this one).

i hope it works out for you! :)

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I also have a felony on my record for drug use (smoking pot from 20 years ago) in Arizona. I had it expunged and was told I could answer no to all the questions about prior convictions. I did all the checks on myself, including FBI, and everything came back negative and clear of convictions. I went on to the nursing program, did well, graduated, and applied for my nursing license. I was promptly denied for prior fellony conviction. I don't know how they found it, but they did. My appeal was also denied, so I went and got a masters degree in chemistry. Then I applied and was accepted into medical school. I have always answered "yes" on the felony questions since being denied by the nurses. For my MD license, nobody cared if I smoked pot 20 years ago. I now have 5 nurses that work for me. The point is that you shouldn't get so focused one thing to the detriment of everything else. Just because you are denied one path, you can always create another for yourself.

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