Navy Corpsmen Caught

[guest52816]

I came across this news item in two different media outlets, and pulled this blurb from the NY Post.

If you go to their Web Site, you can see the offending nurses doing the things mentioned in the story. They apparently aren't smart enough to realize that what you post on social media (with your face showing) can, and will be used against you.

Their behavior is deplorable. I can't imagine how the parents of babies subjected to these two and their outlandish and unethical behavior must feel.

Nurses at a naval hospital in Florida have been booted from their posts after sick photos went viral of them rudely posing with newborn babies and referring to the tots as mini Satans.”

One of the pics posted to Snapchat shows Allyson Thompson, a corpsman at Naval Hospital Jacksonville, flipping the bird to a baby who's wrapped in a blanket, along with the caption, How I currently feel about these mini Satans,” [COLOR=#cc3333]according to Action News Jacksonville[/COLOR].

In another photo, Thompson grins as she holds a baby up by its arms. The pic was shared by a woman who identified the employee as a navy nurse” who made the newborn dance to rap music, [COLOR=#cc3333]First Coast News reported[/COLOR].

Thompson and another nurse, Joanie Barrett, were identified as the culprits in [COLOR=#cc3333]an online post[/COLOR].

[guest52816]

Come on guys, I'm a Navy vet. Corpsmen are NOT nurses, they are unlicensed assistive personnel. I changed the title to better reflect the true occupation.

Thanks for doing that. I asked if anybody knew how to change the name of the post. I couldn't find a way to do so easily.

[caliotter3]

In response to Sour Lemon's question can a person be a corpsman and a nurse, technically, at least in the Army, yes. The higher ranks of enlisted medical worker can be an LPN. Only RN's with appropriate education level can commission as Army nurses. LPN/LVN's can enlist, usually at the E-5 level, and might also be referred to as 'corpsmen' or the more colloquial 'medic' as are the lower ranking "CNA level" ranks. It is possible that a person who is an RN in civilian life might enlist instead of receive a commission. This ambiguity still is no reason for the media to insist on calling anybody and everybody wearing scrubs and working in a hospital or clinic environment as a "nurse". They know what the public thinks of when the word "nurse" is used.

[hppygr8ful, ASN, RN, EMT-I]

I was doing some reading and Googled Navy Corpsman. What I found is that A Navy corpsman is considered in some cases to be the equivalent of an LPN. In fact in some states Corpsmen can challenge the LPN exam after their term or service is up. So yes in the Navy they are often considered nurses and they will not show up as licensed in any state as long as they are only working in a Naval hospital.

Hppy

[LTinAK]

Hi Morte,

No, you would not need a local license. As long as you are Active Duty your license can be from any state, and it doesn't matter where you are stationed at. I was stationed in Mississippi and Washington working at the hospitals, all with an Alaska RN license :-)

[aprilmoss]

To be fair to the press, it was the FACEBOOK poster that labeled the person in scrubs in the photos as NURSES.

[kaha2321]

Corpsmen are Navy paramedics, to simplify it. They are also enlisted personell only, while Nurses are Officers, so these women are not nurses. The person who raised the red flag thought they were nurses because was not aware of what a corpsman did, according to one article I read. As a midshipmen (officer in training) nursing student who resides in Jacksonville, and learned about it in clinical, all of the actual RNs around here are horrified! Please don't let this terrible behavior reflect badly on your views of Navy Nursing or Jacksonville!

[Orca, ADN, ASN, RN]

My brother-in-law is a civilian employee at NAS JAX. Surprised that he hasn't mentioned this. He doesn't work in the medical area, so I'm not sure how much he knows about it.

[kcochrane]

I'm irritated that they're being called "nurses". When I look up "Navy corpsman", it appears to be something attainable with a GED and 19 week training program. Does anybody know for sure?

Most likely a GED won't be enough, especially for a woman going into the Navy. When I went in I had to have a high school diploma. Not sure how long the training is though. Although these ladies, and I don't like using this term with them, are wrong in what they did, a corpsman in any branch is highly regarded. Their fellow military members know they are the first ones to treat them in the trenches. This behavior is deplorable and a slap in the face to those corpsman that do the right thing. And calling them nurses is wrong. The news really needs to get their facts straight.

[LovingLife123]

To be fair to the press, it was the FACEBOOK poster that labeled the person in scrubs in the photos as NURSES.

It's up to the media to research and report accurate information. Not just what they see on a Facebook post. I know that 80% of what is on Facebook is not even close to the truth.

And Headline News this morning was referring to them as nurses.

[kcochrane]

Never mind I see now it was a facebook poster that labeled them wrong. :)

[kakamegamama]

Yes, it shouldn't be assumed that everyone who works in healthcare is a "nurse."

But these two were involved in direct patient care, and clearly had access to the nursery. The facility issued a statement saying that both had been removed from direct patient care after the photos surfaced and that criminal charges were being pursued.

It is just sickening to think that these newborns were mishandled in this way. And where was the nursery staff when this was happening? The pair clearly weren't trying to hide their actions. They posted pictures via Snapchat.

The scary thought is....what if these two WERE the nursery staff......

[AgentBeast, BSN, RN]

Corpsmen are the Navy Equivalent to Army Medics. Closest civilian thing is EMT-P.