By Bonnie Phillips
Four nurses were recently disciplined by the state Board of Examiners for Nursing for drug and alcohol abuse and for photographing a patient without consent.
The state placed Sara Scobie’s practical nurse license on probation for one year and fined her $500 for photographing a juvenile patient and sharing details of the patient’s personal and clinical information without parental consent, according to her signed order. Scobie was also reprimanded by the state Department of Public Health (DPH).
Scobie of Milford, who was providing home care for a medically compromised child through All Pointe HomeCare of Cheshire, photographed the patient and then shared those photos without permission, according to the signed order. During the probation period Scobie cannot be employed as a nurse by any personnel provider service, home health agency, or assisted living agency, according to the order.
The registered nurse (RN) license of Kyra E. Kulas of Berlin was placed on four years’ probation after she abused alcohol, cocaine and opioids from July 2019 through April 2020, according to her signed consent order. She must submit to random drug screens and attend therapy and receive counseling through the entire probationary period, according to the consent order.
The RN license of Gregory Orfitelli of Newington was placed on four years’ probation for diverting controlled substances, including hydromorphone, for personal use, and abusing drugs and alcohol while working in a hospital setting. Orfitelli must undergo counseling and submit to random drug tests during his probation.
The LPN license of Allyson L. Allen of Ellington was summarily suspended for violating the terms of a previous four-year probation by testing positive for morphine, according to a statement of charges by DPH.
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- State Disciplines Nurses For Drug, Alcohol Abuse The state Board of Examiners for Nursing last week disciplined four nurses for drug or alcohol abuse. The board placed the registered nurse (RN) license of Sara J. Smith of Shelton on probation for four years after it found she altered a 2018 prescription for codeine after testing positive for codeine on April 3, 2019, according to a consent order signed by Smith.
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