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Azucena Gepilano, 9714551
Facts
The Member admitted that she engaged in professional misconduct. Between 2012 and 2016, the Member submitted false claims to her employer’s group benefit plan and received a total of $4,695 in relation to the false claims.
Discipline Committee’s Findings
Based on the Member’s admissions, a panel of the Discipline Committee of the College of Nurses of Ontario (the “Panel”) found that the Member:
- contravened a standard of practice of the profession or failed to meet the standards of practice of the profession;
- misappropriated property from a client or workplace;
- falsified a record relating to the member’s practice;
- signed or issued, in the member’s professional capacity, a document that the member knew or ought to have known contained a false or misleading statement; and
- engaged in conduct or performed an act, relevant to the practice of nursing, that, having regard to all the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as dishonourable or unprofessional.
Discipline Committee’s Order
The College of Nurses of Ontario (“CNO”) and the Member presented the Panel with a Joint Submission on Order requesting that the Panel make an order that included the following:
- an oral reprimand;
- a 4-month suspension; and
- terms, conditions and limitations including:
- attending 2 meetings with a Regulatory Expert; and
- employer notification for 12 months.
The Panel accepted the Joint Submission on Order, concluding that the proposed penalty was reasonable and in the public interest. The Panel noted that the Member cooperated with the CNO and accepted responsibility by agreeing to the facts and the proposed order.
The Panel further noted that the order sends a strong message to the nursing profession and the public that benefit fraud is taken seriously and it amounts to professional misconduct. When nurses act in a deceitful manner, trust is broken. The public needs to be able to trust that the nursing profession upholds honesty and high ethical integrity.
