Nursing Home Disqualifying Offenses

Like most medical professionals, aspiring nursing home employees must undergo background checks and screenings. Some elements in a person’s history can disqualify them from working in nursing homes. 

Required background checks ensure only trustworthy people can work in nursing homes. We trust our most vulnerable population with staff, and it’s not a profession most take lightly. 

However, sometimes, unqualified individuals get a job in a nursing facility, putting all its residents at risk. If you have faced this situation, you are not alone, and the Nursing Home Law Center can help you get justice. 

Understanding Disqualifying Offenses

The U.S. Office of Inspector General requires a background check for all nursing home employees. If a specific offense comes back on the report, the individual will be denied employment. This protects residents from potential abuse, neglect, or theft based on history. [1]

There are different tiers of disqualifying offenses, and they may vary from state to state. Certain crimes can no longer be considered disqualified with proper documentation. It can include the following. 

• Waiver: Wavers can be applied to help get individuals who otherwise would be disqualified for a job in health care.
• Rehabilitation Waiver: Rehabilitation wavers state that individuals meet the terms of the conviction. Whether it was parole, fines, or other requirements, they are rehabilitated in the eyes of the law.
• Appeal: Certain disqualifying convictions can be overturned if they are appealed through the legal process. 

Local requirements may vary, and a nursing home lawyer can help you understand what disqualifying offenses mean to you and your loved ones. They are in place to protect residents from harm, especially from those who are caring for them. 

Types of Disqualifying Offenses

There are different types of nursing home disqualifying offenses that may prevent an individual from being employed by care facilities. 

Abuse and Neglect 

Recorded abuse and neglect are an immediate disqualifying offense. Abuse comes in different forms, including physical, emotional, sexual, and financial abuse. Any of these instances on your record can be a disqualifying offense. 

Too, if you are found guilty of neglect of a child, elder, or other vulnerable person, you will be unable to work in a nursing home. These behaviors are not tolerated in skilled nursing facilities by employees and are taken very seriously. 

Criminal Convictions

Many criminal conventions will be an automatic disqualifying offense if it comes up on background checks. This includes:

• Violent Crimes: Assault, battery, rape, manslaughter, murder, domestic violence, robbery, etc. are all considered violent crimes under federal law. [2]
• Theft: If you have been found stealing, you cannot work in a nursing home, regardless of the amount. You work with vulnerable people in nursing homes; many employers will not trust you. This includes burglary or financial abuse, like stealing credit cards, bank information, etc. 
• Drug-Related Offenses: It depends on the employer, but if you have been caught in possession of, transporting, or selling drugs, you may be unable to work at nursing homes. This also includes failing a drug test, as many facilities require that their employees are not impaired. 

Criminal convictions are severe offenses that appear on background checks for all employers. It is up to their discretion and any federal or state laws to determine if they are disqualifying offenses. If the employer overlooks them and an issue occurs at the facility, they open themselves to serious risk, including liability lawsuits.

Misconduct and Misappropriation

Nursing homes require their employees to behave according to a certain standard. Prospective employees who violate these expected behaviors may be disqualified from employment.

• Professional Misconduct: An official rule violation from a specific governing body can be held against an applicant. This can be on your permanent records and come up in background checks. 
• Theft of Resident Property: Because employees are left alone with vulnerable patients, any theft charge, especially of residential property, can disqualify them from employment. This can include credit card fraud, stealing personal items, and other privacy violations.
• Medication Errors: Residents expect a standard of care, including receiving the right medicine. If you have made medication errors in the past, it can be held against you. It can include giving the wrong medicine, improper doses, withholding medicine, stealing medicine, etc. 

Not all these offenses will be pulled up in a background check; however, nursing homes can check with previous employers or references to get a picture of who you are. 

Substance Abuse

Individuals who have had substance abuse issues in the past, especially if they were convicted, may not be eligible for employment. They will be around controlled substances, which could violate their terms depending on their conviction. 

If it is a long-ago offense, it may be overlooked. The legal system can provide documentation to help individuals gain employment in nursing homes. 

Background Checks and Screening

Because nursing homes can be held liable for their employees’ behaviors, they often conduct comprehensive background checks. These prevent individuals from being hired with disqualifying offenses. Nursing homes could open themselves to legal risk if they hire improper staff.

Components of Background Checks

Background checks are a comprehensive look at your past on paper. It only pulls information that has been legally documented, but there are other means to check subjective opinions about an individual. 

Background checks can include the following information: 

• Criminal History Checks: They run your social security number and other identifying information to ensure you have no past criminal convictions. If there are, they provide a complete criminal history.
• Employment Verification: Background checks will verify your past employment. They can look at the information on your resume or check tax records.
• Reference Checks: As part of a background check, the employer contacts your references to ensure they know you and can provide a positive testimonial about your work history. 

You must have a clean background to work in a nursing home. They can be held liable if the facility fails to conduct a proper background check and a crime or nursing home violation occurs. 

Frequency of Background Checks

How often nursing homes need to conduct background checks can vary depending on state regulations, but typically, nursing home employees should expect to receive one every 2-5 years. 

If new information is discovered, the employee can face serious consequences. 

Consequences of Disqualifying Offenses

Whether a current nursing home employee or a prospective one, you can face the consequences of disqualifying offenses. The severity depends on the offense. 

Termination of Employment

Individuals with disqualifying offenses on their background checks can be terminated immediately from their position in nursing homes. If they do not, they can be held liable if an incident occurs. 

Exclusion from Future Employment

A criminal history can exclude an applicant from future employment. Nursing homes must undergo inspection reports, and if they are found to employ ineligible individuals, they could lose their funding. Many nursing homes will not take the risk and will not consider your application. 

Potential Legal Action

Federal law requires nursing homes to conduct proper and comprehensive background checks. Additionally, they cannot knowingly employ individuals with disqualifying offenses. They could face fines or lose their funding and status if they do. 

Nursing homes are held liable for their employee’s behavior, so they will take all steps to protect themselves. If an issue happens that could have been prevented by a background check, they will face serious consequences. The victim or their family can pursue legal options. 

Secure Expert Legal Representation 

The federal government requires nursing homes to meet minimum standards of care, including who they choose to employ. Due to staffing shortages, some nursing homes may not complete background checks or hire individuals with questionable pasts, which can expose them to risk.

If you believe that you or your loved ones have been impacted by nursing home staff who should have been disqualified from employment, you have rights. Nursing Home Law Center can listen to your concerns and make recommendations based on your case. With a free consultation, you have nothing to lose. 

To learn more, contact our nursing home negligence attorneys at (800) 926-7565 or by filling out the contact form on our website. 

References: [1]  U.S. Office of Inspector General, [2] FBI