(Photo courtesy of the Iowa Board of Nursing)
The Iowa Board of Nursing has, for the second time, reinstated the license of a nurse who served time in federal prison for dealing methamphetamine.
Court records indicate that in August 2016, Ragan Victor Gomez of Marshalltown was sentenced to 43 months of imprisonment after pleading guilty to a felony charge of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
Prosecutors alleged Victor Gomez, now 42, had regularly sold methamphetamine to others, acquired meth from various suppliers, and collected money for meth that she had fronted to other dealers. She earned more than $100,000 through those illegal drug sales, prosecutors said.
As a result of her arrest in that case, Victor Gomez agreed to surrender her nursing license.
In March 2019, after Victor Gomez was released from prison and place on supervised release, the nursing board reinstated her license. Two months later, the conditions of Victor Gomez’s supervised release were modified after she tested positive for alcohol use.
In August 2019, Victor Gomez was arrested for, and later convicted of, drunken driving. In October of that year, she again surrendered her license, this time for reasons never disclosed by the board.
In January 2020, the conditions of her release from prison were again modified after a domestic abuse investigation resulted in a finding that she was continuing to consume alcohol.
Recently, the Iowa Board of Nursing agreed to reinstate Victor Gomez’s license on the condition that she complete a nursing refresher course that includes “80 hours of theory and 80 hours of clinical.”
Her license will then be placed on probationary status for two years, during which time she must refrain from using alcohol and submit to a substance abuse evaluation.
Other Iowa nurses recently sanctioned by the licensing board include:
— Kathy Wood of Ackworth , who was ordered to complete 38 hours of educational training after being charged with failing to assess a patient and committing an act that may have an adverse impact on a patient.
The board alleges that while working at an unspecified nursing facility in 2023, Wood noticed that a resident was unable to speak or form words. She allegedly failed to review the individual’s medical history and failed to notify others of the situation. The resident was having a stroke, according to the board. The available board records give no indication as to the patient outcome.
— Anthony Foley of Warsaw, Ill. , whose license was placed on probation for one year after he was charged with failing to assess a patient and committing an act that may have an adverse impact on a patient. The board alleged that while working in the emergency room of an unspecified hospital, Foley was tasked with maintaining a patient’s Levophed intravenous drip, which is often used to treat life-threatening low blood pressure after cardio-pulmonary resuscitation.
According to the board, near the end of Foley’s shift the patient’s IV bag ran dry of Levophed and rather than hang a new bag, he simply switched off the pump. The available board records give no indication as to the patient outcome. As part of his probation, Foley will be required to complete 44.5 hours of educational training.
In 2018, the board ordered Foley to complete 30 hours of educational training in ethics after it was determined that he had falsified information on “multiple” health screenings for new employees at an unspecified company.
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