SPRINGDALE, Ark. — A Bella Vista woman who is accused of using someone else's information to get healthcare jobs despite not having a license or a medical degree has pleaded not guilty, according to Washington County Prosecuting Attorney Matt Durrett.
Alicia Flanagan, 55, was arrested on April 25 for two counts of practicing medicine without a license and two counts of nonfinancial identity fraud.
According to an affidavit, the Director of Nurses for Springdale Health and Rehab called the Springdale Police Department (SPD) on June 6, 2023, to report that a former employee, Flanagan, had been practicing medicine without a license.
"The defendant did a good job of selling herself as this other person," Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Washington County Denis Dean said. "She had done her research online. She found this other person's identity, another person's license. The name was similar to hers. The date of birth was similar to hers, and she put together resumes and licenses and passed herself off as this person."
The director got a call from the Arkansas State Board of Nursing and was informed that Flanagan had been fraudulently using the credentials of Alicia Pierce, a nurse from Virginia, in order to get nursing jobs.
Flanagan was employed at Springdale Health and Rehab under Pierce's credentials from Sept. 6, 2022, to Jan. 1, 2023, according to court documents.
The State Board of Nursing was made aware of this when Flanagan applied for and started working at North Hills on May 4, 2023, using false credentials, the affidavit said. The nursing board then contacted Pierce, who reportedly had no idea her information was being used.
"We can tell so far in the investigation [that] she is from the state of Virginia, the defendant is from the state of Virginia," Dean said. "The person whose identity she assumed was also from the state of Virginia, and they might have shared the same maiden name."
Court documents note that Flanagan does not have a nursing license. Although documents say she did briefly go to college, she does not have a degree or certification.
Flanagan admitted to working at Springdale Health and Rehab and not having a nursing license during an interview with detectives, the affidavit says.
Joe Perkins, spokesperson for NHS Management, the group that oversees the Springdale facility, said in a phone interview that they did a comprehensive background check on Flanagan before hiring her.
At the time of being aware of the alleged fraud, Perkins said the facility took all precautions to make sure there were no adverse consequences from the defendant's time as a nurse.
In a statement to 5NEWS, the Arkansas State Board of Nursing said:
"All employers are to verify a nurse’s license through one of two online services (free service). All nurses in the United States are listed with their licensure and discipline history in the national database Nursys, and all Arkansas licensees are listed in the ASBN Registry. The links to both websites are found on the ADH/ASBN website under the License Verification tab. Arkansas, along with almost all other states, has stopped issuing paper licenses and rely on electronic verification of licensure."
Dean added that all businesses, regardless of profession, should utilize state resources to make sure they do not get caught in these fraud cases.
"If you're looking to bring somebody on to hire someone, do your background research," Dean said. "There are plenty of resources available online through the state of Arkansas that you can take to ensure that the person that you're talking to is as qualified as they hold themselves out to be and is the person that they hold themselves out to be."
Dean said that identity crimes are not uncommon in Washington County.
"Identity theft, people committing acts of forgery, and fraudulent activity related to someone else's identity is prevalent in Washington County," Dean said. "Someone assuming someone's identity for purposes of getting a job, specifically, a job in the medical field, fortunately, is still pretty rare."
After pleading not guilty in May, Flanagan had her next court date set for Dec. 9.
Watch 5NEWS on YouTube.
Download the 5NEWS app on your smartphone:
Stream 5NEWS 24/7 on the 5+ app: How to watch the 5+ app on your streaming device
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com and detail which story you're referring to.