Auckland nurse sanctioned after forging employer reference

An Auckland nurse saw her registration cancelled after forging a letter that she claimed was from her employer in a bid to mitigate punishment that was previously handed to her.

Ashwani Lal was convicted in 2017 of two charges of dishonestly using a document for pecuniary advantage.

The Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal censured her, suspended her registration for nine months, required her to undertake an approved course in ethics for six months, and made orders in relation to costs and name suppression to protect the privacy of her victims.

These penalties were made after the tribunal considered a reference from her current employer, who praised Lal's character.

"Ashwani is a responsible, reliable, and hardworking employee," the reference said, as quoted by the Tribunal. "She is a very nice, kind-natured girl and as an employer, I would say she has good integrity."

Deception 'uncovered'

The forgery was only uncovered after an article on the matter was discovered by her employer, who said he was not aware of her theft convictions and that she had been facing disciplinary charges.

The doctor told the Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) that he did not write the document and that the signature had been forged. He also claimed that the nurse was not working at the medical practice on the date given at the document.

The PCC charged the practitioner saying that misleading the Tribunal and producing false references amount to professional misconduct.

The Tribunal said Lal admitted to her misconduct before the hearing. As heard by the Tribunal, the nurse said she "panicked" and "did not think."

"I made a fake reference, and it was put forward in the last hearing," the nurse told the hearing.

In its decision, the Tribunal said Lal's conduct was deserving of a disciplinary sanction and ordered her registration as a nurse cancelled.