Windsor
New Hampshire Attorney General Gordon MacDonald alleged, in a Monday press release, that Brownsville resident Patricia Strohla failed to hold the proper license to become a chief nursing officer, the position she held at Lakes Region General Healthcare in Laconia, N.H., beginning in November 2016.
State and federal laws require that a chief nursing officer hold a nursing license. LRGHealthcare hired Strohla with the knowledge that she did not have the required license, according to the release.
Strohla and LRGHealthcare deny the allegations, according to the release.
LRGH identified Strohla as a registered nurse on its website and on her employee badge. Strohla also identified herself as a registered nurse in documents she signed as the chief of nursing, the release said.
In doing so, the state alleged both Strohla and LRGH participated in unfair or deceptive business practices in violation of the Consumer Protection Act.
The allegations stem from a June 2017 citation from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which stated that LRGH hired Strohla knowing that she did not hold the required nursing license.
LRGH is headed by former Mt. Ascutney CEO Kevin Donovan.
Mt. Ascutney also identified Strohla as an registered nurse in publicity materials while she was working in Windsor.
Strohla did not hold a nursing license in Vermont, according to New Hampshire Senior Assistant Attorney General James Boffetti. She held a license in Maine, but it expired in 2005, Boffetti said in a phone interview on Monday.
Strohla held non-nursing positions, including director of clinical transformation within the department of quality and directly supervised the information technology team while she was at Mt. Ascutney, the Windsor hospital’s CEO and Chief Medical Officer Joseph Perras said in an emailed statement on Monday.
“She was never employed as a chief nursing officer, or a nurse … and did not require a nursing license,” Perras said.
Without knowledge of the facts in the case, Lauren Hibbert, general counsel for Vermont’s Office of Professional Regulation, confirmed that Strohla did not have a nursing license in Vermont, but said she could not tell whether Strohla was involved with unauthorized practice or not.
“It’s really fact driven,” she said. “I don’t know any of the facts here.”
Strohla never obtained her New Hampshire nursing license and she is no longer affiliated with LRGH, the release said.
Following the CMS citation last June, Strohla was reassigned to serve as interim vice president of operations. A LinkedIn profile indicates that she left LRGH in January.
In accordance agreements signed with the Attorney General, Strohla has agreed that she will not seek to obtain a license from the N.H. Board of Nursing for two years and she will pay a fine of $1,500. LRGH is also being asked to pay a fine of $40,000 to resolve the matter.
As part of its agreement with the state, LRGH also has agreed not to employ anyone in the position of chief nursing officer who does not possess the necessary qualifications.
Kendra Peaslee, who is listed LRGH’s interim chief nursing officer, is a licensed registered nurse, according to the state’s online directory of licensees.
Valley News Staff Writer Nora Doyle-Burr can be reached at ndoyleburr@vnews.com.
