Dive Brief:
- The case of a night nurse who slept on duty while a disabled patient ran low on oxygen and later died as a result has highlighted the issue of napping healthcare workers. New York is now taking aim at those who are sleeping at work—often on purpose and with the knowledge of other staff.
- Those who willfully sleep on the job have typically faced discipline or termination, but this high-profile case sparked action by state regulators and led to stiff punishment for nurse Tanya Lemon; following a guilty plea to felony endangerment of a disabled person, she was sentenced to 90 days in jail, five years of probation, and lost her nursing license.
- The state's Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs issued guidance in December 2014 to organizations and families across the state to lead efforts toward deterring the behavior.
Dive Insight:
The justice center prosecutor who led the case against Lemon says her office is looking at another potentially criminal case. She adds that if the office can prove supervisors were aware of their staff sleeping on the job, and they let it go, they will be prosecuted as well.
"Willful sleeping on the job is something that rises to criminal conduct," says prosecutor Patricia Gunning.
Meanwhile, Lemon's attorney notes that napping during night shifts was "not unusual" at the group home where she worked, and that she "was doing the best she could."