An Iowa nurse who was allowed to keep her license under an agreement approved by the Iowa Board of Nursing last month is now facing nine felony counts of stealing patient medications.
The board alleges Amber Herzmann, 44, was working as a travel nurse from June 2024 through September 2024. On Sept. 10, 2024, the board alleges, her employment contract was suspended due to suspicion of medication misappropriation.
The board alleges a review of her charts suggests she was administering the narcotic painkiller fentanyl to women after they gave birth, although the drug is typically prescribed to patients during active labor. Multiple patients denied receiving the medication or the number of doses of medication Herzmann claimed to have administered, according to the board.
Herzmann’s employer later submitted a report to the Drug Enforcement Administration indicating 14 vials of fentanyl and two syringes of hydromorphone were lost or were suspected of being stolen.
The board charged Herzmann with misappropriation of patient medications. In resolving the case, the board agreed on April 10 to let Herzmann retain her license as a registered nurse, and Herzmann agreed to participate in the Iowa Practitioner Health Program, a program that offers assistance to health care professionals with substance abuse issues.
Court records show that on April 24, two weeks after the board approved that settlement agreement, Herzmann was criminally charged with nine felony counts of unlawfully obtaining a prescription drug, plus one aggravated misdemeanor charge of tampering with records.
Prosecutors allege that in October, November and December of 2024 — after her travel-nurse employment contract was suspended — Herzmann was working on the maternity floor of Mercy Hospital in Clinton where she claimed to have administered the narcotic painkillers fentanyl, oxycodone and Dilaudid to multiple patients but instead kept the drugs for her own purposes.
Herzmann is scheduled to be arraigned on May 22, 2025. She has yet to enter a plea in the case.
Other nursing board actions
Other nurses recently sanctioned by the Iowa Board of Nursing include:
— Stephanie Erdman, an advanced registered nurse practitioner who was charged with failing to assess and report the status of a patient, and failure to establish a relationship with a patient. The board alleges that at some unspecified time in the past, Erdman was working as the medical director of a medical spa where she prescribed drugs to a patient she didn’t see and then failed to follow up with the patient. The board settled the case by requiring Erdman to complete 30 hours of educational training on clinical supervision and documentation.
— Jean Havugimana, a licensed practical nurse who was recently charged by the board with leaving a nursing assignment without first ensuring the safety of his patients, and with committing an act or omission that might adversely affect a patient.
According to the board, Havugimana was working a 12-hour overnight shift at The Views of Marion, which operates the Oakview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, on Jan. 27, 2024. On that night, Havugimana was the only nurse on duty to assist two certified nursing assistants in caring for roughly 40 residents. The facility’s video surveillance allegedly shows Havugimana was inside the facility for less than three hours during his 12-hour shift, and that he repeatedly exited and reentered the building.
The board alleges that during the night, the two CNAs were unable to reach Havugimana to assist with residents’ needs; that Havugimana had the keys necessary to access residents’ medications; and that he was the only person on duty authorized to administer medications.
At one point during the night, Havugimana was “observed in his vehicle, parked in the lot, playing loud music with a female passenger,” the board alleges. At a board hearing on the matter, Havugimana claimed he was working his shift as required, but was busy caring for patients in other areas of the building. According to the board, he offered no explanation as to why his colleagues couldn’t locate him or reach him via their cellphones and walkie-talkies.
In resolving the case, the board suspended Havugimana’s license for one year and stipulated that after the license is reinstated, it will be placed on probationary status for one year. As part of that probation, Havugimana will have to complete additional educational training and submit to chemical screening.
In 2009, the board charged Havugimana with falsely claiming to have completed his educational requirements for licensing and for failing to inform the board of a conviction for driving while barred as a habitual offender. The board suspended Havugimana’s license as a result of those charges.
