Two more state-employed prison nurses are facing disciplinary charges alleging they injured a patient who subsequently died.
Registered nurses David Allen Arterburn of Altoona and Penny Lynn Daniels of Newton are each charged by the Iowa Board of Nursing with committing an act that may adversely affect the welfare of a patient; failing to assess or report the status of a patient; and committing an act that causes physical, emotional or financial injury to a patient.
The board has not publicly disclosed any of the alleged actions that gave rise to those charges, or indicated when or where the incidents took place. A board hearing on the matter is scheduled for July 17, 2026.
Both Arterburn and Daniels have worked as state-employed nurses for the Newton Correctional Facility, and both are currently defendants in a lawsuit brought by the estate of Malga Harun Yanga. The lawsuit alleges that in September 2024, Yanga was incarcerated at the Newton facility, with a scheduled release date in November 2024.
On Sept. 2, 2024, at 7:36 a.m., Yanga allegedly visited the facility’s medical facility, reporting a one-week history of stomach pain, diarrhea and vomiting blood. A nurse, Eric Rankin, allegedly assessed Yanga and advised him to increase his water intake and activity, and provided him with Milk of Magnesia to take over the next seven days.
A few hours later, Yanga allegedly returned to the clinic, reporting worsening abdominal pain and hot and cold flashes. Rankin provided Yanga with a prescription medication for nausea. The next afternoon, Daniels saw Yanga, who was still reporting severe abdominal pain and was vomiting blood. Daniels allegedly provided him with one dose of ondansetron and an electrolyte replacement solution.
At that point, the lawsuit claims, Yanga “vomited such a large amount of blood it was all over his hands and the floor of his cell and multiple inmates had to clean it up.”
Around 8 p.m. that evening, Daniels allegedly saw Yanga a second time and was informed that Yanga continued to vomit blood, experience severe pain and was now unable to speak or walk. Daniels did not perform any additional nursing assessment and did not request a physician assessment, the lawsuit claims.
Shortly after midnight, a cellmate of Yanga’s allegedly asked correctional officers for help, stating that Yanga was unresponsive and was having seizures. The correctional officer allegedly refused Yanga’s request for a medical evaluation, allegedly telling the cellmate Yanga had already been to the medical clinic and “we’re not taking him again.”
At roughly 5 a.m., Yanga’s cellmate found him unresponsive on the toilet. The medical staff initiated CPR, but Yanga was pronounced dead within the hour. The associate state medical examiner later determined the cause of death was complications of peritonitis due to proximal duodenal ulcer perforation, the lawsuit claims.
The defendants in the civil case have yet to file an answer to the lawsuit, which alleges negligence on the part of all three Newton Correctional Facility nurses. A trial is scheduled for May 4, 2027.
Although the Board of Nursing publicly announced the disciplinary charges against Arterburn and Daniels on March 3, 2026, it’s not entirely clear when the charges were approved. The charging documents indicate the board formally approved the charges in October 2025, which would mean the state delayed publishing them for five months. That is consistent with delays of a similar length in many other licensing-board cases.
The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing, which oversees the licensing boards, has referred all questions about the months-long delays in public disclosure of licensing board actions to the Iowa Attorney General’s Office.
Several weeks ago, the Iowa Board of Nursing suspended the license of another Newton Correctional Facility nurse, alleging she had failed to properly assess a patient with critically low oxygen levels. In that case, the board alleged Kelsey Louise Swanson of Altoona “failed to further assess, intervene, contact a medical provider, or carry out existing orders after assessing a patient with an oxygen saturation level of 77% on room air.”
Typically, people with oxygen saturation levels below 85% are considered to be in severe hypoxemia and in need of urgent medical care. The available board records give no indication as to whether the Newton patient survived.
The board charged Swanson with professional incompetence, failing to assess or report the status of a patient, and committing an act that might adversely affect a patient’s welfare. To settle the matter, Swanson agreed to a six-month suspension of her nursing license.
Other recently announced actions against Iowa nurses involve these licensees:
— Stephanie Tyler Unseth of Cedar Rapids, who is charged with failing to report a criminal conviction to the board, being convicted of an offense that directly relates to the duties of the nursing profession, habitual intoxication from alcohol or drugs, and falsification of a license renewal. State records indicate the charges were approved by the board on Nov. 12, 2025, although they were made public only this week. A board hearing on the matter is scheduled for July 17, 2026. Unseth has been an Iowa-licensed nurse since January 2019, according to board records.
— Michelle Lynn Reitzler of Grinnell, who is charged with committing an act that may adversely affect the welfare of a patient, failing to assess or report the status of a patient, and committing an act that causes physical, emotional or financial injury to a patient. State records indicate the charges, which were made public this week, were approved by the board in October 2025.
