For the Daily Journal
A woman who posed as a registered nurse at assisted living and home care businesses has been sentenced to prison.
Holly Marie Whyde, 45, of Columbus, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in a federal institution as well as an additional two years in a supervised release program, according to court records.
Police said Whyde, who lived in Greenwood and Franklin before Columbus, used another person’s identity and nursing license information and worked at assisted living facilities and home care businesses in south central Indiana, Columbus Police Department spokesman Lt. Matt Harris said.
In December, the Columbus Police Department received a tip about someone using the identity of a registered nurse in northern Indiana, Harris said.
Investigators determined that Whyde used a nurse’s identity to get jobs over a four-year period at several Indiana health care businesses, included two in Columbus. She worked for Kindred Transitional Care and Rehabilitation Center in Columbus but was fired in December 2015 after questions came up about her license. She then began applying for other jobs in the area, according to court records.
The two-month investigation showed Whyde primarily worked in an administrative role as nursing director but also provided some patient care, Harris said. Investigators found that Whyde was licensed as a licensed practical nurse, or LPN, which requires less training than a registered nurse, or RN, court records said.
Whyde pleaded guilty to two federal charges, knowingly and willfully making fictitious statements relating to health care and aggravated identity theft, in May.
Under federal law, she could have been sentenced to seven years in prison, but U.S. District Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson agreed to a lesser sentence as part of an agreement, court records said.
The judge also strongly recommended that Whyde get mental health treatment. Terms of her probation include both continued psychiatric care and taking all prescribed medications, the court order stated. The judge also ordered Whyde to pay a $500 fine as well as other court fees.