Battling the Bureaucrats: How One Nurse’s Fight led to the Defeat of a Giant

Description

While caring for her husband in his battle with cancer, Amy Siple applied to reinstate her lapsed nursing license. Instead of a fine for the oversight, Amy faced an investigation by the Kansas State Board of Nursing (KSBN) that threatened to place her on national disciplinary databases and jeopardize her career. All she needed to do was sign a consent agreement stating she was guilty of unprofessional conduct for practicing without a license—something she maintained she had not done.

Instead, Amy stood her ground.

She rallied other nurses who had experienced lengthy investigations, lost work, mounting legal bills, and undue pressure to sign statements they disputed. They convinced state legislators to join the battle. The result was HB 2528, legislation that voided certain disciplinary actions and records dating back 20 years, restricted the Board’s authority over nonpractice conduct, and ended the terms of sitting Board members.

Told through personal accounts of Amy and other nurses, along with the investigative reporting of award-winning journalist Bill Bush, Battling the Bureaucrats traces how one nurse’s refusal to sign became a movement for reform.

Battling the Bureaucrats is the inside story of what happens when ordinary people challenge an institution with enormous power over their livelihoods—and what it takes to change a system that insists it is working exactly as intended.