BRN enforcement, investigations updates show caseload pressures, new triage guidelines and a social‑media complaint spike

Enforcement and investigations leaders at the Board of Registered Nursing told the Enforcement and Intervention Committee that the board has reorganized reporting and introduced new complaint triage guidelines while investigators continue to work at or near recommended caseload limits.

Shannon Johnson, the BRN’s enforcement division chief, told the committee staff separated enforcement, investigations and intervention sections in reporting materials to let members focus on each area’s metrics. Johnson said probation monitors currently carry about 51 cases each on average and that as of Dec. 17, 2024, only 13% of discipline cases had been pending at the Office of the Attorney General for more than a year. “Currently, our probation monitors are carrying an average of approximately 51 cases per monitor, which is good,” Johnson said.

Johnson and staff flagged that the Department of Consumer Affairs’ (DCA) 540-day case-processing goal can be difficult to meet when cases require investigations and hearings under the Office of the Attorney General; staff said average AG time can approach 300 days and hearing scheduling frequently adds months. “If a case has to go to investigations, if it has to go to a hearing, the AG time… you’re looking at 300 days on average,” Johnson said.

Nicole Bowles, deputy chief of investigations, reported that full‑time special investigators carry an average of 28 active cases and that investigations received about 80 cases in December 2024, down from 104 in November. Bowles said the investigation unit is actively recruiting for a full‑time special investigator in the Central Region and a limited-term investigator statewide. “We are bumping up against that 30 caseload and there are cases still pending assignment,” Bowles said.

Staff also described a change in complaint handling: the board implemented Complaint Prioritization and Referral Guidelines (CPRGs) in March 2024 to triage new complaints before assignment to either BRN investigations or the Department of Consumer Affairs’ Division of Investigations. Johnson told the committee that a social‑media call in late 2024 prompted roughly 800 additional complaints that are counted in the raw complaint total and that artificially inflated year‑over‑year complaint figures for the period. “We actually got some media attention with filing a complaint where we received almost a thousand — roughly 800 complaints — where it was inviting individuals to file a complaint with us on someone. So that number is incorporated in this number,” Johnson said. A staff member clarified the spike was driven by social media, not a traditional news outlet.

Committee members asked about trends and whether the increases indicate more practice‑related issues or complaints arising from individuals’ private lives. Johnson and staff said the conviction and arrest increases the committee reviewed appear primarily to reflect incidents outside of professional practice.

The committee’s questions also focused on throughput and capacity. Bowles said the investigators’ 28-case average approaches a maximum caseload of 30 established in past interagency discussions; special investigators have previously indicated comfort with a lower workload (around 20). Bowles said hiring additional investigators requires a budget change proposal to the Department of Consumer Affairs and that past requests had been denied. “It’s not a simple fix where we can just go out and hire new investigators,” a staff member said, noting BRN is a special-funded board and must justify position authority through a formal budget process.

Members of the public raised concerns about investigative transparency and outreach. Pragamile Tarasinga (PIKSI) described filing two complaints in a closed facility and wanting an opportunity to present evidence directly; Board counsel Reza Pejuhash explained generally that investigative processes remain confidential and that complainants are typically considered witnesses rather than active participants in every step of an investigation. “There’s a reason for it,” Pejuhash said, describing confidentiality practices in investigations.

Why it matters: The staffing and case‑processing constraints affect how quickly complaints move from intake to investigation, adjudication and probation. The CPRG triage and the social‑media complaint spike change the raw complaint totals, which staff cautioned can be misleading without context.

Ending: Staff said they will continue recruiting investigators, refining triage processes and producing updated metrics; the committee asked staff to follow up on case‑processing times, vacancy impacts and recruitment plans at future meetings.