Fake nurse—who cared for over 4K patients—was wearing scrubs when arrested at home, police say
A Florida woman has been arrested on suspicions that she posed as a nurse to successfully seek employment, going on to care for 4,486 patients from July 2023 to January 2025 despite lacking the necessary education and license.
Autumn Bardisa, 29, was fired from her job at AdventHealth Palm Coast, where she allegedly acted as an advanced nurse technician. According to the hospital and police, Bardisa claimed she had received the education necessary to be a registered nurse (RN) but had yet to pass the licensing exam.
During the hiring process, she is said to have “passed” the test and provided a license number of a person named Autumn, albeit with a different last name. Bardisa allegedly told AdventHealth she had recently been married.
Human Resources then asked for a marriage certificate, which Bardisa never provided. It isn’t clear why the hospital failed to follow up, as the deception went on for roughly 18 months. In fact, police said AdventHealth only became aware of Bardisa’s lack of qualifications when she was offered a promotion, spurring a look into her background.
Her contract was officially terminated on January 25, at which time police were notified of the potential crime. An investigation determined that Bardisa had used the name of a nurse she went to school with, who coincidentally worked at another AdventHealth hospital. The two women are said not to have known each other, and the other Autumn has not been charged with a crime.
Bardisa was arrested earlier this month and charged with seven counts of practicing a healthcare profession without a license, in addition to seven counts of fraudulent use of personal identification information.
She remains in jail on $70,000 bond. During her time at the hospital, she performed normal duties associated with an RN, including drawing blood and administering medications. There is no evidence she committed other crimes or mistreated patients; however, Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said they welcome people to come forward with any new information.
Police said she was wearing nursing scrubs when she was detained at her home on Aug. 4.
Chad is an award-winning writer and editor with over 15 years of experience working in media. He has a decade-long professional background in healthcare, working as a writer and in public relations.