Pittsburgh woman accused of working as nurse without license at area nursing homes

A Pittsburgh woman is accused of working as a nurse although she lacked professional licensing when she was employed at nine Western Pennsylvania nursing homes between Oct. 1, 2024, and April 2 — including one facility in Westmoreland County and three in Allegheny County.

State police said Shannon Nicole Womack, 39, also known as Shannon Nicole Lawson, has used various aliases — including when she worked in the capacity of a registered nurse from Feb. 25 to March 8 at Oak Hill Healthcare and Rehabilitation in Hempfield, under the name Shannon Nicole Armstrong Abiola Parham.

Officials on Tuesday said she used at least 10 aliases to pose as a licensed practical nurse, registered nurse and registered nurses’ supervisor and have released what they have confirmed are some of the names.

State police are asking for the public’s help as investigators continue to compile related information.

Health care agencies and providers throughout the state are encouraged to review their employment records.

State police filed charges against Womack on Monday, following an investigation that began when she was pulled over for traffic violations on April 5 on Interstate 79 in Cecil Township, Washington County.

Police said she used an identical or similar alias when she worked shifts at three Allegheny County facilities:

• Corner View Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Pittsburgh’s Larimer neighborhood from March 4-17, in the role of a registered nurse supervisor;

• Eldercrest Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center in Munhall from March 9-27, as a registered nurse;

• Harmar Village Care Center in Harmar from March 10-13, as a registered nurse.

According to police, she was placed on “do not retain” status at all four facilities because of professional misconduct.

Police said in a criminal complaint that Womack was found to have prescription drugs belonging to three Corner View residents in her vehicle and that she stole 13 doses of oxycodone, from a medical cart at Harmar Village and altered a drug tracking log at that facility.

It was unclear what misconduct Womack was accused of at Oak Hill and Eldercrest. Workers who answered the phone at those two nursing homes Monday evening declined comment. Attempts to reach the facilities’ parent company, New Jersey-based GBK ‎Eight ‎LLC, weren’t immediately successful.

The Pennsylvania Department of State confirmed that Womack is not licensed as a medical professional in the state, state police said.

Investigators said they could not confirm that she is so licensed in any state. They said they learned from the Georgia Board of Nursing that she reportedly has been using identities of multiple nurses, some of whom she previously worked with, to obtain work since the arrival of the covid-19 pandemic — with multi-state licensing being accepted.

Police said Womack has been using the identities of nurses from different states, and their licensing, and has provided fraudulently signed background information to staffing agencies, in order to gain work.

Investigators said, in the complaint, that she “went as far as creating her own staffing agency, which was not legitimate, in order to pick up shifts.”

They said she was “operating as an unlicensed professional across multiple states, taking advantage of employers to ultimately negatively impact patients/residents by stealing medication for her own benefit and not administering it appropriately.”

Police said Womack additionally was placed on “do not retain” status at:

• Greenery Center for Rehab and Nursing in Canonsburg, where she worked four shifts in the capacity of a licensed practical nurse and two shifts as a registered nurse from Oct. 1 through Oct. 6 — and was accused of professional misconduct;

• Beaver Valley Healthcare and Rehabilitation, where she worked as a registered nurse from Feb. 3 through Feb. 23 — accused of professional misconduct;

• Sayre HealthCare Center in Bradford County, where she worked as a registered nurse on Feb. 17 and 18 — rated with poor performance ;

• St. Mary’s Home of Erie, where she worked as a registered nurse on April 2. Police said prescription drugs belonging to residents were found in her vehicle;

• Southmont of Presbyterian SeniorCare in Washington County, where she worked beginning March 1 — accused of professional misconduct. Police said 5 mg doses of oxycodone were missing from her medical cart, affecting five residents.

When Womack was pulled over for traffic violations on April 5 in Washington County, police discovered she was wanted on warrants from four states, including Georgia. They further found that she had used about 20 t aliases and seven different Social Security numbers.

The state police list of confirmed aliases as follows:

• Shannon Nicole Parham

• Shannon Nicole Abiola

• Shannon Nicole Armstrong

• Shannon Abiola-Parham

• Shannon Nicole Grimes

• Shannon Nicole Womack

• Shannon Nicole Lawson

• Shannon Nicole Lethco

• Shannon Nicole Robinson

• Shannon Lee Lawson

Care providers that find any of the names listed above in their employment records are to contact the state police in Washington, Pa. at 724-223-5200.

Troopers are working with several agencies including the Department of Health, Department of State, and multiple district attorneys and states in the ongoing investigation.

Womack is charged with theft- and drug-related violations, two counts of corrupt organizations and multiple counts each of forgery, identity theft, falsely pretending to hold a professional license, unlawful use of a computer and endangering the welfare of a person in her care.

She was arraigned Monday before District Judge James Saieva Jr. in Canonsburg and was placed in the Washington County Jail after failing to post $250,000 bail.

She faces an Aug. 12 preliminary hearing before Saieva.