(Photo courtesy of the Iowa Board of Nursing)
The Iowa Board of Nursing sanctioned several nurses recently over allegations of being drunk at work, dealing methamphetamine and putting patients at risk.
One of the cases involves a nursing home worker, Anita Applegate of Polk County, who was accused of deliberately reusing residents’ insulin-delivery pens on other residents, creating a risk of infection.
Applegate, a licensed practical nurse, was recently charged by the Iowa Board of Nursing with failing to properly safeguard or secure medications and with deviating from the standards of skill ordinarily possessed by nurses. The board alleges that Applegate admitted that while working at Royal Oaks Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Urbandale last year, she administered to residents insulin and medications intended for other residents of the home.
In some cases, she allegedly using insulin pens — medical devices that are used to inject insulin using preloaded, premeasured cartridges — that had been previously used by other residents.
According to the board, she did this despite being aware that some residents of the facility had Hepatitis C. She allegedly risked exposing residents to bloodborne viruses, telling one co-worker the facility traditionally reused old insulin pens that would have otherwise been discarded.
The board alleges that Applegate “denies misappropriating medications but did admit to ‘using what was available’ when encountering unusually high glucose levels” in diabetic residents.
State inspection reports indicate that in December 2025, while working at Royal Oaks, Applegate did not dispose of insulin pens from discharged residents and reused them on multiple other residents. Another nurse at the home allegedly told inspectors Applegate instructed her to reuse the pens on other residents because doing so was “saving the company money” and that the practice had been in place since she started working at the home.
According to the inspectors’ reports, Applegate was fired from the facility after the Royal Oaks’ director of nursing was made aware of the practice. The board notes that after working at Royal Oaks, Applegate was employed at Urbandale’s StoryPoint Assisted Living.
The Iowa Capital Dispatch was not able to reach Applegate for comment, but state inspectors allege that when they interviewed her, she reported that when she did not have insulin to administer to residents she would “borrow” it from other residents. She allegedly explained she did this during a time when she was working 50 to 70 hours per week and was “on work overload and panicked.”
To settle the disciplinary case, Applegate recently agreed to accept a warning from the Iowa Board of Nursing and agreed to complete 60 hours of educational training on ethics, nursing practice and medication administration.
Other Iowa nurses recently sanctioned by the Board of Nursing include:
Taylor Delude, a registered nurse from Des Moines. According to the board, it fielded a complaint that on Dec. 14, 2025, while working at Select Specialty Hospital in Des Moines, Delude tested positive for alcohol use and was fired five days later. The board alleges she then self-reported to the Iowa Professional Health Program for nurses but subsequently decided she did not want to complete the IPHP program due to expense involved. The board then charged Delude with practicing nursing while under the influence of alcohol. As part of a settlement with the board, Delude has agreed to a six-month suspension of her nursing license, which will be followed by a two-year probationary period that will involve chemical screening and monitoring.
Taylor Lynn Syndergaard, aka Taylor Lynn Miller, a registered nurse who has worked in Alta. Earlier this year, the Board of Nursing charged Syndergaard with obtaining or possessing or administering controlled substances without lawful authority, and with violating an agreement or contract with the Iowa Professional Health Program that assists health professionals with substance abuse issues.
Syndergaard told the Iowa Capital Dispatch she has struggled with an addiction that stems from the prescribed use of opioids. In July 2025, Syndergaard was charged with selling 19 grams of methamphetamine to an individual for $440 in cash and gasoline. She has since pleaded guilty to a charge of intent to manufacture or deliver methamphetamine. Although she has yet to be sentenced, her plea deal with prosecutors contemplates a 10-year suspended prison sentence and four years of probation.
In February 2026, Syndergaard was charged with second-degree theft and criminal mischief. Prosecutors later dismissed the charges, saying evidence gathered during depositions cast doubt on the merits of the state’s case.
Beckee Sue Foss, a registered nurse from central Iowa. According to the board, Foss was working at Des Moines’ Valley View Village on Oct. 7, 2025, when she heard a loud noise and found a resident who had fallen to the floor in his room. She allegedly told a passing certified nursing assistant to go get another nurse to assist the resident, then returned to her desk without performing any examination of the patient and without offering any assistance, leaving the man unattended in his room. The board charged Foss with failing to assess or report the status of a patient.
State inspection reports indicate that on the day in question a CNA at the home entered a male resident’s room and found the man unresponsive and with no pulse. According to the inspectors’ reports, the staff initiated CPR and called 911, after which paramedics intubated the resident despite a do-not-intubate directive in the resident’s medical records at Valley View Village. The resident died, according to state inspection reports.
To settle the disciplinary case, Foss recently agreed to accept a warning from the board and to complete 30 hours of educational training on patient standards of care.
Courtesy of Iowa Capital Dispatch
