Commercial drivers are required to have a different class of driver's license.

In California, you need a state license to sell cars...looks just like a driver's license.

General contractors provide their state license numbers for verification. The state has a web site that will give you company name & address, status of the license, principals operators and persons of responsibility for the license, and the class of license (general, electrical, low-voltage, landscaping).

Why can't we push a little farther than just filing paperwork for certifications and licensing in healthcare?

I can see that my General Contractor used to have two other businesses with the same type of license, one business was closed, one license was revoked by the state. He is/isn't licensed for the work he's bidding on. He is/isn't insured.

Why can't I see the same for my doctor? His staff?

Good question!

Now, I'm not jumping on the bandwagon of ever-expanding government. This is purely a record-keeping issue. Build a database. Keep it up to date. Require frequent revisions and put the onus on the licensed party.

Cases of fake doctors and nurses have a long, and sometimes fatal, even murderous, history in countries like the U.S.A. AND England (notable for its nationalized healthcare). It matters not how the medical bill is payed or who pays. If a person is going to game the system of professional certification and health care institution's hiring practices and pretend to be a health professional putting innocent people in their dangerous path, they will do so. They are interested only in how THEY are paid (by their employer), not how their employer is paid (by the patient, a for-profit insurance company, Medicaid, Medicare, the Veterans Administration, or the Federal Government (which pays for our men and women in the military, Congress, the Senate, the White House, etc).

Please note that only in (1) the case of patient's paying for themselves and (2) the situation where a private insurance company pays some part on the patient's behalf (with the patient paying a sum, often large enough to send them to bankruptcy court) do we have the federal government NOT paying for health care. In ALL other cases the government is providing a form of nationaized, universal healthcare...just not universal enough to cover the working middle and upper-middle class like me (and probably most of you reading this. The truly upper class? They are what is known as self-insured. They can afford to pay for their own healthcare bills without giving them a second thought).

Here's an interesting point or two.

The official Connecticut government site http://www.ct.gov/dcf/cwp/view.asp?a=3385&Q=405276 lists a Connecticut Nursing Association, as do some other sites. But it links to the Connecticut Nurses' Association, which is apparently the proper name for the organization. But obviously people are confused. The fake organization's name is on legitimate sites.

Connecticut licenses its own nurses and does not recognize other states' nurses, as some states do. This means the Federal government has nothing to do with it.

I doubt many people check up on the credentials of the nurses that they encounter. But they do and can check up on their doctors. You can even do it quickly on line. In this case Dr Weiss is legit, gets very good reviews, and has 18 years experience. He graduated and did his residencies at highly rated schools and hospitals. Evidently, he was not so good at checking his potential nurse's credentials.

There wouldn't be much point in a patient asking to see a nurse's papers unless there was a clear Federal standard ID, because the patient couldn't be expected to recognize legitimate ones. Would you? Even from your own state?

I think that when nurses get hired for the job they should have to prove that they are certified, I know I have to and I'm just a CNA and if anyone wants proof of that I show them my drivers license and a card from the state of FL department of health that has a Certification #, so as for this case she is definitely at fault but so is the human resource department or whoever was responsible for hiring her. Now with that said what I am scared of is if the doctor is board certified, so I always check this site: The American Board of Medical Specialties. It's a click away to find out if a doctor is certified and his background. I guess I've watched too many shows about this on 48 hours.

http://www.abms.org/

Here is one ESPECIALLY FOR PLASTIC SURGEON DOCTORS
http://www.smartrhinoplasty.com/checkasurgeon.html

Another helpful site is Health Grades where you can find and compare doctors and view background and performance data.

http://www.healthgrades.com/find-a-doctor?tv_eng=google&goid=hg&cid=pa_google_hg_BrdCert&aid=3333761252&dist=S&mkwid=x8hA3KcR&gclid=CKnkqLnQlZwCFQIfswodFANQcQ

I have been an RN and an APRN (advanced practice RN) for many years. I have NEVER had a job in which my credentials were not required for employment. Even when I worked at the same institution for years, I had to produce a valid nursing license after each renewal period. And, employers can easily check with the State Board Of Nursing to verify.
Regarding federal IDs and bringing in the issue of health care reform, you are mixing apples and oranges. Nurses are licensed by the state in which they work. The LPN and Rn licensure does not cross state borders. You must re-license in each new state in which you seek employment. Health care reform has no jurisdiction on nursing licensure.
In a small office, the burden of verification falls on the doctor or office owner. Apparently, someone dropped the ball. It is appalling, and the doctor in the CT instance will have some serious answering to do both to the CT Medical Board and the dr's malpractice company (since he increased their exposure to malpractice suits through his negligence).

Most health professionals cannot get proper work w/o identification, license and such. After that, they receive a background check, fingerprints, TB testing, and more. Each state is different, but have a lot of the same requirements.

I can see how someone might get a job in a private practice, but eventually, the State will find this.

I cannot see us all asking for paperwork, because as a health care professional myself, we do not carry a lot on our person. I suppose one could get that info from Human Resources.

It is a shame that one cannot even feel safe in a hospital.