ICU nurse facing drug and child-porn charges has past conviction for sex crime

A western Iowa nurse currently facing child pornography and drug charges has a history that includes a conviction for sexual exploitation of a minor.

According to court records, Douglas Kelley of Sioux City was convicted of sexual exploitation of a minor in Buena Vista County in August 1993, 10 years before the Iowa Board of Nursing granted him a license to practice in Iowa as a registered nurse. With Kelley now facing federal criminal charges, he and the board recently reached an agreement requiring Kelley to surrender his license.

The Board of Nursing first took action against Kelley in August 2022, charging him with unethical conduct or practice harmful or detrimental to the public; failing to assess and accurately report the status of a patient; and misappropriating or attempting to misappropriate patient medications.

The board alleged that at some unspecified time in the past, the contents of Kelley’s phone were searched pursuant to a search warrant that uncovered some form of child pornography. Kelley’s employer at that time — who is not identified by the board — conducted an audit of his patient-care files and found that he had claimed to be doling out controlled substances at a significantly higher rate than other nurses.

The hospital also determined Kelley was claiming to have dispensed pain medications that would have been outside the range of physicians’ orders. In addition, he allegedly documented in medical files, on multiple occasions, patients’ self-reported pain levels — despite those patients being intubated and sedated at the time — prior to procuring narcotics that in theory would be administered to the patients.

The board issued an emergency order immediately suspending Kelley’s license in August 2022. Kelley recently agreed to surrender his Iowa nursing license, which was scheduled to expire next week, on Aug. 15.

Court records indicate the board was aware of concerns with Kelley as far back as November 2021, when board officials informed the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals’ Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of suspicions that Kelley was stealing patient narcotics while working in the intensive care unit at MercyOne Siouxland Medical Center in Sioux City.

The hospital’s records showed concerns related to at least 30 patients over a 90-day period, according to police.

Police reported speaking to a certified nursing assistant who alleged a friend was using pharmaceutical-grade fentanyl obtained from a dealer police identified as Kelley. Kelley’s spouse at the time allegedly told police that Kelley admitted taking supplies from MercyOne’s ICU. In addition, two MercyOne employees reported that they suspected Kelley was taking narcotics from the ICU and leaving them in his car in the hospital parking garage where they would be picked up by others.

Another individual provided police with a thumb drive that allegedly belonged to Kelley. Police reported they examined the thumb drive and found hundreds of photos and videos that constituted child pornography.

In March 2023, a federal grand jury indicted Kelley on charges of possession of child pornography; conspiracy to distribute amphetamine; conspiracy to acquire fentanyl by fraud; and distribution of a controlled substance.

Kelley has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges. The criminal case is still pending.