A Palm Coast woman is facing multiple felony charges after authorities say she spent 18 months posing as a nurse at AdventHealth, where she reportedly treated more than 4,000 patients.
Autumn Bardisa, 29, was arrested Tuesday and is being held on a $70,000 bond. According to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, Bardisa is charged with seven counts of unlicensed practice of a healthcare professional and seven counts of fraudulent use of personal identification information.
Investigators say Bardisa assumed the identity of another registered nurse with a similar name to gain employment. She worked at AdventHealth from July 2023 to January 2025, operating in a role that required a valid RN license—something Bardisa did not have.
During her time at the hospital, Bardisa is alleged to have seen approximately 4,486 patients and received payment for her services. Authorities say she misled hospital administrators by claiming she had passed her licensing exam and submitted a license number belonging to another nurse named Autumn, who later confirmed she had never met Bardisa and had not authorized use of her credentials.
An internal review was triggered after Bardisa was offered a promotion in early 2025. A coworker who looked into her credentials discovered her only valid certification was as a nursing assistant—and that it had expired. Bardisa had never provided the marriage certificate she claimed would explain discrepancies in her documentation.
The investigation also revealed further misconduct. One employee reported Bardisa had sold them prescription medication, including semaglutide, commonly known as Ozempic, and allegedly administered a birth control injection to another staff member.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Florida Department of Health were both contacted during the investigation. Officials ultimately determined Bardisa had fraudulently entered the hospital’s nurse residency program and accepted a full RN position by June 2024.
Authorities say Bardisa spent over a year posing as a nurse before being terminated on January 22, 2025, when she failed to verify her identity. AdventHealth then contacted the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, leading to the criminal investigation and subsequent arrest.
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