She conceded that the system has gaps. Prompted in part by questions from The Times, the board plans to ask the Legislature for permission to add a question about convictions to its renewal application. Goodman said the board does not believe it has the authority to change the application on its own.
The state Department of Consumer Affairs, which provides support for all state licensing boards, also is considering asking the Legislature for permission to seek fingerprints from nurses and other health licensees who have not provided them.
Goodman said the board is doing what it can with its limited budget and staff. It can't pursue cases it doesn't know about, she said.
"I don't know what I don't know," she said. She added: "I don't view it as a problem. I'm just viewing it as taking a look at opportunities."
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Delayed reaction
At times, the board's slow pace has put patients at risk.
Some nurses with convictions for drug or alcohol- related crimes later were accused of taking drugs intended for patients.
Before one nurse lost her license, she was twice convicted of drunk driving, failed to complete a rehabilitation program and later appeared drunk at three separate nursing jobs, according to the board's complaint against her.
A nurse convicted in 1994 of smuggling rock cocaine to her jailed husband was not disciplined until nearly 10 years later.
"The exceedingly serious criminal conduct that is the subject of this matter most certainly would have resulted in a revocation of her license" if the charges had been brought sooner, an administrative law judge wrote when the case ended. "No explanation is apparent for the significant delay."
As a result, the judge gave the nurse probation.
In another case, an Orange County jury convicted Stephen Menchaca in 1994 of the attempted murder of his wife. A judge later wrote that Menchaca "hit her on the head with a hard object, pushed her to the ground, put towels in her mouth and over her head and struck her head against the floor."
Menchaca was sentenced to life plus three years in prison.
The nursing board didn't act until eight years later -- after Menchaca had renewed his license repeatedly while in prison. His license finally was revoked in February 2003.
Goodman recalled the case well. "That was a real strange one," she said, adding that the board acted after an anonymous complaint. Asked how he was able to renew his license, she said, "The address of record we had wasn't in prison, so somebody was able to do something on his behalf unbeknownst to us."
