A Brooklyn woman is suing the owners of Brookdale Hospital, alleging that a male nurse drugged and molested her during an overnight shift last December while she was being treated for an autoimmune disorder. The lawsuit names nurse Kuriakose Poulose and accuses Brookdale and its parent company of negligence for not catching prior complaints about him.
What the suit says
According to the complaint, the alleged assault happened during the night shift on Dec. 5, 2025. The suit states that Poulose administered an IV medication that left the patient physically paralyzed and then "began rubbing and fondling" her exposed body, including her breasts and vagina. The woman later told reporters, "I was assaulted." The filing says hospital staff notified the NYPD the following morning. Brookdale's parent company, One Brooklyn Health, said it could not comment because the case is part of an active criminal investigation, according to NBC New York.
Past complaints and discipline
The lawsuit points to earlier discipline in another state. Public records show that the New Jersey Board of Nursing issued a reprimand to Poulose in March 2025 in a "consent order of discipline." That order found that he failed to disclose three separate incidents in 2020 and 2021, according to the complaint: two complaints from patients and one from a coworker. The order reportedly required him to enter a monitoring program related to boundary violations. "He’s had prior issues well in the past that they should have known about," plaintiff attorney Nicholas Liakas told reporters, as reported by NBC New York.
Licensing and interstate rules
A key issue in the lawsuit is how nursing discipline is shared across state lines. New York does not participate in the Nurse Licensure Compact, so a nurse with a license and disciplinary history in another state can practice in New York without that record automatically limiting their ability to work. The compact's official site explains that participating states use a multistate license system designed to make out-of-state discipline and licensing information more visible to employers and regulators. The suit argues that this gap in New York's rules helped keep Poulose's prior complaints out of view when Brookdale assigned him to patient care.
Where this leaves patients and Brookdale
Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center, listed at 1 Brookdale Plaza in Brownsville, Brooklyn, appears in federal and state records as a major provider for eastern Brooklyn and surrounding neighborhoods. Federal hospital records show the hospital's registered address. Local officials say NYPD investigators are continuing to work with the hospital as the criminal investigation moves forward alongside the civil lawsuit.
Legal implications
Regulators and nursing boards have long said that interstate reporting and coordinated enforcement are central goals of the Nurse Licensure Compact, which is meant to help states quickly see and act on another state's disciplinary findings when appropriate. New York's choice not to join the compact complicates that system and can slow the review of out-of-state records, according to regulators. The lawsuit contends that those delays and gaps carry real consequences for patients and could add pressure for closer scrutiny of background checks and re-registration practices if the plaintiff prevails. For now, the case remains a civil claim against the hospital owners, while the criminal investigation continues on a separate track.
