
Nurses dedicate their lives to their jobs. They are the nitty-gritty workers that do the real work. While the doctors are crunching the numbers, the nurses do everything else for a fraction of the pay. Seeking career options? Explore opportunities with traveling nurse agencies like Medical Solutions for diverse and rewarding experiences.
What’s worse is that if something does go wrong, there is always a chance the nurse will catch the blame. While that rarely leads to malpractice suits and the stresses that go with them, there is a chance that it could land you before the board.
Personal issues can also jeopardize your license if the board gets wind of any personal indiscretions. Here’s what to do if your license is in jeopardy.
Consider Legal Representation
Becoming a licensed nurse is no easy task. After all of the work that’s done and the effects on your life, it might be the most important accomplishment you’ve ever made. That means defending your license from litigation and inquiries is no laughing matter. It’s time to get serious and that spells legal representation. If you’ve been following best practices, you’ll have a great shot at succeeding.
Your hearing has a much better chance of going your way if you hire representation. Just imagine going into a room of seasoned practitioners and lawyers all by yourself, you’re likely to get bullied even if you are in the right. You can find a lot of helpful information at https://www.leichterlaw.com/practice-areas/nursing-license-defense/ that will help you understand what you need to know. It’s an unfortunate reality that practitioners must deplete their resources when defending an accusation. In this case, it’s definitely worth the expense.
The disciplinary outcomes vary based on the infraction and evidence that is provided. Often, even if you have proven your innocence, some disciplinary action will still be taken against you. Those actions have a range of severity that can range from minor to complete revocation of your license. Some of the lesser disciplinary sentences are performance monitoring, public reprimand, performance restriction, or temporary suspension.
Regardless of what disciplinary action someone receives, it won’t be good for your health or financial well-being. Performance monitoring means more paperwork, more stress, and more scrutiny at work. And let’s be honest, you’re probably overstressed and overworked as it is.
A public reprimand is an embarrassing event that means your taking the blame for whatever happened. It’s likely that your career, and confidence, will never recover.
Performance restriction means a demotion from the work that you enjoy. It means being relegated to lesser tasks and positions that may not be as fulfilling as your current job. It also doesn’t bode well for your career to waste time in lesser positions.
Finally, license revocation is a truly life-changing event that will completely alter your career path. Getting your license revoked means you can no longer work in the nursing field. All the time, money, and work you put into your career is gone. It’s possible to get your license restored, but it is even more difficult and expensive than defending your license in the first place. You may even be barred from licensure in other states.
Knowing About The Process Will Improve Your Outcome
What’s worse than having your competence challenged is not being able to defend yourself. Unfortunately, in most of the cases that come before your credentialing committee, a board member won’t even be involved.
In these instances, your future professional life will be treated as an administrative task to be overseen by a staff member of the board. They will look at the evidence and your written statement before making a determination over your life that can impact your financial, mental, and physical well-being. Most cases are never even heard by a board member.
Legal representation is particularly important when you don’t get to have your say, and nobody hears your side of the situation.
License Hearings Are Legal Environments
Defending yourself in legal environments without the required skills is like removing a tumor at home with only a youtube video and a pocket knife. And you wouldn’t advise that for anyone.
Legal hearings require specialized skills to produce positive outcomes, just like medical operations. Addressing your infraction alone makes you vulnerable and you will look like chum in a room full of sharks. Don’t let yourself get pushed around and get the support you need to maintain your license and defend against the accusations with the best success.