The Lento Law Firm Defends District of Columbia LPNs
The District of Columbia Board of Nursing has the expressed mission to “safeguard the public's health and well-being by assuring safe quality care in the District of Columbia.” The DC Board of Nursing is not your ally or friend when investigating and pursuing misconduct charges against you. It is instead your foe and prosecutor. Level your playing field against DC Board of Nursing disciplinary charges. Retain the Lento Law Firm's premier Professional License Defense Team to help you defend your District of Columbia LPN license proceeding. Your District of Columbia LPN license and nursing employment are worth protecting. Call 888.535.3686 or chat with us now.
District of Columbia LPN Practice Rewards
It is understandable, natural, and right that you should expect a good financial, personal, and professional return on your investment in your District of Columbia LPN license, employment, and practice. Licensed practical nursing is a personally rewarding profession. You also have built valuable professional relationships from which you learn and benefit in the security and challenges of your healthcare employment. The District of Columbia also has sophisticated hospitals and healthcare systems offering substantial and secure employment with good benefits. Those hospitals and healthcare systems include Washington Hospital Center, Children's National Medical Center, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, George Washington University Medical Center, Georgetown University Hospital, Howard University Hospital, Specialty Hospital of Washington, and the District of Columbia General Hospital. You know the rewards of your LPN practice. Let us help you preserve them.
Nationwide Stakes to District of Columbia LPN Discipline
Congress has authorized the District of Columbia Board of Nursing to join the National Nurse Licensure Compact. The DC Board of Nursing already invites LPN licensure by reciprocal endorsement of an LPN license held in another Nurse Licensure Compact state. The DC Board of Nursing also participates in the national Nursys discipline reporting and license verification database. While reciprocal endorsement means that you could get an LPN license in another state based on your DC LPN license if you lose your DC LPN license to DC Board of Nursing misconduct charges, you'll likely lose that right of reciprocal endorsement. Reciprocity, in other words, applies to discipline just as it does to licensure. Your DC Board of Nursing disciplinary charges have nationwide stakes. Don't ignore the charges. Instead, get the highly skilled defense representation of our attorneys.
District of Columbia LPN Licensure
Congress adopted the DC Healthcare Occupation Revision Act to regulate nursing practice and the practice of other healthcare professions within the District. Section 3-1205.01 of the Act requires a DC Board of Nursing license for a licensed practical nurse to practice nursing in the District. Congress has also authorized District of Columbia officials to adopt healthcare regulations governing the licensure of the District's LPNs and other nurses, along with physicians and other healthcare professionals. Those regulations authorize the DC Board of Nursing to issue a license to a qualified LPN. Section 3-1205.16 of the DC Healthcare Occupation Revision Act authorizes District officials to bring a cease and desist action in the District courts to enjoin any LPN from practicing on a suspended or revoked license. You won't practice nursing in the District of Columbia without your LPN license in good standing. Let us help you defend your license.
District of Columbia LPN Qualifications
Sections 3-1205.03 and 3-1205.04 of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act state the qualifications that LPNs and other healthcare professionals must meet to gain their DC licensing board's approval for a license. Those qualifications include earning an LPN degree from an accredited nursing program, passing the NCLEX LPN licensing exam or an equivalent approved exam, and completing an application process proving your good moral character and mental and physical fitness for practical nursing. It was far from easy for you to meet those strict requirements. You likely took years of studying and spent thousands of dollars simply to qualify for the required education and degree. You invested additional time, effort, and expense in passing your licensing exam and building your nursing skills, reputation, and network. You rightly expect substantial rewards from all your investments. Don't let DC Board of Nursing misconduct charges ruin your investment. Let us help you defend the charges to preserve your investment.
District of Columbia LPN Disciplinary Authority
The DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act also authorizes the discipline of licensed practical nurses and other healthcare professionals whose licenses the Act authorizes. Section 3-1205.14 of the Act authorizes the DC Board of Nursing and other DC licensing boards to revoke or suspend the issued license on specified grounds. The DC Health Regulation and Licensing Administration assists the DC Board of Nursing and other DC licensing boards in pursuing disciplinary charges. The DC Board of Nursing and DC Health together have abundant resources, substantial commitment, and skilled and experienced personnel to investigate misconduct allegations and file and pursue misconduct charges. Don't doubt the resolve of those officials and the resources they can bring to bear in your licensing proceeding. Instead, let our highly skilled attorneys bring their own premier skill and substantial experience to your defense in your DC Board of Nursing LPN license proceeding.
District of Columbia LPN Disciplinary Decisions
If you suffer from DC Board of Nursing discipline, you won't be able to keep that discipline a secret. The Board of Nursing posts nurse discipline on its website, including the name, license number, sanction, and misconduct of each disciplined nurse in the linked final order of discipline. Your nursing employer or prospective employers can easily find your discipline with a simple search of the website. So, too, can licensing boards in other states, your professional colleagues, your patients, and even your friends and family members. You may also have a duty to report your discipline when you apply for a new healthcare license or attempt to renew an existing license. You may also have to report your discipline to your employer and to prospective employers whose job applications you complete. Concealing your discipline just isn't generally possible. Instead, effectively fight and defend the charges with our help.
District of Columbia LPN Disciplinary Sanctions
Congress provided for a long list of alternative or cumulative disciplinary sanctions in Section 3-1214(c) of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act. Beware of the many potential sanctions. The DC Board of Nursing may refuse a license, revoke a license, or suspend a license. In each of those cases, you would be unable to work as an LPN in the District. The DC Board of Nursing may also reprimand you, impose a civil fine of up to $5,000 for each violation, or require that you submit to medical or mental exam, counseling, and treatment to retain your license while on probation or regain your license after suspension. The DC Board of Nursing may also limit or restrict your license. Any of those lesser sanctions, short of suspension or revocation, could cause you to lose your LPN job if your employer considers you a liability, regulatory, or reputational risk. Let us help you put on a case for mitigating any disciplinary sanction. We may be able to gain you remedial relief short of discipline, saving your LPN employment.
District of Columbia LPN License Reinstatement
Section 3-1205.21 of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act permits the DC Board of Nursing to reinstate your LPN license after suspending or revoking it. Let us help you make that application for reinstatement if you have already lost your license. Reinstatement is at DC Board of Nursing discretion. The Board won't reinstate your license unless you show by written application, documentation, and hearing that you are once again competent and fit to engage in safe nursing practice.
Grounds for District of Columbia LPN Discipline
Section 3-1205.14(a) of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act authorizes the DC Board of Nursing to discipline your LPN license on any number of a long list of grounds. The potential grounds for your LPN discipline are so many and so broad that DC officials may have substantial discretion in choosing the charges and grounds to pursue. Here are some of the more common grounds for DC Board of Nursing discipline, along with how our attorneys may be able to help you defend those charges.
Credential Fraud as Grounds for District of Columbia LPN Discipline
Section 3-1205.14(a) of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act includes “fraudulently or deceptively obtain[ing] or attempt[ing] to obtain a license” as a first ground for your LPN discipline. Examples of credential fraud include soliciting someone to impersonate you to take and pass the NCLEX-PN exam, misstating your LPN degree and education on your application, or omitting disqualifying impairment or convictions from your application. We may be able to show in defense that your application was accurate, that any omissions or inaccuracies were unintentional and immaterial, and that you are fully qualified for your LPN license.
Criminal Conviction as Grounds for District of Columbia LPN Discipline
Section 3-1205.14(a) of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act includes, as a second ground for your LPN discipline, a conviction for “any crime involving moral turpitude, if the offense bears directly” on fitness for licensing. Examples include crimes of violence that endanger patients or of dishonesty that endanger patients or threaten your employer's business. We may be able to show in defense that you suffered no conviction, your conviction did not relate to your fitness as a licensed practical nurse or a court overturned your conviction.
Incompetence as Grounds for District of Columbia LPN Discipline
Section 3-1205.14(a) of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act includes as a ground for discipline that you are “professionally or mentally incompetent or physically incapable.” Examples include a physical weakness keeping you from turning, lifting, or otherwise assisting patients or a mental illness affecting your memory or cognition to understand, remember, and follow nursing instructions and standards. We may be able to show in defense that you are not impaired or that your employer should accommodate your impairment under ADA guidelines.
Endangerment as Grounds for District of Columbia LPN Discipline
Section 3-1205.14(a) of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act includes as another ground for discipline that the LPN “demonstrates a willful or careless disregard for the health, welfare, or safety of a patient.” Examples include sexual assault of a patient, sexual relations with a patient, patient abuse, or threats and intimidation of a patient. We may be able to show in defense that the patient misidentified you, misconstrued your reasonable actions and intentions, or retaliated against you with false accusations.
District of Columbia LPN Disciplinary Procedures
You have a constitutional right to due process when defending DC Board of Nursing misconduct charges. Section 3-1205.19 of the DC Healthcare Occupations Revision Act includes lengthy descriptions of procedures the DC Board of Nursing must follow when seeking to suspend or revoke your LPN license on disciplinary charges. Those healthcare regulations require the disciplinary officials to notify you of the details of the charges against you and provide you with a formal hearing before the Board or its designated panel of impartial officials. Those protections are not self-executing. You must invoke them. We can help you do so and can attend the hearing to cross-examine adverse witnesses and present your own witnesses. If you have already lost your hearing, we can take your available agency appeals. If you have already lost your appeals, we may be able to win court reversal of your discipline or otherwise negotiate your LPN license reinstatement.
Premier District of Columbia LPN Defense Services
The Lento Law Firm's premier Professional License Defense Team is available across the District of Columbia to defend your LPN license against the District of Columbia Board of Nursing disciplinary charges. Our attorneys have successfully defended hundreds of professionals in the District of Columbia and across the nation in license proceedings. Call 888.535.3686 or chat with us now.
