As a nurse, you make quick and high-stakes decisions in intense, stressful situations for patients who are often vulnerable, suffering, and scared. Whether you practice in Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, Tallahassee, Tampa, Orlando, or anywhere in between, you provide critical assistance amid a shortage of medical professionals. You are a key and expert resource to your patients who are sick, injured, or suffering. Although your education, training, and clinical experience guide your medical decisions, much of your practice is prescribed by Florida's Nurse Practice Act (NPA).
The NPA, intended to protect patients and create standards for nursing practice, touches every corner of your work. From establishing Florida's Board of Nursing (the Board) and determining licensure requirements to outlining the license disciplinary process, the NPA creates the framework within which nurses operate. Importantly, whether you practice in a hospital, medical office, or other healthcare facility, the NPA identifies the misconduct that could jeopardize your nursing license and undermine your ability to practice nursing.
The Lento Law Firm understands the responsibilities you shoulder as a nurse. Your critical role in delivering quality and compassionate medical care to patients is the foundation of health care in Florida. Additionally, we know that nursing is both your calling and your livelihood. If you are a nurse concerned about your license or a license disciplinary investigation in Florida, you do not have to face it alone. The experienced Professional License Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm can help. Regardless of the circumstances, our experienced attorneys can fight to protect you and your nursing license. Call our offices at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.
You Have Everything to Lose if You Are Accused of Violating Florida's NPA
You have worked hard for years to become a nurse and establish your professional reputation. Your career is the foundation upon which you've built your and your family's financial security and future. If you find yourself the target of allegations that you have violated the NPA, you must take decisive action to defend yourself and your license.
The disciplinary process takes a professional, financial, and emotional toll on you and your loved ones. The uncertainty of the hearing and potential adverse outcomes can be devastating to your life and career.
When the Board investigates a nurse under the NPA, the possible outcomes of the disciplinary cases can be as varied as the spectrum of possible misconduct charges. Any adverse decision, from a warning to a suspension or revocation, may end your current employment, limit future opportunities in your chosen field, and jeopardize your financial security.
Additionally, the personal implications of an investigation and hearing can be catastrophic. The stigma of being subject to the Board's disciplinary sanction can be long-lasting. From the financial hardship of losing your income to the health and mental health impact of the disciplinary investigation and hearing, every aspect of your life may be impacted.
If you've been accused of violating Florida's NPA, it is normal to feel overwhelmed, but you don't need to feel powerless. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team will fight for you.
The Lento Law Firm can develop a comprehensive strategy in response to any threat of sanctions, supporting your best defense through every step of the disciplinary or legal processes. We can aggressively defend you and your nursing license so that you can continue to do what you do best: serve your patients.
Scope of Practice in Florida
The Board issues nursing licenses and oversees the practice of nursing as performed by three distinct groups of licensed nurses: licensed practical nurses, registered nurses, and advanced practice registered nurses.
Florida's NPA defines the practice and roles of each profession:
- Licensed practical nurses administer treatments and medications and promote wellness, health, and disease prevention under the direction of a registered nurse or licensed physician. Additionally, licensed practical nurses may provide education to the general public and non-nursing students.
- Registered nurses demonstrate their substantial specialized knowledge, judgment, and nursing skills by observing and assessing patients, providing nursing diagnoses, and planning and evaluating patient care. Registered nurses administer medications and treatments as prescribed or authorized by a licensed practitioner and may be involved in the supervision and teaching of others.
- Advanced practice registered nurses are registered nurses who have additional specialized education, training, and experience. Consistent with an established supervisory protocol, an advanced practice registered nurse may provide medical diagnosis, treatment, and prescriptions to patients.
All nurses in Florida must make informed decisions based on their nursing education and experience. The NPA's delineations between licensed practical nurses, registered nurses, and advanced practice registered nurses may fail to fully account for the range of nuanced decisions a nurse may need to make quickly in an emergent situation. If you believe the Board may be investigating you for working outside the scope of your license, the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team can assist and guide you through your next steps.
Prohibited Misconduct Under Florida's Nurse Practice Act
The NPA prescribes the behavior of nurses across Florida in both their clinical employment and their private lives. Licensed nurses practicing in Florida must adhere to the NPA or risk being sanctioned by the Board.
Misconduct Related to Licensing
To ensure patients are cared for by appropriately licensed professionals, Florida must maintain the integrity of its licensure programs. To ensure that licensed nurses possess the requisite level of education, training, and skill, the NPA prohibits obtaining, trying to obtain, or renewing a license by bribery, knowing misrepresentation, or through an error of the Board. Additionally, the Board may sanction a nurse whose license has been revoked, suspended, or otherwise acted against by another state, territory, or country.
Misconduct Related to Criminal Activities
A nurse may be unable to obtain a license or be subject to sanctions if they participate in a crime involving the practice of nursing or their ability to practice nursing. Additionally, a nurse may be unable to obtain a license or face sanctions if they are implicated in criminal activities, including:
- Crimes involving theft, robbery, or a related crime.
- Fraud.
- Lewdness and indecent exposure.
- Assault, battery, and culpable negligence.
- Child abuse, abandonment, and neglect.
- Domestic violence.
If you are a nurse concerned with the impact of a criminal prosecution, plea deal, or conviction on your nursing license or your eligibility for a license, the Lento Law Firm can help. We can work with you to ensure you have a comprehensive understanding of the licensing consequences of a criminal conviction.
Misconduct Related to Controlled Substances and Substance Abuse
Nurses have access to and are responsible for the appropriate administration of pharmaceuticals, including controlled substances. Under Florida's NPA, it is considered misconduct to:
- Possess, sell, or distribute or try to possess, sell, or distribute a controlled substance for any reason other than legitimate nursing purposes.
- Be unable to practice nursing with reasonable skill and safety to patients because of illness, mental or physical condition, or use of alcohol, drugs, narcotics, or chemicals.
Medical professionals, just like any other person, often find themselves suffering from physical or mental health challenges. Unfortunately, nurses are not immune to the ravages of our country's opioid epidemic.
Under the NPA, the misuse or abuse of alcohol, controlled substances, and illegal drugs can have far-reaching adverse consequences on your nursing license. If you are concerned that the Board may be investigating your health or your use of alcohol or controlled substances, the Lento Law Firm can help you decide on your next steps.
Misconduct Related to Patient Care and Fraud
Florida's NPA is intended to protect patients and ensure nursing standards are met and maintained. To further these goals, a nurse may be sanctioned for failing to demonstrate minimally acceptable standards of nursing practice, including engaging in acts for which the nurse is not qualified by training or experience.
Nurses rely on their education, training, and judgment to make the best decisions possible for their patients. As a result, the NPA emphasizes the importance of good judgment and veracity in decision-making by prohibiting:
- Unprofessional conduct.
- Involvement with false, misleading, or deceptive advertising.
- Failing to report as required by law any person known to the nurse as someone who is engaged in unprofessional conduct or has violated the grounds for disciplinary action.
- Knowingly creating or filing a false report or record.
- Intentionally or negligently failing to file a report or record as required by state or federal law.
The Board retains considerable authority to regulate the specific actions that constitute misconduct. If you are a nurse accused of misconduct in violation of the NPA, the Lento Law Firm can help defend you and your license.
Prohibition on Sexual Misconduct
Effective nursing rests on trust. A patient's dependence on their nurse highlights the vulnerability inherent in illness and suffering. As a result, the relationship between a nurse and their patients must be free of manipulation and exploitation.
Florida's NPA identifies sexual misconduct as a threat to the critical nurse-patient relationship. Prohibited sexual misconduct includes a nurse using their relationship with a patient to induce or to try to induce the patient to engage in sexual activity outside the scope of standard nursing practice and generally accepted treatment or examination protocols.
If you've been accused of sexual misconduct with a patient, the Lento Law Firm can collaborate with you to respond to the Board's investigation or hearing requests.
Criminal Charges Under Florida's NPA
Florida's NPA also identifies circumstances of misconduct that can lead to criminal charges. Under the NPA, it is a third-degree felony to:
- Practice advanced or specialized, professional, or practical nursing without holding the appropriate active license.
- Use or try to use a suspended or revoked license.
- Employ people who are not licensed in the practice of nursing.
- Obtain or try to obtain a nursing license or certificate based upon misleading statements or knowing misrepresentations.
Additionally, it is a misdemeanor for an individual to use the title “Nurse,” “Registered Nurse,” “Licensed Practical Nurse,” “Clinical Nurse Specialist,” “Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist,” “Certified Nurse Practitioner,” “Certified Nurse Midwife,” “Advanced Practice Registered Nurse,” or any title that implies a person possesses a nursing license or certification when they did not.
Similarly, the knowing concealment of information related to the misuse of these titles is also a misdemeanor. Because allegations involving nursing practice can lead to criminal investigations, charges, and prosecutions, it is important to address any professional disciplinary action taken against you.
The Lento Law Firm understands the importance of your work. With our Professional License Defense Team in your corner, we can fight for you and your license.
The Lento Law Firm Can Help
If you've been accused of violating Florida's NPA, it is time to focus on protecting yourself and your nursing license. Disciplinary investigations or hearings are adversarial, and the earlier you assemble a defense team to protect your rights and your license, the better.
If your efforts to navigate the process alone have become frustrating and you realize that you are outside of your area of knowledge, the Lento Law Firm can help you determine your best strategy and next steps. It is never too late to discuss your case with a member of the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team. When you are ready, our experienced attorneys can help you with any license disciplinary matter.
Protecting Your Nursing License in Florida
We understand that as a nurse, your work is profoundly challenging and rewarding. You make quick decisions with far-reaching consequences in intense situations. Importantly, the health outcomes of your patients can be largely out of your control. Despite these circumstances, you continue to show up for your patients. If you are a nurse under investigation for violating Florida's NPA, the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can partner with you to protect your license, your career, and your livelihood.
Across Florida, we've helped nurses facing sanctions under Florida's NPA, and we can help you. Call the Lento Law Firm at 888-535-3686 or contact us online to discuss your case.
