As a Nurse Practitioner (NP) in Maine, you have dedicated your career to providing medical care in an area suffering from an acute shortage of healthcare professionals. You studied hard, passed the required exams, earned a degree, completed additional advanced practice training, and became licensed to work as an NP in Maine. Despite limited resources and critical patient needs, you show up each day and demonstrate your commitment to patient care and welfare.
As an NP, you play a critical role in delivering quality and compassionate medical care to patients in Maine. If you are an NP targeted by disciplinary investigation in Maine, you do not have to face it alone. The Lento Law Firm can assist NPs working at any hospital, medical facility, or healthcare office in Maine, including:
- Maine Medical Center (Portland).
- Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center (Bangor).
- Saint Mary's Regional Medical Center (Lewiston).
- Central Maine Medical Center (Lewiston).
- Maine General Medical Center (Augusta).
- Southern Maine Health Care (Biddeford).
- Pen Bay Medical Center (Rockport).
Regardless of where you practice, the experienced Professional License Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm can partner with you to defend your NP license and career. Call our offices today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.
You Must Protect Yourself During a Disciplinary Investigation or Hearing
As an NP, you chose to make a career out of caring for others, often during the most vulnerable times of their lives. You are committed to your patients and your community. During a healthcare crisis that includes a shortage of medical professionals, the scarcity of many types of prescription drugs, and ever-increasing treatment costs, you continue to provide exceptional care to patients. As you navigate these trying circumstances on behalf of your patients, it can be devastating to learn that you are the subject of a professional disciplinary investigation.
If you discover that you are the target of a professional misconduct complaint, investigation, or hearing, you must take decisive action to defend yourself and your license. You do not have to face misconduct allegations alone. With the Lento Law Firm on your side, we can work together to protect you and your career.
The Maine State Board of Nursing Oversees NP Practice
The Maine State Board of Nursing (the board) manages the licensing and practice of nursing, including oversight of advanced practice nurses such as NPs. In Maine, NP practice specialties include Family, Psychiatric Mental Health, Adult Gerontology Primary Care, Adult Gerontology Acute Care, Pediatric Primary Care, Pediatric Acute Care, Women's Health, and Neonatal.
Regardless of your specialty, the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can help if you find yourself targeted by Maine's disciplinary process.
In Maine, NPs are prohibited from engaging in a broad range of behaviors that are considered misconduct. The most common misconduct allegations brought against NPs involve:
- Practicing under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
- Using alcohol or drugs inappropriately outside of employment.
- Demonstrating incompetence.
- Being convicted of a crime.
- Engaging in misrepresentation or fraud.
- Behaving unprofessionally, which could include poor or problematic interactions with patients or failure to maintain a clean work environment.
- Mishandling or misusing drugs, such as making medication errors, over- or under-prescribing pharmaceuticals, and removing medication from a medical facility.
- Violating nursing regulations or employer policies.
Often, professional misconduct allegations depend heavily on the specific context in which your conduct occurred and your state of mind. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can partner with you to identify mitigating facts and supportive witnesses.
NPs Face a Complex Disciplinary Process in Maine
In Maine, the complaints regarding professional misconduct or incompetence are submitted in writing to the board. Although some complaints filed with the board may have merit, many are baseless, submitted in bad faith, or motivated by bias.
The board's Complaint Coordinator reviews all written complaints to determine if allegations fall under its authority. If the board has jurisdiction, the complaint is investigated. The complaint is forwarded to the target NP, along with a request to provide a written response to the allegations.
When the investigation is complete, the board reviews the file. After considering the file, the board may:
- Dismiss the complaint. When a complaint is dismissed, the board's action ends.
- Request additional investigation. The board may request a further investigation into the allegations against you.
- Issue a Letter of Concern.
- Order an Informal Conference. An Informal Conference provides the board a chance to speak with the complainant about their allegations against the NP and to speak with the accused NP. The board uses the information collected to determine whether to dismiss the complaint or move forward with a formal hearing.
- Order an Adjudicatory Hearing. During an adjudicatory hearing, the board reviews all available information about the complaint.
Adjudicatory hearings are held in public but may be closed to protect sensitive health care information. As an NP defending your professional license, you have the right to a hearing and to receive sufficient notice of the hearing, the right to retain legal counsel, and the right to present evidence, including examining and cross-examining witnesses. The Lento Law Firm can be a valuable partner during an adjudicatory hearing.
After an adjudicatory hearing, the board determines if a violation occurred. If no violation occurred, the board dismisses the complaint or issues a letter of concern. If the board finds that there was a violation, the board will determine the sanction. The board has broad authority when disciplining an NP, and sanctions can vary from warnings and fines to the suspension or loss of a license.
Before holding an adjudicatory hearing, the board may negotiate a pre-hearing settlement or consent order with an accused NP. Such an agreement generally requires the targeted NP to agree to a specified sanction to avoid the uncertainty and potentially more damaging post-hearing determination.
In some circumstances, a pre-hearing agreement or consent order may be an advantageous method of ending the disciplinary process. For any NP who believes they have been unfairly accused of wrongdoing, it may be difficult to agree to any settlement or consent order. With the Lento Law Firm on your side, we can strategize with you about the conditions under which a consent order would make sense based on your needs, the allegations, and the results of our own investigation.
You Have the Right to Appeal the Board's Adverse Decision
If the board has made an unfavorable decision, you have the right to judicial review under the Maine Administrative Procedure Act. On appeal, the Maine Superior Court may affirm the board's decision, reverse or modify the board's decision, or require additional proceedings, such as further fact-finding efforts.
The Superior Court may modify or reverse a board decision only if the board:
- Acted arbitrarily or capriciously.
- Violated the statutory guidelines for conducting a hearing or issuing a decision.
- Relied on an unlawful procedure as the basis of its decision.
- Allowed bias or error to influence the proceedings.
- Issued a decision inconsistent with the facts and evidence of the case.
- Issued a ruling outside of its authority.
If your initial appeal is unsuccessful, you may be able to seek additional judicial review from the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.
As soon as you learn that a complaint has been filed against you, the Lento Law Firm can help by developing a comprehensive license defense strategy. Our experienced attorneys can identify your options and exhaust your legal rights to protect your license and your career.
The Lento Law Firm Will Stand by You Throughout Maine's Disciplinary Process
In Maine, any allegation of misconduct against an NP is extremely serious. The board consistently demonstrates that it is willing to take significant disciplinary action against an NP who has engaged in prohibited behavior. The consequences of a disciplinary sanction can be profound for you and your career.
The Lento Law firm can provide the legal guidance needed to navigate Maine's professional license disciplinary procedures. Our attorneys can strategize with you, review and collect evidence, identify, and meet with witnesses, as well as review the enforcement actions of the board to ensure your due process rights are upheld. We can conduct our own independent investigation to identify mitigating facts, find supportive witnesses, and challenge the complainant's allegations.
You cannot trust the board's investigation will be thorough or fair. The best-intending investigators may miss vital facts or fail to interview all the relevant witnesses. Even if the investigators correctly identify facts, the board may second guess your decisions, dismiss mitigating factors, or harshly question your intentions. With the Lento Law Firm Team on your side, we can execute a defense strategy aimed at upholding your due process rights, telling the story of your commitment to your patients, and protecting your NP license. Our experienced attorneys can coordinate every aspect of your defense, from your initial written response to preparing your testimony for an informal conference or a disciplinary hearing to an appeal in the courts.
Disciplinary Sanctions Impact Every Aspect of Your Life
The impact of an adverse determination by the Board can be devastating to your career.Any adverse decision, from a warning or fine to a suspension or revocation, may lead to the end of your current employment, create difficulties in finding employment opportunities, limit your future earning power, jeopardize your financial security, and curtail your ability to advance in your chosen career.
Additionally, disciplinary investigations can adversely impact all aspects of your personal life. The threat of sanctions can undermine your physical and mental health. The stigma of losing your license can feel overwhelming.
Nothing in your healthcare education or practice could prepare you for a disciplinary complaint or investigation. When facing a seemingly exhausting disciplinary process, it is normal to feel lost. It can be difficult to admit that you need assistance in responding to the allegations and protecting your license.
You don't need to fight the board or navigate the disciplinary process alone. The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team will help you make sense of the initial complaint, the disciplinary process, and your next steps. Our experienced attorneys know how to aggressively defend you and your NP license, and we want to fight on your side.
The Lento Law Firm can develop a comprehensive strategy in response to any sanctions threat, supporting your best defense through every step of the disciplinary or judicial processes.
The Lento Law Firm Is Always Ready to Help
As with most adversarial proceedings, the earlier you assemble a defense team to protect your rights and your license, the better. If your initial efforts to navigate the disciplinary process have been unsuccessful and you are facing a severe professional penalty, the Lento Law Firm can help. We can partner with you to determine your appeal rights and, when appropriate, pursue a judicial appeal of the board's decision.
It is never too late to discuss your case with a member of the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team. When you are ready, our experienced attorneys can help you with any professional license disciplinary matter.
You Can Take Action to Protect Your Maine NP License
The Lento Law Firm Team understands that as an NP, your work requires critical thinking, quick execution, and endless empathy. As you practice, your decisions can have far-reaching impacts on your patients, their health, and their families. While you advocate for the best outcomes for your patients, the last thing you need is for Maine to threaten your license and your livelihood with a disciplinary investigation or sanction.
If you find yourself the target of disciplinary investigations or hearings, the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can collaborate with you to protect your license, your career, and your livelihood. Throughout Maine, we've helped NPs defend against actions by the board, and we can help you. To protect your NP license and your livelihood, contact the Lento Law Firm at 888-535-3686 or online to discuss your case.
