As a nurse, having a license is the linchpin to your career and, therefore, your livelihood. Most people go into nursing to help others, but that doesn't mean you don't want to be able to make a living for yourself while doing the work you love. As such, learning that any type of complaint has been filed against you with your state's licensing body will come with undue stress that can affect not just your work but your everyday life as well. Particularly when it comes to suggestions of lack of integrity due to dishonest or unethical behavior.
The Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team understands not just how important your nursing license is but also how difficult it can be to find yourself under the microscope of a disciplinary investigation or a misconduct proceeding. We can make sure you don't have to face it alone. Call us at 888.535.3686 or use our contact form to schedule a confidential consultation. Your nursing license is important to you; let us help you protect it!
What is Considered Dishonest or Unethical Behavior?
Nurses can face a number of different disciplinary charges from their state nurse licensing board. Dishonest or unethical behavior is one of those, and it is one of the most unsettling charges to face because of the ambiguity of the term and the wide variety of conduct it can encompass. There's also the fact that disciplinary officials have broad discretion to define what constitutes this conduct.
At its core, dishonest or unethical behavior refers to actions that violate the professional standards of conduct. Examples of such behavior can range from falsifying medical records, neglecting patient care, stealing medications, breaching patient confidentiality, failing to report errors, or engaging in discriminatory practices. Basically, anything that can be considered as putting a patient's safety and well-being at risk due to not acting with honesty or integrity can fall within this spectrum.
As discussed before, that is a very broad definition, and licensing boards can interpret many different behaviors within the confines of this conduct. In Illinois, Section 70-5 of the Nursing Practice Act establishes grounds for disciplinary action, which include refusing to “issue or to renew,” as well as “revoke, suspend, place on probation, reprimand, or take other disciplinary or non-disciplinary action,” nurses who engage in “dishonorable, unethical, or unprofessional conduct of a character likely to deceive, defraud, or harm the public.”
Meanwhile, Section 918 of the Louisiana Nurse Practice Act gives the State Board of Nursing the power to suspend, revoke, or otherwise discipline licensees on the Board's stated disciplinary grounds, which includes what the state calls being guilty of “moral turpitude.” The terminology might not be the same, as that's part of what makes this a complicated matter.
These are two good examples of why, if you are facing disciplinary charges due to dishonest or unethical behavior, it's important to make sure you don't do so alone. And that's where we come in. The Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team is here to help you understand the charges against you and prepare the best strategy to fight for your license.
How to Defend Against Charges of Dishonest or Unethical Behavior
Defending against charges of dishonest or unethical behavior can be difficult, particularly considering how broad the definition can be and how much it can vary from state to state. As a nurse your job is already stressful and draining, without having to add the worries of defending your license to it. That's why the Lento Law Firm Professional Defense Team is ready to help you any time you're facing allegations of dishonest or unethical behavior.
But how to defend against these charges? Considering that the scope for dishonest and unethical behavior is large, it is important to have a strategy that is tailor-made to your specific circumstances and that takes into account your case, your record, and the nature of the allegations. There are, however, a number of paths that can be taken when it comes to defending against these charges, which include:
- Using testimony to prove that the dishonest or unethical behavior that is being alleged did not take place.
- Showing that the complaints against you are incorrect, inconsistent, or contradictory—or that there's no evidence to support them.
- Presenting evidence that the witnesses against you are conflicted, acting with retaliatory intent, or that they had no way of possessing the knowledge they're claiming to.
- Showing that the behavior you're being accused of met all the applicable standards of nursing care, be it with expert testimony or other professional sources.
- Proving that the behavior that is being investigated was undertaken due to a reasonable misunderstanding or mistake and not a deliberate violation of nursing practices.
- Presenting evidence that proves that the behavior caused no harm, and that it only lightly departed from vague customs and conventions.
- Showing that the alleged behavior was corrected before any complaint or report was filed, establishing good faith intention to avoid violations of nursing standards.
- Proving that the behavior can be explained due to medication changes or other physiological or psychological conditions or events, and that these are not likely to repeat, so your continued practice is not a threat to patients.
The Disciplinary Process
- Complaints
A disciplinary process for dishonest or unethical behavior always begins with a complaint, and who allegedly observed, discovered, or presumed your supposed dishonest or unethical behavior will be really important when it comes time to defend yourself against their allegations.
Depending on who the complaint is coming from, disciplinary officials might put more weight on it than others: for example, if it comes from patients or their family members and it has to do with alleged nursing abuse, neglect, or incompetence, the board might examine it but not really take it as seriously. However, that doesn't mean that if a patient or their family complains to the board, you should not be concerned. The Lento Law Firm is ready and able to argue in your favor in cases such as this one, no matter who the complaint is coming from.
For example, in the case of patients and family members, it can be argued that they lack the training and knowledge to understand why nurses do what they do, and they may misconstrue nursing care as neglect when anyone who understands the profession would know better.
The complaint can, of course, also come from physicians, nurse supervisors, nurse colleagues, subordinate nursing assistants, or healthcare aides. And though it is true that their complaints may end up being more credible than those of patients or family members, it doesn't mean all is lost if you get one such complaint. Professionals can also misidentify actions or presume reckless intentions where there are none.
No matter where the complaints are coming from, the Lento Law Firm Professional Defense Team can make sure you have the best defense against the allegations presented against you to the nursing board and that you are not caught by surprise by the process ahead of you. We can be the ally you need in these trying times and make sure you can focus on taking care of patients while we take care of you.
- Notification
The process will typically begin when you are notified of the allegations against you. At this point, it's important to understand that, as scary as an investigation by your state licensing board sounds, they cannot suspend or revoke your license without giving you due process and a chance to not just tell your side of the story but prove it.
Due process involves not just being notified of the charges against you, but extends to the full process. An example of this is in the Washington State Nurse Practice Act, which incorporates the uniform procedural rules of the state's disciplinary act for all professions. Those procedural rules refer to the state's Administrative Procedure Act for the required constitutional due process notice, hearing, presentation, and cross-examination of witnesses, as well as other protections.
Our defense of your behavior will rely on the protective procedures of your state's Nursing Practice Act, nursing laws, and nursing rules and regulations. It will also be tailored specifically to your circumstances. Getting a notice that you're being investigated is always nerve-wracking, but you don't have to tackle these issues alone. The Lento Law Firm is here to help.
- Hearing
Once you know the charges against you, it's possible to start preparing a defense. And that preparation will become crucial when it comes to the next step of the process, a hearing. Depending on your state, you might have the chance for a conciliation conference, during which it's possible to secure a voluntary resolution. Even if that's not possible, though, that early conciliation hearing will allow us to provide your state licensing board with both evidence in your favor and, most importantly, an explanation of your behavior from your own point of view.
If the state licensing board considers there's enough evidence to proceed, then a formal hearing will be held. That formal hearing might include witnesses, which we will be able to cross-examine. You will also be able to present any witnesses who can corroborate your claims. This is why it's so important to have the Lento Law Firm on your side, not just for a hearing but so you can prepare for it in a way that allows you to have the best outcome. Nursing is your job, and ours is preparing cases and handling every step of the process so you don't have to worry.
- Appeals
If the hearing goes against you, your state licensing board can suspend or revoke your license. They can also choose to give you a substantial fine. All of these things can have a great impact on you, not just professionally but personally. Not only that, but they can also stain your reputation as a nurse and maybe even prevent you from making a living going forward.
However, there are always options, even if the state licensing board has already decided against you. Appeals avenues are available in all states, and the Lento Law Firm Professional Defense Team can pursue those appeals and prepare the best possible case for you. Whether it be trying a new angle or identifying errors in the decision or the procedure that would warrant a reversal, the Lento Law Firm will fight for you until the end with active, strategic, and effective action.
How the Lento Law Firm Can Help
The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team has defended many nurses accused of all types of misconduct, including dishonest or unethical behavior, and can be your ally in such a difficult time. Not just that, the Lento Law Firm has successfully helped clients around the country defend their nursing license and can prepare a defense tailored to your needs and circumstances that gives you the best outcome possible.
Before embarking on such a defense, it's important to understand the standards nurses are held to by their respective state nursing boards, the process used by state licensing boards to investigate and discipline nurses who are accused of failing to meet those standards already established and the various types of discipline that can be imposed on nurses who are found responsible for any type of misconduct.
That's why the Lento Law Firm is right for you. We understand not just how to defend you but also how stressful it can be to learn that someone has filed a complaint against you. It's not just about the long and stressful disciplinary process ahead; it is about the possible damage to your reputation, the risk to your license, and how all of that will affect your livelihood. That's why we will not rest until we are sure we are putting forth the best case possible. We will fight for your rights and vigorously defend you against misconduct allegations.
If you want to learn more about how the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can help protect and defend you when you've been accused of nursing misconduct, call us at 888.535.3686 or use our contact form to schedule a confidential consultation. Your nursing license is important to you, so it's important to us. Let us help you protect it.
