If you have earned your occupational therapist license in Mississippi, you understand what a significant accomplishment that is. You’ve successfully completed years of education, including getting an advanced degree. You’ve spent months getting the fieldwork you need to qualify to hold your OT license. And you’ve spent many hours preparing for and then taking (and passing) the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) exam. Only then, after completing and submitting the Mississippi State Department of Health’s occupational therapy licensing application, do you have the right to hold yourself out as a licensed occupational therapist in Mississippi.
That is why it is so important to take it seriously if you learn that someone has filed a misconduct complaint against you. Depending on the allegations, your license and your ability to earn a living as an occupational therapist may be at risk. The LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team can help you protect your license and your future when you’ve been accused of misconduct. Call us today at 888.535.3686 or use our contact form to schedule a confidential consultation with one of our experienced attorneys.
Mississippi Occupational Therapist Licensing
Occupational therapists in Mississippi receive their licenses from the state’s Department of Health. The DOH also renews occupational therapist licenses, enforces practice standards, and reviews misconduct allegations made against occupational therapists. Where appropriate, the DOH also disciplines occupational therapists and has the power to suspend and even revoke an OT’s license.
The requirements for an occupational therapist license are set by Mississippi law. Applicants need to have graduated from an accredited occupational therapy program and completed a designated period of supervised fieldwork. They must have passed the NBCOT exam and also be eligible for certification by that organization. There are also separate requirements that allow occupational therapy assistants who have been practicing for at least four years to secure a full OT license.
Applicants for an OT license in Mississippi must disclose on their application if they have been convicted of any misdemeanor or felony crimes. Mississippi law gives the DOH the power to decide not to issue an OT license to someone who has been convicted of any felony, or other crimes that have as “an essential element” acts that include “misstatement, fraud, or dishonesty.”
Because not all convictions will disqualify you for an occupational therapist license, it is important to make sure you are ready to provide the Mississippi DOH with the information it needs to review your situation fairly. While you may not know the kind of information that could help your application get approved, the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team does. We can review your background with you, and make sure you have not only the detailed information that the DOH needs to understand what your conviction was about, but also additional information that can help the DOH evaluate your application with information that would support the DOH issuing you an OT license.
Note: Mississippi is one of the many states that is ready for the Occupational Therapy Licensure Compact when the compact becomes active. This will make it much easier for occupational therapists licensed in one compact state to practice in another compact state without having to secure a separate license. While, as of this writing, the licensure compact is not yet active, the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team can help you if you have questions about it.
Once you have your occupational therapist license in Mississippi, you need to renew it once every two years if you want to keep it active. You will also need to take the required continuing education and be prepared to prove to the DOH that you did so. Here, too, if you have been convicted of a crime during the past two years while registered as an OT, you will need to advise the DOH. And here too, the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team can help you prepare your disclosure and answer questions that the DOH may have about your conviction. We regularly assist clients who must address convictions that occurred during their license period when they apply for their license renewal, and we are ready to help you if that is an issue you face in Mississippi.
What the Mississippi Department of Health Does When it Comes to Regulating Occupational Therapists
The Mississippi Department of Health is responsible for regulating and licensing a number of different health-related professions in the state, including occupational therapists. The DOH reviews initial license applications as well as renewals. It also reviews continuing education courses to make sure they meet the state’s standards and approves them for use by occupational therapists to satisfy their continuing education requirement.
The DOH also reviews complaints received from the public about occupational therapists, and where the subject matter of the complaint falls within the DOH’s jurisdiction, it will investigate the alleged misconduct. Where appropriate, the DOH will discipline the occupational therapist.
The DOH’s roles when it comes to licensing and regulating occupational therapists are governed by Mississippi law and regulations. Disciplinary actions taken by the DOH are published on its website and can be accessed by the public when checking on the license status of an occupational therapist.
The Mississippi Department of Health Disciplinary Authority for Occupational Therapists
There are a number of reasons set forth in the Mississippi regulations that the DOH can use as grounds for disciplining occupational therapists in Mississippi. These include:
- Negligent practice of occupational therapy by the therapist
- Committing “dishonorable, unethical, or unprofessional conduct” that is “likely do deceive, defraud, or harm” the general public in the course of practicing occupational therapy
- Committing “fraud or material deception” in connection with the OT’s license application or renewal
- Being convicted of any felony
- Being convicted of any crime that has a “substantial relationship” to the OT’s work as an occupational therapist
- Being convicted of a crime that has “misstatement, fraud, or dishonesty” as an “essential element”
- Practicing occupational therapy when the OT is unfit to do so, including because of alcohol or drug dependency
- Treating patients differently – in a bad way – based on their “race, color, creed, sex, religion, or national origin”
- Committing “lewd conduct” in the course of providing occupational therapy services
- Revealing patient confidential information in violation of the law
- Violating the American Occupational Therapy Association’s Code of Ethics
The Mississippi DOH will follow certain procedures when a misconduct complaint is made against a licensed occupational therapist or when the DOH otherwise hears about alleged misconduct committed by an OT. What is important is that you contact the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team as soon as you learn that the DOH is investigating you for suspected misconduct. The sooner you do so, the more we will be able to do to help protect your license – and your future.
How the Mississippi State Department of Health Learns About Alleged Misconduct
There are two main ways that the Mississippi DOH learns about potential misconduct committed by an occupational therapist. The first is through complaints filed with the DOH by members of the public. The second is when OTs report convictions, discipline from other states, or other misconduct to the DOH themselves, often when they renew their license.
The DOH maintains a webpage that anyone can use to file a complaint about an occupational therapist. Complaints can come from anyone, not just patients. It’s not unusual for family members or colleagues, for example, to file complaints with the DOH about occupational therapists.
Mississippi State Department of Health Disciplinary Investigations
The Mississippi State Department of Health will review all complaints it receives about an occupational therapist, the therapist’s business, or the therapist’s professional practice. The DOH states that it will investigate all complaints that it receives.
Investigations can be very stressful. If the DOH is investigating you because of a complaint that has been filed against you, it’s very likely that you will be interviewed by the investigator. This is not a situation that most people are used to – having someone ask questions that could result in your license being suspended or even revoked. This is another area where the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team can help. We can prepare you for the experience of being interviewed, and can even be there with you when it happens, making sure that the questions the investigator asks are fair, that you understand them before you answer them, and that you provide the investigator with any information that may be helpful to your case.
The investigator may also interview the person who filed the complaint, as well as your co-workers or others who may have relevant information. Depending on the subject matter of the complaint, the investigator may also gather documents and other records.
All of this can take months, in some cases. Through it all, if you are working with the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team, we will be your point of contact with the DOH. We can handle the communications with the DOH and will make sure you don’t miss any deadlines that may come up during the course of the investigation or disciplinary process.
The investigator will prepare a report for the DOH, which the DOH will use to determine whether or not to file formal charges against you. If it does, the formal complaint will list the facts that are the basis for the charge or charges that are being made against you. The rules state that the charges must be specific enough so that you can defend against them. When you are working with the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team, we will closely review any charges that are filed against you to make sure they meet that standard.
Most professional disciplinary matters, including those involving occupational therapists, do not go to the hearing stage. Instead, they are resolved through a settlement between the OT and the DOH. Negotiating these kinds of settlements is something that the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team has years of experience with. We understand the rules and regulations that apply to occupational therapists in Mississippi. We know the concerns that the DOH has when it comes to protecting the public and making sure that OT’s practice competently. And we understand the negotiation process. Our goal in these cases is to resolve your matter in a way that has as little impact on your occupational therapist license as possible.
Of course, not all disciplinary matters settle. Those that don’t will proceed to a formal hearing, where both the DOH and the OT can present witnesses and evidence, and cross-examine the other side’s witnesses and dispute the introduction of the other side’s evidence. At the close of the hearing, the presiding officer shall prepare a set of findings of fact and conclusions of law, as well as recommendations to the DOH as to what discipline, if any, should be imposed on the occupational therapist. In most cases, the DOH will accept those recommendations.
The DOH has a range of options when it comes to disciplining occupational therapists. They include:
- Censuring the OT
- Fining the OT up to $200
- Placing the OT on probation, with conditions that the OT must meet before the probation is lifted
- Suspending the license for a designated period of time
- Revoking the license
While any discipline can be difficult to accept, a suspension or revocation of your license can be devastating for your career as well as your ability to earn a living. This is why it is so important for you to contact the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team as soon as you learn you have been accused of misconduct. Our attorneys will fight for your rights and to protect your license from the kinds of sanctions that could leave you unable to make a living or practice the profession you worked so hard to learn.
The LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team Can Help Protect Your Occupational Therapist License in Mississippi
The LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team includes attorneys who have years of experience helping professional license holders all across the country, including in Mississippi, protect their professional licenses when they have been accused of misconduct. We understand the laws, rules, regulations, and procedures that apply in occupational therapist misconduct cases. We are here for you when you need us most – when your ability to earn a living as an occupational therapist is being threatened because of allegations that you committed misconduct.
Call the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team today at 888.535.3686 or by filling out our contact form. We will schedule a confidential consultation where you can tell us about your case, and we can tell you how we can help. Don’t try to defend yourself when your license and your livelihood is on the line – call the LLF National Law Firm today!