Physical therapists are an essential part of Oklahoma's health care system. Their work helping people recover from traumatic injuries is challenging and requires a high level of professionalism. Accordingly, Oklahoma's state government has designated this as a licensed profession that requires strict regulatory oversight. Physical therapists who violate state regulations can face severe discipline, including losing their license.
Are you a licensed Oklahoma physical therapist being investigated by the licensing board for misconduct or a rules violation? If the answer is yes, you must take action to defend your license and professional reputation. You have the right to due process, but rights are useless if you don't exercise them, and successfully navigating the disciplinary process requires skill and experience. Call the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team at 888.535.3686 or contact us online.
Oklahoma Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision
The Oklahoma Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision, also known as the Medical Board, oversees the state's medical professionals. Anyone who provides professional services as a physical therapist without a valid license from the Medical Board is violating the Oklahoma Administrative Code. Licensed therapists must abide by the administrative code and the Oklahoma Physical Therapy Practice Act. The Physical Therapy Practice Act also created the Physical Therapy Committee to enforce the state's professional regulations.
Some of the Physical Therapy Committee's powers include:
- Managing the initial licensing process (e.g., processing applications, administering licensing exams)
- Establishing the requirements for licensure and updating them as needed
- Enforcing the Administrative Rules and Physical Therapy Practice Act
- Creating new rules and adding them to the Physical Therapy Practice Act as needed
- Investigating complaints against licensed physical therapists for violating the Administrative Rules and Physical Therapy Practice Act
- Adjudicating complaints against licensed physical therapists
- Issuing sanctions against licensed physical therapists found in violation of the Administrative Rules and Physical Therapy Practice Act
Conduct Off the Job Is Grounds for Sanctions
Off-the-job conduct for employees working in professions that don't require a license is generally not grounds for discipline or sanctions, even if it involves criminal convictions. However, the Medical Board expects all the state's licensed professionals to observe equally high standards in their private lives as they do while practicing in their field.
That means, in addition to improper conduct on the job, your license can also be sanctioned or suspended for certain behaviors in your private life. The Administrative Rules specifically list “being convicted of a felony crime that substantially relates to the occupation of physical therapy or poses a reasonable threat to public safety, or of a misdemeanor crime involving moral turpitude,” as causes for possible “disqualification as a physical therapist.”
Examples of felonies that could impact your licensure include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Possession of controlled substances
- Manufacture or distribution (or conspiracy to manufacture or distribute) controlled substances
- Violent felonies
Additionally, the “misdemeanor crime involving moral turpitude” clause gives the Physical Therapy Committee significant discretion to investigate or discipline licensees. However, the criteria for what misdemeanor crime involves “moral turpitude” and what does not are very subjective. In many cases, that decision will be made by the board investigator who investigates your case.
The problem for licensees is that what one investigator sees as moral turpitude may be something that a different board investigator regards as a minor infraction. Many disciplinary cases exist in this gray area. This is one place where the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team can help you win your case. Our team has decades of experience persuading state regulators that your conduct does not merit license suspension or revocation.
Conduct that Violates Oklahoma's Physical Therapy Rules
The Physical Therapy Practice Act spells out several specific causes for adverse action against a physical therapist's license. Some of the most common causes are:
- Practicing physical therapy on a client without a referral from a physician, dentist, surgeon, chiropractor, or podiatrist with a license in good standing
- The use or overuse of drugs or alcohol to the extent that it adversely affects the licensee's ability to practice their profession competently and with adequate discretion
- Being convicted of a felony in connection with your practice (e.g., insurance fraud)
- Being convicted of a felony offense that jeopardizes public safety (e.g., violent offenses, felony controlled substance charges)
- Being found mentally incompetent by a court in good standing
- Violating basic standards of professional ethics or morality
- Having a license suspended in another state
- Gross negligence while practicing
- Behavior the Practice Committee deems “unbecoming of a licensed physical therapist,” or poses a danger to the public good
You must report any criminal convictions, out-of-state license sanctions, or potential violations to the Physical Therapy Committee. Your initial license and renewal applications must also be accompanied by a signed oath granting the Committee or any board representative access to public records (e.g., criminal offense databases, out-of-state license lookups). Failure to report can also be a cause for license sanctions, and the committee will find out.
However, the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team can help you self-report these potential violations. For example, the prohibition on drug or alcohol abuse allows you to potentially continue practicing if you can demonstrate that you are proactively working on the issue. If you've completed or are in the process of a rehabilitation program, we can help you self-report in a way that satisfies this condition.
The same applies to the rule regarding being judged mentally incompetent by a court. If that ruling has been reversed, and you are now mentally competent, our team can collect the necessary documents and forward them to the Physical Therapy Committee. This allows you to continue focusing on your practice while we handle the Physical Therapy Committee and the paperwork.
The worst thing you can do is be less than forthcoming with the Physical Therapy Committee about potential violations. Call the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team immediately if you've been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor and you aren't sure if it potentially affects your practice. The sooner we begin working with you, the more time we have to positively impact the outcome.
License Sanctions Have Short and Long-Term Consequences
Having your license suspended or revoked by the Physical Therapy Committee will have severe short and long-term consequences. First, you will be prevented from practicing your profession for the duration of the suspension. That means you must support yourself and your family with savings or other sources of income. If your license is revoked, you will have to find another career entirely.
There is also the matter of public records. Because the Medical Board and the Physical Therapy Committee are public agencies, their actions are matters of public record. That includes license discipline and complaints. In addition to publishing disciplinary sanctions, the Medical Board maintains publicly accessible records of those sanctions on its website via the license look-up process.
That means even after your license is taken off suspension, a prospective employer or physical therapy client can look up your license history and discover the discipline. They may opt not to work with you in favor of a therapist with a clean license. You may also encounter difficulty obtaining liability insurance for your practice at an affordable rate, depending on the nature of the discipline.
Oklahoma Sanctions Can Jeopardize Other Licenses
Every state regulatory agency that oversees medical professionals views itself as a guardian of the public good. Accordingly, they all have a compelling interest in knowing that their licensees are performing to high professional standards in all their endeavors. That's why they almost all require you to self-report any sanctions you receive on an out-of-state license. What that means for you is that license sanctions in Oklahoma will have an impact beyond state lines.
Any other professional licenses you hold inside or outside Oklahoma could be placed in jeopardy by Physical Therapy Committee sanctions. The respective licensing agencies for those professions will review the circumstances of the Oklahoma sanctions, and they may opt to issue additional sanctions against you. If you're practicing in Oklahoma under a license compact agreement, the agency that issued your original license can also sanction you for violating Oklahoma's physical therapy rules.
This only underscores the importance of doing everything in your power to avoid license sanctions in the first place. One license suspension could have a ripple effect that is felt throughout your financial and professional life. Our Professional License Team understands this, and that's a big part of why we are so passionate about keeping your license in good standing after taking your case.
How Physical Therapy Committee Investigations Work
Anyone can file a complaint against you by writing directly to the Medical Board or going to their website. Once the complaint is submitted, the Medical Board will review the circumstances and allegations made by the complainant. If they find cause to believe a violation has taken place, the Medical Board will assign a board investigator to begin a formal investigation. It's also important to remember that the Medical Board can initiate independent investigations if evidence of impropriety presents itself.
The board will then advise you and the complainant that the complaint has been assigned to an investigator in writing. You have due process rights in these investigations, but they differ from the rights you have in criminal cases. If the board investigator requests documents or records in your possession, you must submit them. You may also be asked to write a formal response to the allegations in the complaint.
This formal response is one of the most important elements of professional license defense. Every word you write can and will be held against you by the board investigator, and it's easier than you realize to admit to additional violations while responding to a board investigator. These violations can subject you to additional penalties or sanctions.
That's why we strongly advise you to contact the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team before corresponding with the board in writing or discussing complaints with a board investigator. You only have one chance to do it, and what you say will go a long way toward determining the outcome of the investigation. Give yourself the benefit of our Professional License Defense Team as early as possible in the investigation process.
Why Professional License Defense Beats Going It Alone
Most licensed professionals are self-motivated people who have achieved highly in life. Although self-motivation has served you well in your life, there are times when it's best to let an experienced professional handle the situation. Imagine yourself recovering from an operation or medical procedure. Yes, you could do your own research on search engines or social media on how to rehabilitate.
However, your years of experience as a licensed physical therapist who has successfully treated scores of patients tell you that you're much more likely to make a full recovery under the guidance of someone with your skill set. The same thing applies to professional license defense. We have successfully defended thousands of professional licensees from sanctions and helped them continue doing their life's work.
That experience matters when your career, livelihood, and reputation are all on the line. More importantly, you send a clear message to the Medical Board when you hire our Professional License Defense Team. It shows them that you value your license, and you are taking the charges seriously. Everything matters when your career and ability to earn a living are at stake. Give yourself every advantage possible.
Medical Board Investigations Don't Have to End with Sanctions
Opening a letter from the Medical Board advising you that you're being investigated can feel like getting hit by a tornado. All of a sudden, your entire career has been turned upside down. The important thing to remember is that it doesn't have to end badly. Medical Board investigations don't have to end with sanctions.
You have a right to fight for your license, no matter what violations are alleged in the complaint. The Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team wants to help you win that fight. We're here for you. We're ready to fight, and we know how to win. Don't delay. Call us at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.
