Though one of the smallest states in the U.S., Connecticut is a powerful magnet for residents and travelers looking for beautiful landscapes fused with rich history. Unfortunately, though, some people lack the ability to fully explore and enjoy everything the state can offer. Physical therapists can change that.
On the other hand, sanctions can change a physical therapist's career. That's why you need to prepare yourself to fight against them so that you can continue practicing anywhere you'd like in Connecticut. The Lento Law Firm Professional License Team is ready to help, so call our offices today at 888.535.3686 or fill out this contact form.
Who Is the Authority on Physical Licenses in Connecticut?
Like all subfields in healthcare, physical therapy needs regulation and oversight to guarantee the best care possible for patients. To handle this, the Connecticut Department of Public Health has established the Board of Examiners for Physical Therapists.
One of the board's most basic yet essential duties is enforcing the qualifications necessary to become a physical therapist in Connecticut. They demand every therapist to obtain a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree approved by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), and they must pass the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE).
To stay updated, improve their services, and keep their licenses valid, all of Connecticut's physical therapists need to take continuing education courses as well. For example, many PTs like to specialize in rehabilitation for patients who are currently or previously diagnosed with cancer, dementia, cardiopulmonary diseases, or sports injuries. Other popular options include infant care, geriatric care, pelvic function, kinesiology, neuroplasticity, aquatic therapy, and pain in the neck, back, hips, or knees.
Every subfield in physical therapy has the common goal of guiding patients with injuries, illnesses, or disorders to gain as much physical strength, dexterity, flexibility, and control as possible, increasing their quality of life. Hospitals, schools, medical clinics, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes are the most common employers for physical therapists in all these subfields.
Physical Therapy Professional License Violations in Connecticut
The Connecticut Physical Therapy Practice Act outlines the universal expectations and standards for all PTs within the state. It's the best resource for understanding what the Board of Examiners for Physical Therapists would consider a violation of its code of ethics and professionalism. The following list offers a summary.
Failure to Complete Continuing Education Courses
Continuing education courses have the potential to enrich a physical therapist's career by providing deeper and more specialized knowledge. However, it's not just a nice elective; it's a requirement. These courses show that the PT is constantly refining their skills, mastering new skills, and staying updated on the ever-evolving science of the field, proving that they're dedicated enough to deserve license renewal.
On the other side of that coin, PTs may be subject to disciplinary action if they do not take continuing education courses. Without them, the board may doubt your ability and commitment, so they may opt to deny your license renewal, possibly with additional sanctions.
Fraudulent Actions
Honesty is an imperative character trait for all physical therapists throughout Connecticut. It assures the board and patients alike that they're capable of performing treatments and care about doing a good job. For that reason, the board may use a heavy hand to deal with any PTs who are found to have falsified their qualifications while applying for a new or renewed license.
It's also why you might be sanctioned for other types of fraudulent actions while acting as a physical therapist. Examples include pretending to be a different therapist, knowingly or intentionally overcharging for services, distributing misleading or untrue advertisements, and causing patients to believe that you're authorized to do treatments that you cannot.
Conviction of a Crime
The board will not necessarily expect all physical therapists to have clean criminal histories, and not every criminal conviction will affect your eligibility. Nevertheless, some crimes may prompt them to deny or revoke your licensure because they imply weaknesses or character traits that are inconsistent with the values and expectations of healthcare workers.
Crimes involving dishonesty, violence, discrimination, and boundary violations are the most likely to worry the board. If you're convicted of assault, battery, rape, theft, embezzlement, bullying, intimidation, or harassment, you could find yourself sanctioned.
Performing or Aiding in Illegal Practices
Physical therapists go through years of training to learn tried-and-true practices that are legal because they are shown to be ethical and effective.
Conversely, certain practices are blatantly against the law, such as treating patients when you don't have a current and valid license, or if you perform any tasks that are outside your scope or authority. The board does not look kindly on PTs who do or allow illegal practices like these.
Incompetence or Negligence
Everyone makes mistakes sometimes, but physical therapists are entrusted with their patients' health and overall well-being, so most of their work needs to be accurate, effective, meticulous, and organized.
An incompetent PT lacks enough familiarity with their field to have a thorough understanding of what patients need and how to help them achieve their goals. Negligent PTs simply don't give the time, attention, or effort necessary to treat their patients properly. If patients consistently come to harm or fail to improve because their PT is guilty of these violations, the board will likely enact disciplinary measures.
The Disciplinary Process of Physical Therapy License Violations in Connecticut
What happens if you're accused of violating the Connecticut Physical Therapy Practice Act? For the state's Board of Examiners for Physical Therapists, it means that you must endure their strict disciplinary process. It usually goes something like this:
Assignment and Investigation of Complaint
Once the board receives a written complaint, it'll assign it to an investigator for further research. Over the course of weeks or months, the investigator will put together a report of all the facts and evidence related to the complaint. Witness interviews, victim statements, inspections, and copies of documents, recordings, videos, photographs, communications, and expert testimonies are all common elements of an investigative report.
Informal Conference and Settlement Proposal
The investigator will hand over their report to the board, which reviews the results to decide how to proceed. Ideally, they'll dismiss the complaint, but if that doesn't happen, they'll choose a sanction that they think is most appropriate for the situation. They'll present it to you as a proposal so that you can either agree or contest their decision.
Formal Hearing
Should you refuse to accept the board's conclusion or proposal, they'll arrange a formal hearing for you. If you attend with the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team at your side, you'll have a great opportunity to explain your perspective, present new evidence, cross-examine witnesses, and offer alternative legal interpretations and arguments.
Final Decision
The board will use all the new information from the formal hearing to reconsider its findings. There's still a chance that they'll dismiss the complaint at this point, but if not, they may impose different sanctions than what they previously proposed. Below are the possibilities.
License Revocation
Most physical therapists would agree that license revocation is the most devastating sanction. It means that you wouldn't be allowed to legally practice physical therapy anywhere in Connecticut.
Although revocation is permanent, the Connecticut Department of Health will let you apply for reinstatement after two years. If five years have passed, however, you might need to go through a refresher training course first.
No matter how much time passes between the revocation and your reinstatement application, you may have difficulty stepping back into the field of physical therapy. Not only might the board make you go through extra hoops to prove yourself, but your prospective employers will probably ask about the gap in your resume, and they might not like the answer.
License Suspension
Unlike revocation, a license suspension is meant to be provisional. The board would make your license invalid for a certain period of time and/or until you've satisfied the conditions they require for reinstatement.
The temporary nature of license suspension makes it better for your career than a revocation. Nevertheless, it can still impact your eligibility for hire. Employers may be wary of your forced break from work, not only because suspension is a serious sanction, but because they may question whether your skills are still sharp by the time your license is restored. Since you couldn't learn any new skills while suspended, you'd also have little to no luck getting promotions for a while.
License Restrictions or Limitations
The good part about license restrictions and limitations is that you can keep working as a physical therapist without an interruption in your employment history. However, the problem is that you'll have less authority, scope, and freedom to choose where, when, or what you work.
Your colleagues likely won't appreciate having to fill in for what you can't do, which could put a damper on your networking efforts, but even more troubling is arranging your life around the restrictions. You might also lose out on opportunities to study new skills while your existing ones get rusty. None of this bodes well for your efforts to advance.
Probation
As with restrictions and limitations, probation lets you continue practicing. The catch is that you might be subject to greater scrutiny and monitoring. Perhaps the board will assign you a supervisor to watch your every move and report back, or you will have to report to the board regularly yourself.
It's common for physical therapists on probation to feel suffocated by the monitoring and reporting, as well as unduly pressured by the sensation of walking on thin ice. Probation can therefore affect your morale and overall performance, ironically raising the likelihood that you'll end up sanctioned further.
Civil Penalty
By law, the board can charge you civil penalties up to $10,000 per count or violation. Just one penalty may be enough to pull the financial rug out from under you; if you're saddled with multiple penalties, you could be looking at years of financial instability. This is especially true if you live in Connecticut's largest and most expensive areas, such as New Haven, Hartford, Waterbury, or anywhere else in the Greater New Haven metro region.
That's bad news not only for your lifestyle and expenses, but for your ability to afford continuing education courses, another requirement for maintaining your license. In other words, civil penalties could force you to put your bigger vocational goals on hold for years.
Reprimand
If you must be sanctioned, a reprimand is the best you could hope to get. It's the board's way of publicly acknowledging and disapproving of your violation, urging you to do better.
There isn't much more to a reprimand than that; once the board issues it, you can move on. However, if a potential employer or patient discovers it, they could think twice about working with you, which is undesirable when job hunting.
Let the Lento Law Firm Help You
Whether you think your case is simple to resolve or too complex to unravel easily, don't try to tackle it alone. Your career may depend on the outcome of any single complaint about you. Instead of betting your future on the truth or the board's sympathy, hire the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team.
With a long history in keeping all kinds of professional licenses intact, there's no situation that the Lento Law Firm can't handle. In fact, their past successes will inform the defense strategy that they'll craft for you, even while they take your unique situation and needs into account. They'll support and advocate for you through every step of the disciplinary process from beginning to end, ensuring that you get a fair chance to move forward like you deserve.
You Can Still Be a Physical Therapist in Connecticut
Your physical therapy career can be a positive influence on countless lives, including your own, if you let nothing stand in the way of it, not even sanctions. Whether you're currently accused of wrongdoing or want to make sure you're prepared for whatever might come up in the future, schedule a consultation with the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team by calling 888.535.3686 or filling out this contact form.
