Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger: Do Not Let Allegations Around Boundary Violations Derail Your Nursing Career

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Given nurses’ backbreaking workload and extensive one-on-one contact with patients, allegations of misconduct stemming from “boundary violations” are not a surprise. These allegations can ruin a career, as they not only suggest that the nurse has had some form of inappropriate relationship with a patient, but that he or she can also not be trusted. If you are a Kansas or Missouri nurse and allegations of boundary violations have arisen against you, call attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for nurses facing occupational discipline. 

“Stepping over the line” with a patient is all too easy to do. Whether it is showing them inappropriate affection, accepting or giving gifts, or exchanging personal information, boundary violations imply that you are improperly taking advantage of your personal relationship with a patient.

Patient Boundaries

The National Council of State Boards of Nursing describes “boundaries” as a space between the nurse’s power and the patient’s helplessness. A boundary violation can arise in one of three ways:

• Boundary crossing: This may include accepting gifts from a patient, sharing personal information or allowing the patient to develop a dependence or comradery beyond what is therapeutically necessary. These behaviors may seem innocent but can easily lead to misunderstandings or more serious breaches.

• Boundary abuse: Commonly, nurses step over the line through privacy violations. NCSBN adds that if you engage in any behavior with a patient that has no therapeutic value, you may be violating the boundary.

• Misconduct: Inappropriate relations with a patient do not have to be sexual to be forbidden. While physical contact of a personal nature with a patient, including kissing, is a violation of conduct, even discussing having a relationship or using suggestive language while a patient is in your care violates the boundary. This rule extends to family members of the patient.

Allegations that you have engaged in behavior that constitutes any of these boundary violations may result in the suspension or revocation of your nursing license. 

What Happens After an Allegation of a Boundary Violation?

As a licensing attorney, I always try to achieve the best possible outcome for my client. There are always two roads to that outcome, negotiating some sort of deal or going to a hearing. Obviously, a negotiated penalty is attractive because it is a low-risk choice with a known outcome. On the other hand, a hearing is a high-risk choice with a possibility of prevailing with no discipline or losing and facing an unknown penalty.

Preparing for a hearing and challenging the evidence being used against you is the vital to both prevailing ultimately at a hearing and to getting the best possible offer of a lesser penalty. Excluding hearsay—rumors and other unsubstantiated statements—against you, challenging the validity of evidence, and making an administrative board second-guess the strength of the case against you will result in their settlement offer becoming increasingly favorable to you. 

In my experience, administrative hearing boards and their experienced attorneys make “low ball” settlement offers to unrepresented nurses early on in cases. Without the advice of counsel, these offers may seem like generous ways to avoid the extreme penalties that could be imposed after a hearing.  However, what licensing attorneys know is that the case against you always has flaws, and that “low ball” offer is simply a first attempt to get you to give up on a hearing where those flaws may be exposed. Those offers are to be avoided, especially when they include permanent discipline, prohibitions on working for periods of time, or other onerous conditions. 

After hiring a licensing attorney with experience before the board seeking to discipline you, the offers to settle usually get much more attractive. An aggressive challenge to the evidence against you and a willingness to go to a hearing often results in a dismissal of charges of misconduct. But that sort of outcome is not going to come about without an experienced advocate by your side.

I sometimes urge clients to accept reasonable offers when the risk of a serious penalty after a hearing is simply too great to accept. Sometimes clients accept deals because their fear of an unknown outcome drives their decision-making. That said, the decision to settle a case instead of going to a hearing is ultimately yours. 

Contact an Experienced Kansas and Missouri Licensing Attorney Now

There is no time to waste if you are accused of a boundary violation. Too many nurses try to talk their way out of these allegations, try to represent themselves before licensing boards, or accept “low ball” initial offers with long-lasting consequences. You should not respond to an investigation until you have attained representation by a skilled licensing attorney. Having a zealous advocate by your side challenging the validity of the evidence against you and cross-examining those who testify against you is not a luxury, it is a necessity.

If you are a nurse in Kansas or Missouri and are facing an allegation of a boundary violation, call Danielle Sanger today.

Kansas and Missouri professional licensing attorney Danielle Sanger is prepared to advocate for your best interests and defend your livelihood and career. Call Attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for nurses facing occupational discipline. 

Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger: A Cautionary Tale of Physician Misconduct

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There is an opioid epidemic in the United States. As a result, there is increasing attention on doctors who prescribe opioids and an eagerness to blame those doctors for the tragedy caused by opioids. Given that backdrop, it is not unusual for doctors to find themselves accused of misconduct involving prescriptions. Some doctors are too informal with how they handle these powerful drugs, but others are wrongly accused by patients who make accusations when their doctors cut off their opioid supply. If you are a Kansas or Missouri doctor and allegations of misconduct are made against you, call attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for physicians facing occupational discipline. 

A Cautionary Tale of Misconduct by a Medical Professional

In Maryland, Dr. Walter Kozachuk routinely sold opioid prescriptions to patrons at a bar, selling prescriptions for anti-anxiety drugs and painkillers for $100 each. As a result of this conduct, the Maryland medical board suspended his medical license for two years. He appealed that suspension, and on December 15, 2017, a Maryland appeals court upheld the suspension.

Avoiding Misconduct Allegations in Your Medical Practice

The opioid epidemic did not just happen accidentally. These powerful drugs became widely and illegally distributed for a number of reasons—drug-seeking patients learned how to game the system, doctors blinded by greed ignored abuse, and unethical clinic managers made the drugs easier to attain than they should have been. Those are the sources of the problem; accordingly, you must do whatever you can to avoid those problems if you want to stay clear of misconduct allegations. The following is some of the most common advice that I give clients who ask how to avoid these problems.

First, do not associate with clinics that have a reputation as a “pill mill,” as they usually earned that reputation. Second, avoid practicing alone, where lapses will go unchecked; instead, associate with a group and hold each other accountable. Third, be scrupulous with your record keeping. Good record keeping is your best defense when allegations of misconduct arise, and sloppy records can appear incriminating, even in instances when you have done nothing wrong. Carefully documenting the identity of who you prescribed to is key. Fourth, pay close attention to your staff and hold them to the same high standard of professionalism that you hold yourself to. Your staff can be your Achilles heel, engaging in illegal activity that you would never contemplate, but that you will be held responsible for. Finally, never allow a non-physician to control your practice, keep sole control of your books, or have sole access to your medical records.

What Should You Do If You Are Accused of Misconduct?

There is no time to waste if you are accused of misconduct. You have spent your entire life working towards becoming a physician, but your profession can be taken from you in an instant.  Too many physicians try to talk their way out of these allegations and then call me. By then, your novice attempt has usually given those investigating you everything they need. You should not respond to an investigation until you have attained representation by a skilled licensing attorney. Having a zealous advocate by your side challenging the validity of the evidence against you and cross-examining those who testify against you is not a luxury, it is a necessity.

If you are a nurse in Kansas or Missouri and are facing a misconduct allegation, call Danielle Sanger today.

Kansas and Missouri professional licensing attorney Danielle Sanger is prepared to advocate for your best interests and defend your livelihood and career. Call Attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for physicians facing board discipline. 

Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger: What to Do if You Are Confronted About Misconduct

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Whether you are a doctor, a nurse, a pharmacist, or physical therapist, your license is one of your most important possessions and is critical to your livelihood. While it took you years to attain your license, it can be taken from you in an instant because of a simple mistake or lapse of judgment.

As an experienced licensing attorney, clients often ask what to do if they are confronted with allegations of misconduct or are being investigated. Before I get into those individual ways, I must stress that if you find yourself being investigated, there is no time to waste, contact a professional licensing attorney immediately. The following are the five of the most commonly seen ways that medical professionals lose their licenses

As a medical professional, you are accustomed to being trusted and listened to.  So when an investigation into your conduct is initiated, it can be difficult to know how to respond to people questioning your credibility and judgment. Remember, because this is not a criminal investigation, no one is going to read you your Miranda warning even though everything you say can be used against you later.

What Should You Do if You are Confronted About Misconduct?

You could be confronted at work regarding misconduct for many reasons.  Again, remember that anything you say will be used against you later and that you are unlikely to be able to “talk your way out of” the allegations against you. That initial confrontation will likely catch you by surprise, and in that emotional state you are unlikely to do much to help your defense. Be polite, but request to speak with an attorney before making any statement regarding the allegations against you or providing any urine or hair samples. Your employer or human resources may try to reassure you by stating that your statements will be held confidentially, but that promise—even if it is true—does not mean that they cannot take employment action based on those statements.

What Should You Do if You are Arrested in the Workplace?

Obviously being arrested for a criminal matter in the workplace is a serious matter and you will need criminal representation immediately. Even a minor criminal conviction can have serious impacts on your professional licensing. You will likely be obligated to report your conviction to your licensing board, either immediately or upon renewal.  Do not try to get away with omitting your conviction. Lying about a conviction is often held to be more serious than the conviction itself. That said, if you are convicted and disclose it, you may be subjected to disciplinary action. You will need an experienced licensing attorney who has appeared before administrative boards to represent you.  Attorney Sanger has exactly that sort of experience and can best position you to avoid a suspension or loss of license.

What Should You Say to an Investigator?

When investigators contact you, be polite and ask to speak to your attorney prior to making any statement.  While an investigator may make you feel like you should help them or that being cooperative will better your predicament, these are just techniques aimed at procuring a statement from you. Once you have retained counsel, your counsel may make a statement on your behalf or help you prepare for an official interview.

Obtain Legal Help Now

If you are a medical professional in Kansas or Missouri and are facing an investigation or threat to your license, call Danielle Sanger today.

Kansas and Missouri professional licensing attorney Danielle Sanger is prepared to advocate for your best interests and defend your livelihood and career. Call Attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for medical professionals.

 

Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger Explains What Physicians Should Do if Accused of Cheating on Board Examinations

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As a physician, your board certification is your ticket to a career and livelihood. I am sometimes asked whether that board certification can be jeopardized by allegations of cheating. The answer to that question is definitely “yes.’ If you find yourself asking this question because you have been accused of cheating on a board examination, you need to retain a competent licensing attorney immediately so that your medical license can be protected proactively. The Sanger Law Office has a long track record of successfully providing this sort of defense to Kansas and Missouri physicians.

It caught most licensing attorneys attention in 2010 when the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) investigated and sanctioned 139 physicians accused of participating in cheating on a board exam. This is a cautionary tale for anyone taking an exam to attain board certification, as the penalties for these physicians were severe. Specifically, they had their board certifications revoked or suspended for one to five years. As you can imagine, that sort of delay in being able to practice in your chosen specialty has tremendous financial and reputational harm.

Steps To Take if You Are Accused of Cheating on a Board Certification Exam:

This is simply too serious a situation to try to resolve it on your own.  Hire an experienced licensing attorney immediately. Attorney Sanger has the experience you need to successfully represent you before professional and administrative bodies. Be honest with your attorney.  He or she can only represent you if they possess all of the relevant facts.  The worst thing for your defense is for your attorney to be caught off guard by facts they were unaware of.

Do not share your story on social media, in emails, or in writing.  Those communications can easily be shared and passed along to the professional or administrative body investigating you.

Inform your employer that these allegations have been made against you. Being forthcoming about this situation may preserve your position and will show that you are acting in good faith. If you alert your employer to these allegations, you may be able to renegotiate your contract, take on different duties, and otherwise preserve your livelihood while these allegations are pending.

Keep track of deadlines. Make sure that your attorney is aware of deadlines and that all deadlines are met. If you need an extension, ask for it in writing and make sure any approval is also in writing. Hiring an attorney to keep track of deadlines and filing requirements is the best way to manage these complex requirements..

What Should You Do If You are Accused of Cheating?

You have rights if you are accused of cheating on a board certification exam.  You have a right to due process before a decision is made that strips you of your career.  This is not the sort of due process you might see in a courtroom, but it is no less important. Having a zealous advocate by your side challenging the validity of the evidence against you and challenging or cross-examining those who testify against you is not a luxury, it is a necessity.

If you are a doctor in Kansas or Missouri and are facing a threat to your board certification, call Danielle Sanger today.

Missouri professional licensing attorney Danielle Sanger is prepared to advocate for your best interests and defend your livelihood and career. Call Attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for physicians facing occupational discipline.

Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger: Why Do False Claims of Sexual Misconduct Arise

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False claims of sexual misconduct arise against medical professionals, and those claims jeopardize your professional licensure. Whether you are a doctor, a nurse, or physical therapist, your license is critical to your livelihood. While it took you years to attain your license, a claim of sexual misconduct can it can be taken from you in an instant because of a false claim. But why would someone make a false claim against you?

Before answering this question, it’s critical to understand that if a claim of sexual misconduct is made against you, you must retain experienced licensing counsel immediately. Given their nature, there is often little or no physical evidence supporting these claims, so having a skilled attorney that can attack your accuser’s motives and credibility is vital. Attorney Sanger has represented hundreds of medical professionals in Kansas and Missouri and is the sort of advocate you need by your side if your licensure is threatened.

Revenge or Refusal to Perform Illegal Procedures

Patients sometimes ask their medical professionals to lie on their behalf. Whether the lie is to extend a disability benefit that they no longer have a right to or to access painkillers that they no longer need, some patients have a motive to get a medical professional to cheat the system and provide them with undue benefits. If the medical professional refuses, the patient threatens or makes an allegation to attain leverage or revenge. Obviously, any such requests by patients need to be refused. Your refusal should be documented should your actions or credibility need to be established later.

Self-Gratification

Being sexually attracted to other people is normal. Patients sometimes proposition medical professionals sexually. Hopefully, the professional possesses the requisite level of character to refuse such offers. Unfortunately, while the medical professional acted appropriately, the refusal can anger the patient, who then makes a claim out of self-gratification.  That means that the claim is driven by either retaliation for being rebuked or the fantasy of a mentally unstable patient. If a patient propositions you sexually, it is again important to document the proposition and refusal in case a subsequent false claim arises.

Money

False claims of sexual misconduct sometimes arise because the patient believes the medical provider will pay them to be quiet or go away. There is a common perception that medical providers have money to burn, so some patients believe that their false claims could result in a high dollar payout. Even if you could pay your way out of the problem, however, you are just prolonging the problem. A patient paid once will return for more later. This is never a satisfactory way of dealing with a claim of sexual misconduct. The payment themselves will make you look guilty, and there is still no reason the patient cannot make a formal claim of misconduct.

With the help of experienced counsel, you can successfully defend your license from a claim of sexual misconduct. But trying to deal with the situation informally or on your own will likely end in disaster. Only an experienced licensing attorney can protect your licensure as a medical professional and your livelihood.

If you are a medical professional in Kansas or Missouri and are facing a claim of sexual misconduct, call Danielle Sanger today.

Kansas and Missouri professional licensing attorney Danielle Sanger is prepared to advocate for your best interests and defend your livelihood and career. Call Attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for medical professionals.

Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger: How Should a Medical Professional Respond to a Subpoena?

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Receiving a subpoena—a legal request for your documents or for your presence at a formal, recorded interview—is often a first clue that there may be a claim against you. The records you deal with on a daily basis are often the foundation of a patient’s lawsuit against you or your hospital.  But how should you respond to receiving a subpoena for those records?

Why Would You Be Subpoenaed?

If you are being subpoenaed, something you did is of interest to a party in a lawsuit. It does not necessarily mean that you have done something wrong or that you are personally being sued, A subpoena can be a request for documents—a subpoena duces tecum—or for your presence at a recorded interview.  This blog post is concerned with the subpoena duces tecum, a request for records. This sort of subpoena usually requests your treatment records regarding a patient or patients.

A subpoena duces tecum can either be made in the context of a trial or in the context of “discovery,” which is the legal process through with parties exchange information preceding a trial. In the end, both types of subpoena duces tecum are just looking for documents, but the level of certification of accuracy in a trial subpoena is higher.

If you are subpoenaed, contacting an experienced attorney can help you determine whether you should respond, what documents you should provide, and whether the subpoena is something that should cause you professional concern. Attorney Sanger is experienced in providing medical professionals in Kansas and Missouri this sort of review and advice.

Do I Always Have to Respond to a Subpoena?

When you receive a subpoena, it will say the court that has jurisdiction over it and the parties that are in a legal dispute.  it will also which party sent it, and what documents they want you to produce. After reviewing that information, the question is, do you have to respond?

If you receive a subpoena from an out of state party or court, you are likely not subject to their jurisdiction and may not have a duty to respond. Deciding that you do not have to respond is not a simple decision, nor is one to be made lightly.  Contact an attorney with experience representing medical professionals if you are unsure about whether you are subject to a subpoena’s jurisdiction.

Similarly, if the subpoena requests a patient’s protected health information or PHI, you may be legally prevented from providing the information by HIPAA. If the subpoena seeks PHI, it should have an accompanying HIPAA release allowing disclosure. If it does not, you should not provide any PHI until you receive one.

How Long Do I Have To Respond?

How long you have to respond to a subpoena depends on what type it is.  If it is a trial subpoena, meaning there is an active trial underway, you may only have a few days to respond. However, if you have a discovery subpoena, you will likely have weeks.  In either circumstance, you should not just provide documents because you feel time pressure.  You can usually negotiate for more time if you need it, and it is a good idea to have counsel reach out on your behalf.

If you are a medical professional in Kansas or Missouri and are facing a threat to your license, call Danielle Sanger today.

Only an experienced attorney can determine whether a subpoena duces tecum is a routine request for information from a broad class of individuals or a prelude to an attack on you, your licensure as a medical professional, and your livelihood. Having experienced counsel help you through this process is vital. Receiving a subpoena begins a legally-intensive response process. It is important to proceed with caution and to attain skilled legal counsel to help you find the best path forward.

Kansas Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger is prepared to advocate for your best interests and defend your livelihood and career. Call Attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for medical professionals.

Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger: As a Nurse, Should You Accept Probation in a Discipline Matter?

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Given nurses’ backbreaking workload, incredible degree of professional responsibility, and extensive one-on-one contact with patients, allegations of misconduct arise.  These allegations can be complicated by unfortunate facts such as drug or alcohol dependence, mental health issues, and poor documentation. Misconduct allegations can be difficult to disprove and are potentially career ending.

On the other hand, misconduct allegations are frequently false, trumped up, or based on weak foundations of rumors or bad blood. Out of fear, we see too many nurses facing discipline accept probations or some other “lesser” penalty out of fear, embarrassment or ignorance of how to challenge the allegations. You should not allow an allegation of misconduct end your career and ruin your finances and future, nor should you just blindly accept a disciplinary board’s offer of a “lesser” penalty out of fear.

In Kansas and Missouri, nurses facing professional discipline can rely on Danielle Sanger, Esq. to defend their rights. Attorney Sanger has spent her career defending licensees before administrative and licensing boards, protecting nurses accused of making mistakes and other misconduct from losing their professions, savings, and homes.

How Should You Decide Whether to Accept a Deal or Fight?

As a licensing attorney, I always try to achieve the best possible outcome for my client. There are always two roads to that outcome, negotiating some sort of deal or going to a hearing. Obviously, a negotiated penalty is attractive because it is a low-risk choice with a known outcome. On the other hand, a hearing is a high-risk choice with a possibility of prevailing with no discipline or losing and facing an unknown penalty.

Preparing for a hearing and challenging the evidence being used against you is the vital to both prevailing ultimately at a hearing and getting the best possible offer of a lesser penalty. Excluding hearsay—rumors and other unsubstantiated statements—against you, challenging the validity of evidence, and making an administrative board second-guess the strength of the case against you will result in their settlement offer becoming increasingly favorable to you.

In my experience, administrative hearing boards and their experienced attorneys make “low ball” settlement offers to unrepresented nurses early on in cases. Without the advice of counsel, these offers may seem like generous ways to avoid the extreme penalties that could be imposed after a hearing.  However, what licensing attorneys know is that the case against you always has flaws, and that “low ball” offer is simply a first attempt to get you to give up on a hearing where those flaws may be exposed. Those offers are to be avoided, especially when they include permanent discipline, prohibitions on working for periods of time, or other onerous conditions.

After hiring a licensing attorney with experience before the board seeking to discipline you, the offers to settle usually get much more attractive. An aggressive challenge to the evidence against you and a willingness to go to a hearing often results in a dismissal of charges of misconduct. But that sort of outcome is not going to come about without an experienced advocate by your side.

I sometimes urge clients to accept reasonable offers when the risk of a serious penalty after a hearing is simply too great to accept. Sometimes clients accept deals because their fear of an unknown outcome drives their decision-making. That said, the decision to settle a case instead of going to a hearing is ultimately yours.

There is no time to waste if you are accused of misconduct. Too many nurses try to talk their way out of misconduct, try to represent themselves before licensing boards, or accept “low ball” initial offers with long-lasting consequences. You should not respond to an investigation until you have attained representation by a skilled licensing attorney. Having a zealous advocate by your side challenging the validity of the evidence against you and cross-examining those who testify against you is not a luxury, it is a necessity.

If you are a nurse in Kansas or Missouri and are facing a threat to your license, call Danielle Sanger today.

Kansas and Missouri professional licensing attorney Danielle Sanger is prepared to advocate for your best interests and defend your livelihood and career. Call Attorney Sanger today at 785-979-4353 to schedule a free consultation with an experienced and aggressive attorney for nurses facing occupational discipline.

 

Kansas and Missouri Licensing Attorney Shares Missouri Chiropractor’s Criminal Conviction as a Cautionary Tale for Medical Professionals

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Clients often ask what sort of behavior leads to the loss of a license. Medical billing fraud can lead to the loss of license as well as a criminal conviction. Whether due to financial stress, drug or alcohol addiction, or just a lapse in judgment, medical professionals often succumb to economic pressure and submit false claims for services they either did not provide or that were medically unnecessary.

Sometimes people think that the size of the false claim makes a difference or that isolated instances are not as serious as patterns of behavior. Both of these assumptions are incorrect, as a single instance can constitute fraud, and lying to the government or an insurance company is a crime regardless of the size of the bill attached to the false statement.  Additionally, while there are statutes of limitation limiting how far into the past the government can investigate and bring charges, you are not “out of the woods” just because some time has passed since you submitted a fraudulent bill.

It is vital to underscore that if you find yourself in this dire situation, you must contact an experienced licensing attorney immediately. Having provided that warning, the following recent case out of Missouri illustrates each of the above points.

A Missouri resident chiropractor, James Briggs, was convicted in October 2017 for filling out and sending a false medical claim to Medicare for an ankle orthodic in 2013. The submitted billing was “only” for several thousand dollars. However, because Medicare is a program administered by the federal government, his fraudulent act was a federal offense. In essence, defrauding Medicare is defrauding the federal government. Because he was convicted of lying to the government, the amount he actually acquired as part of his deception was irrelevant.

However, it is worth noting that not only did he have to pay back thousands of dollars that he fraudulently billed, but he also had a $10,000 fine and was subjected to six months of home confinement, which means his home would serve as a jail and he could not leave it. Now convicted, he will be on probation monitoring for five years. While it is too soon to say definitively, his professional career is likely over.

But this sort of mistake does not have to cost you your career. Deciding whether you speak to investigators and what documents to provide them requires experienced counsel, and you cannot just call any attorney you find in the phonebook to deal with complex licensing issues. Expert, proactive legal advice can mean the difference between retaining your livelihood and a loss of your license and a criminal conviction.

Call attorney Sanger today at (785)-979-4353 to protect your professional license.

Contact Missouri Licensing Attorney Sanger to help you protect your license and career. Call her immediately if you are being investigated for fraud. An administrative investigation by a licensing board can evolve into criminal charges without any notice to you. Having her counsel at that moment protects your rights and your investment in your career.

Attorney Danielle Sanger is an experienced Kansas and Missouri licensing attorney and has the experience to resolve your licensure issues in a way that allows you to protect your profession, your home, and your family. She has the experience to deal with licensing bodies, appear before administrative boards, and provide clients with advice to best position themselves professionally when allegations of fraud arise.

Kansas Professional Liability Defense Attorney Advises Medical Professionals: Five Ways to Lose Your License

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Whether you are a doctor, a nurse, a pharmacist, or physical therapist, your license is critical to your livelihood. While it took you years to attain your license, it can be taken from you in an instant because of a simple mistake or lapse of judgment.

As an experienced licensing attorney, clients often ask what are the most common ways that they can lose their professional license. Before I get into those individual ways, I must stress that if you find yourself being investigated, there is no time to waste, contact a professional licensing attorney immediately. The following are the five of the most commonly seen ways that medical professionals lose their licenses:

  1. Abusing Controlled Substances or Alcohol

A number of factors lead to medical professionals abusing medications and alcohol.  Often it is a combination of a high-stress career, access to pharmaceuticals, and a level of comfort with administering them. It is not always drugs, however, as alcohol abuse is also a prevalent way for professionals to deal with stress or problems. All it takes is a DUI or a complaint from coworkers to result in a referral to an administrative board and investigation into your behavior.

  1. Committing Fraud

With the complex billing practices and medical data entry required in the modern medical office, many professionals believe that charging or entering codes for procedures they did not perform will go unchecked. That is a mistake. Healthcare is a multi-billion dollar industry, and there are sophisticated controls built into the billing system.  Professionals may not be investigated the first time they enter a false code, but find themselves under scrutiny after making a serious of fraudulent entries.

  1. Violations of Professional Ethics

Medicine is a profession filled with redundant forms and checklists created to make sure that patients’ wishes are followed and that medical procedures are performed safely. Given the time pressure medical professionals sometimes find themselves under, some unfortunately resort to forging either patients’ or providers’ signatures or filling out checklists falsely.

  1. Improper Dispensing of Medication

Dispensing and prescribing medication is complex. When medications are prescribed or dispensed to patients that should not take them because of an allergy or known reaction to another prescribed medication, there can be dramatic results, including death. Sloppy administration of medications can be caused by overwork, stress, or burnout. Some patients seek out medications they should not have because they have become addicted to them; too often, medical professionals continue to provide medications to addicts who offer extra payment for them. Whether out of sympathy or greed, providing extra medications to drug-seeking patients is illegal and never wise.

  1. Discrimination.

Engaging in discrimination against patients, treating them differently based on their age, sex, race, citizenship or other “protected class” status is illegal. A complaint that you have differentiated in how you provide medical treatment to those individuals can result in an investigation and suspension or loss of your license. Careful documentation of your fair treatment of individuals is your best defense to a claim that you have treated some differently than others.

As this list demonstrates, professionals with good intentions can make honest or inadvertent mistakes. Otherwise good people can also have lapses of judgment due to work or financial pressure.  But these mistakes do not have to cost you your career.

Call attorney Sanger today at (785)-979-4353 to protect your professional license.

Contact Kansas Professional Liability Defense Attorney Danielle Sanger to protect your license and career. If you are being investigated for a workplace mistake or misconduct, call her immediately. Attorney Danielle Sanger has the experience to deal with licensing bodies, appear before administrative boards, and provide clients with advice to best position themselves professionally.

 

Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney Danielle Sanger Explains How Discipline Can Follow You for Life

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As a licensed professional, you have the ability to achieve great mobility. You can practice in multiple states at once or move from state to state based on where you are licensed. That tremendous freedom can be cut short, however, by allegations of misconduct. When allegations of misconduct arise, simply abandoning a license in one state with a plan to rely on a license held in another is not a viable plan. Resolving those issues can mean the difference between practicing in the state of your desire and being unemployed.  Retaining a highly qualified professional licensing attorney can be that difference.

Often a client will have a license in a state, say New York, and have a licensure problem. Licensure problems should not be a source of shame, as some arise from fans accusations while others arise from simple human error. Whether due to embarrassment, ignorance of the discipline process, or a feeling of not wanting to be bothered by dealing with the allegations, they give up the license or let it lapse and move to a new state and renew their professional life there.

As a professional licensing attorney, Ms. Sanger often has the unfortunate task of telling clients that licenses can follow them forever, even if they have lapsed elsewhere. The granting state continues to have professional jurisdiction over those they license, even those no longer practicing in the state. Continuing to have professional jurisdiction means that those states continue to have the ability to discipline you, even for misconduct occurring out of state. That ability does not end and follows licensees throughout their career.

Lapsed licenses in other states are an issue because of a concept called “reciprocal discipline” which means that discipline in one state follows the licensee to whatever other state they are licensed in. If you are disciplined in one state, that is usually a violation of the professional code in any other state you are licensed in. This problem is not solved by time—it does not matter that the conduct in question was proven or that it occurred a decade before.

Unfortunately, too many people choose to bury their head in the sand and pretend these problems do not exist. These poorly informed people hope that their licensure problems will go away simply by not bringing it up on the application the next time they apply for licensure. This is a major mistake, as failure to disclose past licensure issues is itself a violation of most states. This compounds licensees’ problems, as they basically infected their new license with problems from their old one.

Problems involving your license, whether they occurred a decade ago, occurred here in Kansas or Missouri, or occurred in your home state pose a problem for you now. Cleaning of those old problems and dealing with the problems surrounding your old license is the first step. Fixing any problems with your current or active licensure is the next step. These are not tasks for you to take on alone. Seemingly innocuous statements you make can be used against you.  You need a skilled licensing attorney by your side to protect your career, livelihood, and future.

Call Kansas and Missouri Professional Licensing Attorney today at (785)-979-4353 to protect your professional license. Attorney Danielle Sanger is an experienced Kansas and Missouri licensing attorney and has the experience to both resolve your lingering licensure issues and walk you through your current licensing process. She has the experience to deal with licensing bodies, appear before administrative boards, and provide clients with the advice to best position themselves professionally.