(Last Updated On: July 31, 2023)Last Updated on: 31st July 2023, 07:04 pm
No matter who you are, you may find yourself needing a lawyer at some point. New York has imposed many laws to help protect patients from medical professionals deemed incompetent. Unfortunately, the laws are so complex and strict the many medical professionals and nurses risk the loss of their license because of simple mistakes. To make things worse, patients can accuse nurses of doing something they did not do and they may still lose their medical license.
The best approach for preventing this is to work with a reputable and experienced nurse license defense lawyer who can protect you and your professional career. It is important to work with a firm that has a lot of experience helping nurses in the Long Island area defend false charges against them and be able to keep their license while facing charges or untrue accusations.
Why You May Risk Losing Your Long Island Nursing License
Without the help of an experienced defense lawyer, there are many reasons a nurse could potentially lose their license. Some accusations may simply result in the licensing board giving out disciplinary action. In addition to that, some accusations could result in criminal charges as well.
Sexual Violations
Many nurses end up encountering false accusations of inappropriate sexual touching or sexual advances. Touching a patient is part of a nurse’s job. Unfortunately, many patients are not honest about how they feel when a nurse touches them and end up accusing them of serious charges.
Violations Revolving Around Standard of Care
Nurses are often accused of neglecting or mistreating patients. Whether by mistake or from misinformation, a nurse may forget to offer a certain type of care to their patients. In certain cases, medical professionals and doctors may order nurses to perform certain procedures or offer specific care to a patient. When nurses are not properly notified about these, they may end up being accused of violating the standard of care.
Theft and Fraud
Fraud is often a more common accusation against nurses in long-term care centers. However, it can also happen in in-home care and hospitals. Some of the patients that nurses deal with are confused or sick and may wrongly accuse their nurse of stealing their belongings. Nurses can often be wrongly accused of fraud when a patient feels their nurse is being dishonest.
Forgery and Falsification
Another defense a nurse may need help with from a lawyer is when they are accused of falsifying chart data, medication prescriptions or medication administration records. They may also get accused of forging a patient or doctor’s signature. These types of accusations can be hard to counter. Thankfully, a good lawyer knows how to choose the defenses that will help keep a license from being revoked.
Alcohol and Drug Use
People from all walks of life and every profession struggle with chemical dependencies. However, when a nurse is caught using drugs or drinking alcohol at work or working when intoxicated, they can put the lives of their patients in danger. Hospitals, in-home care companies and other facilities are strict about these rules. Being accused of drug or alcohol use while at work can result in actions being taken by the licensing board. In some cases, there are options available for nurses who choose to seek treatment.
Failure To Meet Licensing Requirements
To keep working, nurses are required to stay updated with their state licensing requirements. This may involve paying fees and seeking continuing education. There have been cases where a nurse sends their fee by mail and it gets lost. Obtaining help from a license defense lawyer can help prevent a nurse from losing their license or having to face many months a hardship trying to earn it back.
Malpractice
A malpractice suit can be brought against a nurse for many things such as failing to tell a patient test results or giving them the wrong medication. Thankfully, many malpractice suits get thrown out of court because of a lack of proof. However, to ensure a nurse keeps their license, it is important to hire the help of a professional defense lawyer.
Criminal Offenses
When a nurse is being charged with a criminal offense, it should be taken seriously. It does not matter whether it is true or not. Nurses should never admit to a crime or accept blame for their coworkers. When criminal charges for sexual molestation, theft or other serious offense are filed, the matter should only be discussed with your attorney. Long Island nurse defense lawyers will keep all information you tell them confidential.
Penalties for Charges and Accusations Against Nurses
Nurses are accused of things every year. Without a good attorney, it can be difficult to beat those false accusations or charges. Penalties for these can include reprimand, probation, revocation of license, suspension, restriction, rectification and fines. When criminal charges are involved, additional penalties may be added by the court.
Facing accusations or charges as a nurse without a reputable lawyer can be risky. Some nurses may end up with the revocation of their license and a huge hit to their reputation. The only way to protect your reputation, license and future will be to hire the help of an experienced nurse license defense lawyer.
Long Island Nurse License Defense lawyers represent Nurses in physician offices, hospitals, and Home health agencies. They work to protect nurse’s LPN, LP, and RN professional license and their future. Nurses defending themselves have a higher chance of facing harsh disciplinary action from a false accusation. However, nurses can beat those false charges without losing their license or facing any charges when nurse license defense lawyers are present to defend them. Long Island Nurse License Defense lawyers are experienced have a solid record of helping nurses beat false charges and accusations.
Nurses study 2 to 4 years in order to get a license to practice. Not to mention their dedication towards their patients. However, sometimes nurses are falsely accused. No one is perfect, challenges occur and it’s a matter of circumstances. Not to mention, Nurses have the hardest career in the medical field. Nurses has to interact with patients on a different level than doctors, like cleaning private areas and sometimes patients are not truthful about how nurses really touched them. That would be a sexual violation and a nurse will not only lose their license but that nurse will go to jail because a patient was exaggerating. Also, A Doctor may order a change of a specific medication but the nurse is not aware of this change because the nurse was not notified correctly this is a Standard of Care violation, meaning the Nurse can be accused of malpractice. There are some nurses that simply made a mistake. Some cases involve issues like discriminating a patient because of race or gender, breaking the HIPPA law, failure to return copies of records on request, criminal conviction, practicing under the influence, failure to assess and monitor, breaking any other facility policy and any other unprofessional conduct. There are so many laws that are put in place for the patient’s safety and personal information but what about Nurses. Malpractice cases, usually gets dismissed because of it deficiency of evidence. Drug and Alcohol cases, most nurse’s license are temporarily suspended and must get help. These type of lawsuit are rising and can still damage your career. The Office of Professional Discipline may organize a harsh punishment for false accusations and misinterpreted actions. Therefore, it is imperative to seek an attorney, fighting alone is extremely risky. Although only 2% of medical lawsuits accounts for nurses it is still a high number and lawsuits are still rising. There is no room for human error in the medical field. The moment an error occurs it is reported, resulting in investigation. The first person to be investigated is the nurse. So, if there’s any possible charges against you or even if you are already suspended temporarily, Long Island Nurse License defense lawyers can help you and protect what you have worked hard for.
Nurses in trouble should immediately contact our defense lawyers. By contacting our Defense lawyers early we can most likely shut down any actions that can cause you to lose your license. In fact, if you are being investigated by the Office of Professional Discipline (OPD) you have the right to not speak until you have an attorney. Even if disciplinary actions have been taken we can still offer a strong defense. Our purpose is to defend the healthcare professional’s nursing license and their career. We are advocates for you and we will guide through the whole process for the best results. Our Defense team is determined to get a positive outcome. Our cases are usually dismissed and have small penalties like fines, remedial education, probation, monitoring, and temporary suspension. Even with these small penalties nurses are able to receive license privileges again. Enabling Nurses to continue their practices in the health care field. Our license defense lawyer take pride in helping these health care professionals and providing a sense of confidence when returning to work. We know you want your life back and Long Island Nurse License Defense lawyers can help you. As a matter of fact, we can help you reapply for your license. Long Island Nurse License Defense Lawyers are here to help and guide Nurses along the way back to their health care practices that you worked hard for.