The Board of Registered Nursing (BRN) filed an Accusation against Nurse M for being under the influence of controlled substances during his shift at work. Nurse M’s RN accusation was based on staff observations of Nurse M the night of the incident, as well as the review of his reports, which according to his supervisor, contained frequent misspellings and incomplete sentences with overall rambling. Additionally, Nurse M tested positive in a urine test for Benzodiazepines, which he had been medically prescribed to take to treat insomnia caused by severe back pains. For these reasons, the Board responded with three years of probation as a consequence of allegations against Nurse M, to which he declined. Nurse M believed this was not the disciplinary action he deserved, and sought representation through Century Law Group.
With the help of our talented attorneys, Nurse M was able to successfully defend his license against the RN accusation brought upon him. Nurse M was unaware of any policy that required him to disclose information about his prescription medication. More importantly, Nurse M had also expressed remorse at this mistake and fully intends to notify Human Resources of his medication should a similar situation occur again the future.
Prior to the day of this incident, Nurse M had no record of discipline as an RN and according to Human Resources Manager had displayed “no indications of drug diversion” in the months leading up to the incident. Nurse M’s record as an RN demonstrated a stellar record, with evaluation reports confirming him as “Fully Competent” and “Outstanding” in his performance at work. Additionally, Nurse M’s friends, colleagues and patients had all advocated for the continued licensure of Nurse M despite the one incident occurred. Nurse M was widely recognized as “one of the better ER nurses” who “would never put the public in any harm or his fellow coworkers.”
The evidence presented over the two-day course hearing showed that Nurse M did not deserve the probation sentence that the Board thought was appropriate. Our team demonstrated that Nurse M was of no harm to any patient or the public resulting in the incident. He is a responsible and competent person. His extensive mitigation evidence, full cooperation with the Board regarding the case, and his serious acknowledgement of one unique mistake, proved that he was not guilty of the issues brought against him by the board.
With the help of our experience professional licensing defense attorneys, Nurse M was able to provide the Board with ample evidence to defend his RN license and continue his work without a probationary sentence. With situations similar to that of Nurse M, who had been practicing nursing since 2008, it’s hard to consider what might have happened had he not had adequate representation.
In the case of Nurse M, trying to represent himself in court might have proven exceedingly difficult given the fact that there was an expert witness testifying against him. In cases like these, it’s especially important to have an attorney throughout the legal process. Our attorney representing Nurse M was an invaluable resource. In addition to providing guidance throughout the legal process, our attorney was able to effectively cross-examine statements made by the expert witness. Our attorneys demonstrated that Nurse M was in compliance with the Board’s Disciplinary Guidelines and therefore not subject to license probation.
If you are facing an RN accusation, or are a licensed professional who is facing accusations from your governing Board, we encourage you to seek and obtain representation right away. The difference between educated, experienced representation and none at all could be the difference between keeping your professional license and losing your livelihood.