Declaratory Order Process and Polygraph Exam

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There haven't been many recent posts about this, so I thought I'd provide my experience with the BNE Declaratory Order process and give some information that may be helpful to others in similar situations.

A little back-story on me... I currently have a great, non-medical career, but I've always been interested in nursing. I had all of the prerequisites satisfied from my undergraduate and graduate degrees and eyeballing a career change, decided to finally take the plunge and apply to nursing school.

I have a felony conviction from 15 years ago, nothing violent, child-related, etc. and that is one of the reasons I shyed away from nursing in the beginning. I thought it was impossible to become a nurse with a criminal record.

However, after doing some research, I discovered that after a certain period of time has elapsed, the Board was required to issue you a license.

You can download the "Disciplinary Guidelines for Criminal Conduct" PDF file here which lists every offense and the amount of time that must pass before your license can be issued: http://www.bon.texas.gov/disciplinaryaction/discp-guide.html

So, about 6 months ago I went and had my Livescan fingerprints done ($40 fee), sent in the initial Declaratory Order Petition and waited by the mailbox. About two months later I received a letter from the Nursing Board stating that my criminal record needed further evaluation by the Enforcement Department, which required an additional $150 fee. So, I sent that in too.

Fast-forward 4 months and I receive a large certified mail packet from the Board stating that "I am currently unfit to practice nursing" -- unless I submit to a psychological exam and polygraph examination. While it is stated in the "Disciplinary Guidelines for Criminal Conduct" that "A forensic psychological evaluation with or without a polygraph examination may be requested", I have to be honest, I wasn't expecting it and found it a bit ridiculous giving that this incident happened 15 years ago. Oh, and I'll go ahead and put out there that I'm a licensed public school teacher and counselor in Texas.

With that said, it's started to look like all of this Declaratory Order business was quite the money-making racket. In addition to all of the fees I'd already paid, the Board now wanted me to submit to an unwarranted $1000 psychological exam and polygraph test...

Well, I did some more research and it looks like "racket" is the best way to describe the Board's tactics. I came across one legal article in particular titled "The Polygraph Test: Just Say No to the BNE" which can be found here: http://www.txmedicallicensinglaw.com/2007/05/articles/texas-board-of-nurse-examiners/the-polygraph-test-just-say-no-to-the-bne/

I don't know these attorneys, nor am I endorsing them in any way, I just found the article interesting and informative, especially the part that says these requests aren't legal and that they've won every case where they challenged the request for a polygraph exam.

I made the decision not to pursue a career in nursing in the end. Now some may say that meant I wasn't really dedicated to the field, but let me tell you that's not the case. I still think nursing is where I belong for several reasons. But, on principle, I'm not going to be part of some scheme just so the Board can make money. Plus, even with a license, there is no guarantee you could find a job with a criminal record.

It's obviously a decision you have to make yourself and I wish everyone good luck with their career endeavors!

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Pangea Reunited, ASN, RN

1,547 Posts

Mar 23, 2014

While that's a good amount of money for an individual to spend, I can't imagine the board is making a ton of money from it. The polygraph is a little strange, though.