DUI Conviction Advice

[Wander_Lust]

I've been perusing this forum looking for answers for some questions I have and I was hoping I could get some advice from you all.

My mother has been an Arizona RN for 30+ years and in the last 5 has had some problems with alcohol. After she went to rehab the AZ nursing board put her on probation, which was really difficult for her, but obviously necessary. Afterwards she continued to secretly struggle with alcoholism, but never while on the job. Unfortunately she slipped a few months back and she just got convicted of a DUI. Oddly enough the arrest was a blessing in disguise because my mother has finally really started to recover. She just really wants to go on with her nursing life.

So my question is, it says on the Nursing newsletter that nurses have 10 days to report criminal charges, does that include DUIs? Because on the state board info it says that they only look at felonies and misdemeanors involving moral turpitude, which does NOT include DUIs. So does she have to report it at all?

However it has also said that nurses have gotten fired for DUI convictions, is this because they didn't report it or because they did or because they still had problems with alcohol?

If anyone has any kind of answers to these questions I would MORE than appreciate it. My mother could never figure out the internet enough to ask this herself so please give me your thoughts and advice on her behalf.

[EricJRN, MSN, RN]

Wander Lust,

Because each of these cases involves individual details and because advice on legal/regulatory matters is outside of the scope of this site, it's best to simply consult with the board and/or an attorney to make a determination in this case.

In keeping with our site's Terms of Service, it just wouldn't be beneficial for us to guess as to the legal ramifications in this situation.