How do I know if I’ve been reported? What do I do?

[sunflowerandscrubs]

My job sent me to the hospital for a panic attack/break down. They told me I was ‘impaired’ for not sleeping enough and mentioned the IPN. I don’t feel like I need to report over lack of sleep. How do I know if I’ve been reported and what do I do next if I was? I can’t afford the IPN. I’ve heard borrow stories about it. I’m not on drugs or anything, just been struggling with mental health and trying find the right meds.

[K. Everly, BSN, RN]

I'm sorry this is happening, and would suggest lawyering-up before you say a word to ANYBODY - a therapist, your work, the board, IPN etc. Not a word without a lawyer.

Find a healthcare licensing attorney in your state and getting them involved immediately. Know that even mental health issues by themselves can lead to board involvement and a good attorney in this field can tell you exactly what to say and what not to say to leverage your chances of not getting into a predatory contract. 

They can also advise you on how to get confidential support or FMLA without raising flags, if there is any way to do that, or suggest finding another job and tell you how to do it the best way. 

[sunflowerandscrubs]

7 minutes ago, K. Everly said:

I'm sorry this is happening, and would suggest lawyering-up before you say a word to ANYBODY - a therapist, your work, the board, IPN etc. Not a word without a lawyer.

Find a healthcare licensing attorney in your state and getting them involved immediately. Know that even mental health issues by themselves can lead to board involvement and a good attorney in this field can tell you exactly what to say and what not to say to leverage your chances of not getting into a predatory contract. 

They can also advise you on how to get confidential support or FMLA without raising flags, if there is any way to do that, or suggest finding another job and tell you how to do it the best way. 

I can’t afford a lawyer right now. What are my options?

[K. Everly, BSN, RN]

14 minutes ago, sunflowerandscrubs said:

I can’t afford a lawyer right now. What are my options?

Normally a consultation would be free. Go see what they have to say about your situation. A lot of it is going to be contingent upon the exacts of your situation around this particular incident, and also what hx you have that IPN or the board can get their hands on against you (ie: criminal record, hx of mental health treatment before that they might find out about, what your work might say about your mental health etc). 

Read comments around here and you'll know you can't afford NOT to get a lawyer. If your work already mentioned IPN directly, the chances are pretty high they reported you. Know it can take quite a while before you hear anything about this. If you truly truly can't afford a lawyer, as opposed to just not finding it comfortable to do so, then I would take out a loan or ask a family member for help. 

You could wait to get a lawyer and see if anything comes up from IPN, but IF you do that, be prepared to not say a word to your work about this even when they want to sit down and discuss it, and if IPN or the BON contacts you, you will immediately need to get the lawyer to head up the situation for you and not say a word. 

Also be aware that any treatment you get in the mean time for your mental health could potentially be used again you, which is why I suggest speaking to that lawyer about what your options are and how to manage this the right way and also get the support you need. You have the right to medical privacy but there are also situations where therapists or inpatient treatment centers can report you since you are a nurse and not face any ramifications for breaking HIPAA (which is total BS). If you do get treatment, do not mention a word about being a nurse or being a licensed professional.

[sunflowerandscrubs]

2 hours ago, K. Everly said:

Normally a consultation would be free. Go see what they have to say about your situation. A lot of it is going to be contingent upon the exacts of your situation around this particular incident, and also what hx you have that IPN or the board can get their hands on against you (ie: criminal record, hx of mental health treatment before that they might find out about, what your work might say about your mental health etc). 

Read comments around here and you'll know you can't afford NOT to get a lawyer. If your work already mentioned IPN directly, the chances are pretty high they reported you. Know it can take quite a while before you hear anything about this. If you truly truly can't afford a lawyer, as opposed to just not finding it comfortable to do so, then I would take out a loan or ask a family member for help. 

You could wait to get a lawyer and see if anything comes up from IPN, but IF you do that, be prepared to not say a word to your work about this even when they want to sit down and discuss it, and if IPN or the BON contacts you, you will immediately need to get the lawyer to head up the situation for you and not say a word. 

Also be aware that any treatment you get in the mean time for your mental health could potentially be used again you, which is why I suggest speaking to that lawyer about what your options are and how to manage this the right way and also get the support you need. You have the right to medical privacy but there are also situations where therapists or inpatient treatment centers can report you since you are a nurse and not face any ramifications for breaking HIPAA (which is total BS). If you do get treatment, do not mention a word about being a nurse or being a licensed professional.

How will I know if they actually reported me? Im hoping the Dr was just trying scare me. Unfortunately all my providers already know im a nurse.

[K. Everly, BSN, RN]

On 5/12/2022 at 5:57 PM, sunflowerandscrubs said:

How will I know if they actually reported me? Im hoping the Dr was just trying scare me. Unfortunately all my providers already know im a nurse.

You won’t know until you hear from them. If there was a way that wouldn’t shine a spotlight on you for asking, I definitely would have mentioned it. It’s one of the most frustrating things for many nurses because they feel they are living in limbo waiting to know what, if anything, is going to happen. 

[justcallmeflorence]

Absolutely agree on lawyering up, no matter how innocent you are or how straightforward it seems. These Boards are shockingly predatory and will even use coercion and scare tactics to get you to sign something called a "consent agreement" and they will tell you it will be in exchange for keeping your license. They can and will do everything they can to not only place you in a program on the basis of your mental health (even for seemingly small issues that are managed outpatient) but will also attempt to layer on imaginary fractions to build a case. They will tell you that it will lead to an "evaluation" but they will reject any evaluations not done by a company on their payroll to ensure you are placed in the program. Do not speak to any investigators, Board members, or anyone without first talking to an attorney who is well versed in licensure matters in your state. You can find one here: https://www.taana.org . Good luck to you. Please be assured that you are not alone in this and many of the nurses here have horror stories regarding how they entered these "programs".