I survived the Board of Nursing

I have been a nurse for over 30 years. I was working as a Nursing Director for a non-profit organization supporting adults with intellectual disabilities. I had worked there for several years but the stress was taking its toll, so I decided to move on to something less stressful. A full two months after I left, I received a letter from the board of nursing stating that there was a complaint against my license. Nurses Professionalism Article

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Where do I begin? I have been following this site for years and it has been a source of both comfort and anxiety. The following describes my ordeal handling a complaint against my nursing license.

I was almost physically sick as I read page after page of allegations of neglect, poor judgment, failure to follow nursing standards -the list went on. To be honest I could not believe what I was reading, much less begin to understand where all this was coming from. Many of the complaints were about areas that I was not even responsible for. The letter gave me 10 days to respond to the allegations. My first instinct was to get a lawyer; I let my husband talk me out of it. He was convinced, as I was, that I simply had to respond to the allegations and they would go away. HOW WRONG I WAS!! Foolishly I thought that if I simply explained what really happened the situation would be resolved.

I submitted my carefully crafted response and waited for the board to exonerate me. After four months with no response, I contacted the board to find out what the status of the complaint was. After some transfers, I was informed by the board's lawyer that they were moving forward with disciplinary action. I did not know what to say or do - I was in complete shock. I managed to ask what recourse I would have, I was told that I would be able to request a settlement hearing once I was formally notified of my charges. I immediately contacted a lawyer. BEST MOVE I MADE. She carefully reviewed the information and submitted a letter to the board that all further communication was to come through her. I then sat and waited for nine long months for the formal charges. I prayed, worried, stressed, and cried my way through those months. If it had not have been for the support of my husband I would not have made it through the whole ordeal.

Finally, I received an email outlining the charges - all eleven of them. I was devastated, but once I got myself together I sat down and carefully read them. Charge, after charge I had clear evidence to refute. I contacted my lawyer who had already requested a settlement hearing. I went over the charges and my evidence to refute the charges. She spent two days carefully crafting a response to each allegation and attaching supporting evidence.

The settlement hearing came a month later - I can't explain how I felt looking into the faces of the board members and explaining complaint after complaint. I was an exemplary nurse, who had never had a bad report or performance evaluation and here I was practically begging for my license.

The board had not conducted ANY type of investigation, had not contacted my former employer, requested records, or interviewed me -NOTHING! It took all of 30 minutes and I was dismissed to wait for their decision.

Later that afternoon, I got the best phone call from my lawyer, all charges were dropped - case closed. That's it - it was finally over. Needless to say this has left a bad taste in my mouth. The board could just as easily have taken my livelihood away from me without doing their due diligence. Looking back I am so disappointed in an entity that supposedly is in place to protect the public yet failed to conduct a proper investigation on allegations that turned out be completely false.

Specializes in VA, Ortho, Med/Surg.

Aww well, it will all work out and yes, Jesus has your back. You are humble and that is awesome!! Keep letting God lead you. I just had kind of a god-moment in the last hour. He finally heard my anguish and tears. I know he always hears, but you know what I mean haha. I've been out of my mind with worries about a job and bills and all. Feel free to PM me anytime!

1 Votes
Specializes in Critical Care.

Thank you for this !! FINALLY someone who has integrity!! I agree and applaud you, as honesty, as well as integrity, are quickly disappearing in the world we live in.  My hope is that more nurses start speaking up and fighting for what is actually a MORAL obligation.  There will never be enough money on the planet for me to not be the best nurse that I can.  Ever.  

Specializes in Register nurse.
On 6/27/2020 at 4:55 PM, NurseDiane said:

This is not the end of the world, but I would strongly advise that you retain an attorney for any board hearing, any board questioning and any document signing. The BON's goal is to scare you into signing a consent order before speaking to an attorney.

The Florida BON is ruthless and the IPN is nothing more than a giant profit-driven organization that makes a crap ton of money from board-ordered "evaluation" by unqualified practitioners that are not addiction specialists. Forcing you into an IPN contract before an adequate investigation is done should be illegal. A thorough investigation will show that this was a documentation error, and not an issue of diversion or addiction.

By telling you that they will turn you over to the DOH, it's nothing but a threat. Who cares if you get turned over to the DOH? At least the DOH will conduct an investigation before any hearings regarding your nursing license are conducted. The BON knows that the vast majority of nurses panic at the thought of any disciplinary action because they do not understand the process, and often just "submit" to whatever the BON wants them to do. DON'T DO THAT. So what if they turn you over to the DOH? At least then an investigation will be done. The BON cannot justify forcing you into an IPN contract when there is no evidence of diversion or drug use. They just don't want to have to spend any money on handling something like this properly. If you consent to an IPN contract, you all be their b!tch for the next 5 years.

Do not agree to enter IPN before a complete investigation is done on this incident. The penalty for a documentation error is far less than the penalty for entering IPN. Tell the BON that you are respectfully declining their offer because you do not have a drug problem, you did not divert any narcotics, your drug screen was totally negative and they have nothing to support the necessity for you to be in a monitoring program. Threatening nurses to consent to a 5 year monitoring contract with IPN is a bottom-feeder behavior. Let them do some work for their salary. The Florida BON tries to throw every nurse into IPN no matter what the offense is or if it involves drugs or it doesn't. IPN is a profit-driven monster.

Remember that consenting to join IPN doesn't automatically assure that something won't be slapped onto your license if somebody at IPN or BON feels that you haven't done enough to "participate" in the program. The BON can unilaterally extend your contract for no reason. They have total control over you. It is not the end of the world if you get a mark against your license for a documentation error, but you can be guaranteed that you will never work as a nurse again if you get a mark against your license for a drug-related offense. You will not lose your license for a documentation error. This is exactly the reason why you need an attorney. One thing you definitely do not want to do is be questioned by the BON or DOH without an attorney present, or without being prepped by an attorney before the questioning. As soon as the BON & DOH know you have an attorney, their demeanor will change because they know they can't threaten you anymore.

Talk to a lawyer. Be honest. Try to get all the documentation you can, including the results of your drug test for the attorney. An attorney can request all of the documents that the BON has in its possession---if you requested those records, your request would be refused. You have to consent to entering into an IPN contract---the BON cannot order you into it. That's why they throw ultimatums in your face--the less time a nurse has to think about it, the more likely it is that they'll agree to it. The BON or DOH cannot take any action against your license without a full investigation and hearing. The BON wants to make "turning you into the DOH" sound really scary, but it's not. An attorney can negotiate with the DOH much better than you can. There is no way a documentation error should turn into a drug offense without an investigation. You will likely not get out of this scot-free, but agreeing to enter into a 5 year IPN contract is ridiculous. You will probably have to take some type of course on proper documentation, and maybe get a strike against your license, but that's it. Maybe a small fine, too.

Fight for your license. Don't let the BON scare you into something that is totally unnecessary and which will cost you tens of thousands of dollars over the course of 5 years. Use that money to retain an attorney.

IPN seems to be a less risky option, I am afraid that my case will be taken to the DOH and it will be even worse, despite having a favorable evaluation and negative hair toxicology results, IPN still wants me to sign a monitoring contract, it will be better to refuse, find a lawyer and deal with the DOH?  what is your advice ?

Specializes in Register nurse.
On 7/21/2020 at 10:22 PM, didi768 said:

Aww well, it will all work out and yes, Jesus has your back. You are humble and that is awesome!! Keep letting God lead you. I just had kind of a god-moment in the last hour. He finally heard my anguish and tears. I know he always hears, but you know what I mean haha. I've been out of my mind with worries about a job and bills and all. Feel free to PM me anytime!

PN seems to be a less risky option, I am afraid that my case will be taken to the DOH and it will be even worse, despite having a favorable evaluation and negative hair toxicology results, IPN still wants me to sign a monitoring contract, it will be better to refuse, find a lawyer and deal with the DOH?  Any advice  ?

Specializes in Psychiatric RN.

I'm happy to share my thoughts and experiences and possibly be a pen pal. feel free to email me at [email protected]

1 Votes
Specializes in ICU/ER/IR/Pre-Op/PACU/Cath Lab/EP/CSS.

This is a huge issue and more and more nurses need to start talking about this and bringing it to the forefront.  Boards across the nation need oversight.  

Can you refer me to the same lawyer. I am

also investigation and waiting a date to meet with 3 panel board members 

Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

*Admin note* Please do not post identifying information about others per the Terms of Service. If you are seeking a lawyer familiar with nursing licensure, TAANA is a resource.

Specializes in Cardiac, Neurology and PCU.

I hired an attorney that specialized in BON issues. Be leery if they ask for fees up front cause then they don't work as hard for you. This one insisted fees now. Would not take a down payment or even half! Now I'm in the hole and still reprimanded with no job! I am keeping my head up and still moving forward but it is frustrating just the same. I am glad this blog was created cause I felt so alone! 

Specializes in Cardiac, Neurology and PCU.

I hired an attorney that specialized in BON issues. Be leery if they ask for fees up front cause then they don't work as hard for you. This one insisted fees now. Would not take a down payment or even half! Now I'm in the hole and still reprimanded with no job! I am keeping my head up and still moving forward but it is frustrating just the same. I am glad this blog was created cause I felt so alone! 

Solid advice to anyone - Once you being "investigated" for anything (by the nursing board , police, or plaintiffs lawyer), the more you say, the worse you can make things for yourself. Many times the questions you are asked by an interrogator or investigator are carefully selected to implicate you in something even when you are innocent or not liable. Do not respond to any questions or make any statement (especially in writing or on video)without an attorney representing you present.

1 Votes
Specializes in Cardiac, Neurology and PCU.

Thank you so much. This info is so useful to me! This is greatly appreciated!!

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