Tag Archives: Consent Agreement

If you received a Notice for Opportunity for Hearing .. request a hearing

Posted on by
Reply

On Friday, July 27, the Ohio Board of Nursing held its bi-monthly meeting. At that meeting, the Board voted to take disciplinary action against dozens of nurses in the state of Ohio. Nurses who face discipline by the Board will be mailed a Notice of Opportunity for Hearing, Notice of Summary Suspension or Notice of Automatic Suspension of their nursing license by certified mail.  This is not a final decision by the Board.  These Notices outline the charges that the Board has alleged against you.

If you receive notification from the post office that you have a certified letter from the Nursing Board, immediately go to the post office and collect the letter as there are important time sensitive deadlines which, if not met, can have a permanent effect on your license.

If you want the Board to hear “your side of the story” you must request a hearing in writing to request a hearing by the deadline in the Notice. This can be done by following the instructions in the Notice. A request for a hearing is a simple letter sent to the Board stating that you would like a hearing. You do not need to list your defenses or reasons why you want a hearing. You simply need to state in the letter that you would like a hearing.

You only have thirty (30) days from the date the Notice was MAILED to you to request a hearing.  The 30 day time frame starts on the date that the letter was mailed to you and not on the date that you received the letter. Failure to request a hearing will prevent you from providing any evidence on your behalf to the Board.

I am often asked “why should I even request a hearing … the Board has already made a determination.” This is not correct.  These Notices only list allegations raised against you.  While the Board has conducted an investigation prior to issuing the Notice, in most cases they have only considered one side of the evidence. By requesting a hearing you will be able to present your side of the story.

Even in cases where the nurse has violated the Ohio Nurse Practice Act, by presenting your side of the story and explaining what challenges you faced or what you were thinking when the error occurred, you increase the chances of getting a lighter sanction from the Board than if you simply do not even request a hearing.

You worked hard for your nursing license. There are always two sides to any story. If you receive a Notice of Opportunity for Hearing, a Notice of Summary Suspension, or a Notice of Immediate Suspension, request a hearing within the deadline and make sure the Board hears your side of the story before they make a final determination.

You should also consider hiring experienced legal counsel to defend you before the Nursing Board. When considering how to hire an attorney, check out my previous post on “How to Hire an Attorney”.  Your livelihood depends on you finding experienced legal counsel that you trust to help in your defense.

As always, if you have any questions about this post or the Ohio Board of Nursing in general, feel free to contact me at (614) 486-3909 or email me at beth@collislaw.com.

Nursing Board Consent Agreements Are Binding Contracts and Generally Can Not Be Changed

Posted on by
1

A Consent Agreement is a written contract between a nurse and the Ohio Board of Nursing. A Consent Agreement is a voluntary agreement that outlines the discipline that will be imposed against a nurse. A Consent Agreement is similar to a plea bargain in a criminal case. The nurse agrees to certain disciplinary conditions, in lieu of proceeding to an administrative hearing before the Board. By entering into the Consent Agreement, the nurse generally admits to certain misconduct and agrees to comply with certain disciplinary terms.

It is important to keep in mind that once you enter into a Consent Agreement, you are required to complete all terms. Depending on the specific language of the Consent Agreement, you can, in certain circumstances, request modifications to a Consent Agreement after a period of time. However, if the Consent Agreement does not specifically provide that the Consent Agreement may be modified, generally you cannot “get out” of or change the terms of the Consent Agreement.

In most cases, for the probationary period to toll, the nurse needs to work in a position where a nursing license is required. Consent Agreements typically always provide that any time that the nurse is not employed in a nursing position will not reduce the probation or monitoring period.

Generally, once you enter into the Consent Agreement, the only way to “get out” of the Agreement is to comply with its terms. Often nurses have “buyer’s remorse” when they enter into a Consent Agreement and after several months, they no longer want to comply with the terms of the Consent Agreement. However, in most cases, unless the nurse has complied with all the terms of the Consent Agreement the probationary period will not be lifted or modified.

Also, at the end of the probation period, the Consent Agreement does not automatically end. The nurse needs to affirmatively request to be released from all probationary terms of the Consent Agreement.

Consent Agreements are contracts entered into between the nurse and the Board of Nursing. As you may be subject to compliance terms for many months, years, or even indefinitely, it is imperative that you understand the terms of the Consent Agreement BEFORE you sign it.

You worked hard for your professional license. As I have said in previous posts, prior to entering into any agreement with the Ohio Board of Nursing, it is important that you seek experienced legal counsel to assist and represent you.

As always, if you have any questions about this post, or about the Ohio Board of Nursing in general, feel free to contact at me (614) 486-3909 or email me at beth@collislaw.com.

What is a Nursing Board Consent Agreement?

Posted on by
Reply

Under the Ohio Nurse Practice Act, R.C. 4723.28, the Nursing Board can deny, revoke, suspend, reprimand, impose a fine or place limitations on a nursing license.

To take disciplinary action against a nurse, the Nursing Board first must  charge the nurse with violating some provision of the Ohio Nurse Practice Act. Notice is usually provided to the nurse in a citation letter, entitled, “Notice of Opportunity for Hearing.”  The Notice letter outlines the alleged misconduct (the basis for the action), specifies the section of the Nurse Practice Act that the nurse has allegedly violated, and provides the nurse with an opportunity to request a hearing before the Nursing Board concerning the allegations.

However, in some instances, the Nursing Board will send a nurse a document called a “Consent Agreement” without issuing a Notice.  The Consent Agreement is a contract between the nurse and the Nursing Board in which the nurse agrees that the specified violations of the Nurse Practice Act occurred, agrees to accept a specified discipline, and waives his or her right to a hearing. While signing a Consent Agreement may be the best route for the nurse, there are issues that should be considered before entering into a Consent Agreement with the Nursing Board.

A Consent Agreement is a formal disciplinary action of the Nursing Board and is a public document under the Ohio Public Records law (R.C. 149). As a public record, the Nursing Board must make the document available to the public and may post the actual agreement on their website. The Board will also list the name of the nurse and the discipline imposed in the Board ‘s quarterly Momentum magazine in the Disciplinary Actions section.

Negotiating the terms and condition of the Consent Agreement can result in changes and/or clarifications.  As with any legal, binding agreement, prior to signing the Consent Agreement, it is recommended to have it reviewed by experienced legal counsel so that you clearly understand what you are agreeing to in the document.

In addition, even after you complete any discipline imposed by the Consent Agreement, the Consent Agreement will always remain as a part of your professional record with the Nursing Board. Unlike some criminal cases, there is no way to seal or expunge a disciplinary action taken by the Nursing Board. Therefore,  it is important that you understand and agree to all the terms in the Consent Agreement and that the Consent Agreement accurately reflects the facts in your case.

As always, if you have any questions about this post or about the Ohio Board of Nursing in general, please feel free to email me at beth@collislaw.com or call me at 614-486-3909.