Professional License Defense for Nurses in Charlotte NC
As a nurse, you’re responsible for helping people. You decided a long time ago that you would do everything in your power to become a nurse. Getting licensed is one of the happiest days of your life. However, all of this can come crashing down with a board investigation. If you find yourself under investigation, you could lose your license. The dreams and goals you had for your career will be gone. You would have to find another way to support yourself and your family. So, what do you do if your nursing license is at risk? We recommend hiring experienced legal counsel to help you through this process.
Are you currently involved in a legal claim that is threatening your nursing license in North Carolina? The attorneys and counselors at Remington & Dixon are each passionately dedicated to professional license defense for nursing in North Carolina, including defending Registered Nurses (RN), Limited Practical Nurses (LPN), Nurse Practitioners (NP), Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA), Nurse Specialists, (CNS), and others from across the spectrum of the nursing profession.
Our expert lawyers in Charlotte, NC are well versed in representing the interests of our local healthcare professionals, in particular, nursing license defense in Charlotte, NC.
Protect your Nursing License
Investigations involving, and formal accusations against, nurses here in Charlotte NC are becoming more common each day both here in North Carolina and elsewhere. The North Carolina State Board of Nursing will likely reach out to you to ask that you contact them directly, immediately, upon receiving word that a claim has been filed against you. However, we at Remington & Dixon strongly advise against this.
By contacting the board without any kind of legal representation, you place yourself very much at risk of potentially incriminating yourself or unintentionally increasing the suspicions against you by speaking to anyone before consulting a license defense attorney, even if the claim is unfounded. When facing charges, your license to continue practicing as a nurse is at stake, and this is a process that deserves to be taken very seriously – and for this reason, we urge you to exercise your right to legal representation before you speak to anyone. In addition to assisting you to preserve your teaching license in North Carolina, our attorneys and counselors will work to ensure that you are not left paying out for a claim that you were not at fault for.
In certain cases of nursing license defense, though your license may remain intact, a negative record may be filed against it. In the result of any sort of disciplinary action, this record remains attached to your license and will follow you for the rest of your career, from state to state. As professional license defense lawyers in North Carolina, we will work to help ensure that you not only have the highest chance of keeping your license, but we will fight to prevent your license, your record, and your professional reputation, from being tarnished at all.
Trust a Team of Attorneys Who Will Fight on Your Behalf
Remington & Dixon, PLLC is a law firm that has vast experience in nurse license defense cases. We understand how frustrating it can be to face discipline or loss of your license. After all, we are professionally licensed ourselves. You will no longer be able to help your patients if you lose your license. We’re here to try to help you keep your license so that you can move forward in our career. If you receive notification of an investigation or hearing, you need to contact us immediately. The sooner that we start your case, the better your chances will be.
Here at Remington & Dixon, we are appreciative of all the hard work and immense sacrifices the demanding nursing professions require of its people. We also understand how devastating it can be when, after working hard every day to provide your patients with nothing less than the best care you can deliver, your own integrity as a nurse is called into question.
The medical field is a very demanding field to work it – after all, human lives are literally placed in your care each day. In such an environment, emotions run high, and integrity is all-important, so any claim against you deserves to be taken very seriously. Don’t let yourself become a silent victim of this all-too-common occurrence. Our lawyers here at Remington & Dixon will fight every day to protect the reputation and careers of nurses in Charlotte, NC, as well as help to reduce the stress that comes along with defending one’s self in nursing licensing claims.
If you find yourself facing a claim against your nursing license, you will need a professional, experienced lawyer who practices professional nursing licensing defense in Charlotte, NC. Remington & Dixon has a longstanding reputation for licensing defense, and we will do everything within our power to ensure that your reputation and your nursing license remain intact. Call Remington & Dixon at 704-247-7110 today for a consultation with one of our nursing license defense attorneys.
License Defense Claims are Very Common for Nursing Professionals in Charlotte
Although it is certainly not pleasant to be faced with a complaint, claim, or other threat against your nursing license, we want you to know that you are not alone. Today, nursing professionals rank among our most common clients in cases of professional license defense, along with others from the field of medicine, pharmacy, and dentistry. As professionals who are charged with the welfare of sick patients, these professions are at a particularly high risk of having their licensed threatened by claims. Some of the most common complaints against nursing professionals are negligence of care, professional misconduct, inadequate records management, fraud, theft, breach of confidentiality, drug and alcohol abuse, and abuse of or improper relationships with patients.
What is Professional Nursing License Defense in North Carolina?
A professional nursing license defense is a practice that becomes necessary after one or more accusations are made which can threaten your reputation as a nursing professional, and/or which may cause your nursing license to be in jeopardy of being suspended or revoked. Not only may this cause you to lose your career as a nursing professional, but some of these allegations are serious enough to negatively impact your employability in the future. Even in cases where the claim of misconduct does not end with your nursing license in North Carolina becoming revoked or suspended, the mere existence of this allegation can remain on your license as a permanent record.
Some of the most serious allegations which can result in a suspension of your nursing license are theft, fraud, drug abuse, criminal charges and convictions, fraud, abuse, and sexual misconduct. Other serious accusations include breaches of confidentiality, mishandling of patient records, and neglect.
Protect Your Reputation as a Nurse in Charlotte
If you currently find yourself in the unthinkable position be being accused of one or more of the above offenses, or an offense not listed above, we want you to remember that you have a right to legal representation by a qualified attorney who has experience with professional license defense in North Carolina, and that is a right that you should exercise.
On some occasions, the North Carolina Board of Nursing may contact you directly, advising you to contact them immediately or to make a statement on your own behalf. It may seem like a good idea to tell ‘your side’ of the story, but as professional license defense lawyers in North Carolina, we wish to urge you not to do so. Making a premature statement, before discussing the details of your case with a license defense lawyer in Charlotte, places yourself at extreme risk. Even though you may feel that your actions were wholly justified, any statement you make may further incriminate you, or raise additional suspicions. Do not make any statements until after you have spoken to a nursing license defense lawyer in Charlotte.
How could I lose my license?
One of the most common ways to lose your nursing license is through a complaint. Anyone can file a complaint against you with the board. Some of the most common complaints come from patients, coworkers, and employers. Every complaint must be thoroughly investigated by the board, so you must take them seriously. Some of the more common complaints are for negligence, misconduct, substance abuse, criminal activity, and more.
Another way to lose your license is through criminal activity. If you have pled guilty to a criminal charge, you could find yourself in front of a board. So, if you get a DWI over the weekend, you need to contact a lawyer as soon as possible. Sometimes, getting the charge dropped can prevent a hearing. However, to do this, you need a criminal defense attorney. We represent professionals in their criminal cases as well and it is important that you hire someone that knows the ins and outs of both the criminal system as well as the professional licensing systems. Contact us today to go over your options.
Who Can File a Nursing Misconduct Claim in North Carolina?
Since North Carolina is a mandatory reporting state, it is the duty of each citizen to make reports of cases of abuse of children or the elderly, the exploitation of elderly or disabled persons, and suspicion of sexual or physical abuse due to the presence of suspicious wounds. For this reason, nurses are particularly vulnerable to being accused, falsely or justifiably, of one or more of these offenses, and anyone can report an instance of misconduct, including patients, caregivers, family members, and even co-workers and other organizations.
No matter the origin of the report, this could be the catalyst that begins a long investigation threatening your career and your personal reputation. As a nursing professional, trust is a vital part of your ability to not only do your own job now, but is also vital to your future employment as a nurse. Your patients, their families, and your superiors all place an immense amount of trust in you to perform your duties admirably, accurately, and without breaking any of the North Carolina Nursing Board’s codes of conduct. Once a complaint against you is filed, however, your employer’s faith in your as a nurse may begin to erode, and you may find yourself losing the support of your colleagues.
Remember, the goal of any healthcare facility is the protection of their own reputation, to help their patients attain peace of mind and hold the facility and its providers to a high level of trust. An investigation can damage that reputation, placing your nursing job at risk even before your case is heard.
For these reasons, we remind you to not rely on your colleagues or your place of employment to come to your defense, even in the case of a meritless claim. While you may want to provide your employer with a statement explaining your side of the story as soon as you can, remember that any of those words can be used against you in a later investigation. This is why we strongly urge you to speak to a nursing license defense attorney before you discuss your case with anyone else– including your superiors and your co-workers.
Should I talk to the investigator?
No. We recommend hiring an attorney as soon as you know that you’re facing an investigation. Investigators will ask you questions while they are handling your case, and many nurses talk to them. However, any information you give to the investigator can be used against you. A lawyer can guide you through the process and inform you of your rights. Just because the investigator asks you questions, doesn’t mean that you have to answer. An experienced attorney can also help you keep your reputation intact throughout the process.
If You Have Been Accused of Nursing Misconduct, What Happens Next?
Accusations of this nature can be, and often are, used as grounds for dismissal from a nursing job in North Carolina, and these allegations can also, in the worst cases, result in the suspension or revocation of your nursing license. Because of the serious nature of these proceedings, most workplaces will wish to mount and execute a thorough investigation before any job-related decisions are made.
The North Carolina Board of Nursing’s investigators may step in to examine the allegation over the course of several weeks or months. During this time, they will often conduct one-on-one interviews with the persons involved in the incident, as well as pulling and thoroughly examining all the relevant records from all parties involved. In addition to looking for possible signs to confirm or disprove the allegations, they also generally look for a history of misconduct at previous jobs. All of these interviews and searches will be used as evidence to determine whether disciplinary action should be taken against you.
In the case of a North Carolina Board of Nursing investigation, an investigator may reach out to you to request a statement or an interview for the Board. The investigator may even seem to be on your side – nice, professional, supportive, and claiming to honestly want to treat you fairly and get the situation resolved.
What happens after a complaint is filed?
The board will open a case and assign you an investigator. This investigator will thoroughly research your case and provide their evidence to the board. Then, the board will decide whether there will be disciplinary action or not. This isn’t the final decision, because you can appeal. However, this can be difficult on your own. Hiring an attorney will improve the chances of you keeping your license. Don’t risk losing your career because you didn’t take your complaint seriously.
Even in this case, we urge you to talk to a license defense attorney before you meet with any investigators, superiors, or anyone else with interest in the case. You may, of course, opt to remain silent and never speak to the investigators at all, but should you proceed on this route, your case will be decided solely upon the weight of the other evidence. By hiring a license defense attorney as soon as you can during the investigation process, you will be able to ensure that your side of the story is told fairly, completely, and accurately, without worrying about incriminating yourself further. Here at Remington & Dixon, we want to make sure you’re heard.
How Nurses in NC Could be Penalized without Charges
Even before you are charged for any kind of misconduct formally, any investigation or accusation around you will likely have a negative impact on your reputation as a nurse, and on your options for future employment as a nurse. With these ideas in mind, your nursing license could be flagged by the North Carolina Board of Nurses, so that potential employers are aware of the ongoing investigation and allegations against you. You may also be named on their website.
Since the stakes involved couldn’t be higher, from the moment you initially learn that you have been accused of misconduct, we urge you to contact Remington & Dixon in Charlotte, NC right away and hire a nursing license defense lawyer, so that we can begin fighting to preserve your career and your reputation from day one.
Get a Nursing License Defense Consultation with Remington & Dixon of Charlotte, NC
By serving North Carolina as a nursing professional or another member of the healthcare industry, you have worked untold hours to earn the privileges you enjoy today. Any accusation of professional misconduct against you needs to be taken quite seriously, and it is your right and imperative duty as a nursing professional to defend yourself to protect your livelihood, your position, and your reputation as a nurse.
There are many attorneys, but not all of them have dealt with the board before. It would help if you had a lawyer that has experience handling nursing cases. We have experience successfully representing nurses and fighting for their licenses. If you could potentially face disciplinary action or lose your license, you need help. Contact our office today to schedule an appointment.
Don’t allow your future as a nurse to fall prey to a mishandled misconduct case. Contact Remington & Dixon of Charlotte, NC online, or call our attorneys and counselors at 704-247-7110 to schedule a consultation with a professional license defense attorney in North Carolina. Discuss the facts of your case with us before you speak to anyone else, and let us go to work to protect your nursing license in North Carolina.
