If your nursing license is in jeopardy due to your being arrested or otherwise accused of unethical activities, you need to take swift action. This is not the time to hang back and hope it blows over. It won’t.
Your livelihood may be threatened by fallacious or specious rumors spread by disgruntled coworkers, angry patients, jilted lovers or others with an ax to grind. Meanwhile, your career as a respected registered nurse hangs in the balance.
If you are potentially facing license suspension or revocation, take the following steps immediately:
1. Accept that the Board of Nursing is not your friend
The board has the power to revoke your right to earn a living as a nurse. Its members are a disciplinary body with a mission to protect the practice of nursing. Keep this foremost in your mind.2. Be proactive
You have the power to direct the narrative, so don’t surrender this and wind up playing defense. Face it — if you were arrested on a drug charge or a DUI, it’s going to be out there.
Inform your supervisor as soon as you can conceivably do so, but not before devising a plan of corrective action. In cases of substance abuse, this should always include rehab.
3. Fix the problem
Maybe your documentation has been lax or downright abysmal. Take the necessary steps to correct the matter and ensure that this is never a problem in the future.
4. Don’t go it alone
When something as vital as your nursing license is at stake, you need experienced legal counsel representing you at this juncture to give your the advice and tools you need to defend yourself and your right to practice nursing.