When you’re a physician, receiving a notice that you’re under investigation by the medical board can feel like the worst kind of intrusion on your life and your practice. If you’ve received such a letter, however, how you choose to handle the situation can ultimately determine the trajectory for your entire career.
These are the top mistakes you need to avoid at your hearing with the medical board:
1. Misunderstanding the board’s concern
The most serious concerns the board may have are probably not about the quality of care that you provide but about your ethics and professional conduct. Not every patient is going to walk away from treatment satisfied — and medical boards know that. However, you can end up in trouble because you breached a patient’s confidentiality, engaged in inappropriate conduct, failed to obtain informed consent or did something that could be consider damaging to the profession’s reputation as a whole.
2. Failing to promptly respond
If you delay dealing with the inquiry, the medical board will likely take that as a sign that you don’t take the issue as seriously as they do. That is never the impression you want to give. For the medical board, the public’s perception of the profession is a big concern. Therefore, you need to get a response out to the medical board as quickly as possible.
3. Providing inadequate records
If the medical board needs to see documentation of what happened, make sure that you provide what they need. However, don’t dump an unnecessary load on them in your frustration. Take the time to lay your case out through the documentation you have in an orderly fashion because that will reflect well on your professionalism.
4. Not having representation
When your professional reputation and career are at stake, don’t try to handle the matter on your own. Your emotional investment can cloud your judgment and make your outcome less certain. Our office can help you better understand the possible outcomes of your case and what you can do to mitigate the fallout of the inquiry on your life.