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10 Ways to Lose Your Nursing License
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3. Diversion of Drugs
Slipping yourself, or someone you know, drugs on the side is a serious offense, punishable by revocation of your license and jail time. If your aging father has taken all of his pain meds, leave it to his doctors to prescribe more or up his dosage. It’s not worth risking your career to boost someone else’s addiction, no matter who it is.
Getting your license revoked is the least of your worries in this case. Diverting drugs with intention to sell, or actually selling prescription drugs, can get you thrown in jail for many years. Even if you are strapped for cash, don’t do it!
4. Providing a False Copy of License
Although rare, this does occur. Nurses who have a suspended license may provide an employer with a fake license, thinking that once their suspension is up it won’t matter. It does matter, though – especially if your employer finds out. The license you may have will be revoked, or, if you don’t have a license, you will not be allowed to ever apply for a license.
Would You Survive Your 1st Year as a Nurse?
5. Mail Fraud
Mail fraud encompasses many felonies. Broadly speaking, mail fraud involves using the postal service to unlawfully obtain money or valuables, impersonate someone other than yourself, or stealing someone else’s mail. There are many kind of mail fraud including work-from-home scams, solicitation disguised as an invoice, and online auction fraud. Mail fraud may not be directly related to nursing, but it can directly affect your career if you are convicted. Mail fraud is yet another way you can lose your license.
6. Falsifying Patient Records
Maybe you had been working 12 hours and were too tired to complete that patient record. Maybe you gave your patient a little extra morphine to help him get through the night, but you didn’t record it. Whatever the case, falsifying patient records is grounds for license revocation. In the best-case scenario, your falsified record gets you in trouble, but doesn’t affect anyone else. Worst-case scenario? Something happens to your patient.
7. Unprofessional Conduct
This broad term allows state boards to be subjective in judging why a nurse might get his license revoked. “Unprofessional conduct” can range from using inappropriate language around colleagues and patients to having an affair with a superior. Although it seems obvious, many nurses fail to understand why their conduct may be called into question. The level of professionalism in the nursing field is of the utmost importance, and employers won’t take kindly to those few nurses who exhibit inappropriate behavior of any sort. First-time offenders may only be reprimanded or suspended temporarily, but keep it up and you may be out of a job before you know it.
opal1973
almost 5 years ago
2 comments
Ok I agree with 9 out of 10 on this one. Really, we should NOT have our licenses revoked for what we do when not at work. I mean, I know of a Doctor who was caught having sex on the endoscopy table and didn't get fired. Oh he was found there while his wife was in labor in another location. Yet here is a nurse who loses her license for doing something completely legal on her own time. It's true that we should hold ourselves to a higher standard. There's a whole lot of should's in life though. Are we not allowed to be happy at home because it may look bad to the board? What if she had worn a mask? Would it count then? Are we being true to oursleves in either case? There are a lot of people who keep nurses down with their prudential thinking. Perhaps that is why we don't get the respect we deserve, we don't demand it. We allow other people define who we are. Personally, I think she should sue the board for discrimination. It's not as if she was hosting a porn site in a patient's room.
Account Removed
almost 5 years ago
may be she was considering it patient teaching...oh alright ...no.
Account Removed
almost 5 years ago
okay it was unprofessional conduct and we should all be held accountable to our professional practice if we are on the clock or not. Nursing is not a job it defines who we are... or at least it should.
Account Removed
almost 5 years ago
I wonder if she "played doctor"?
no really...
Corrine
almost 5 years ago
2 comments
I think these areas are very important and should be taken seriously. Many persons including nurses believ that they are ONLY nurses at work; after there shift ends they are no longer nurses, its like they have totally different lifes, they talk whatever and do whatever. As nurses, we need to take responsibility for our actions; if we have a problem seek help; before we can take care of others, we need to take care of ourselves.
tjbart
almost 5 years ago
16 comments
I feel that nurses and the nursing profession are not respected enough by the healthcare industry, patients, and even other nurses themselves. Nurses who steal drugs, abuse patients, break the law, etc. are giving nurses a bad name and adding to the disrespect of the profession. I entered into nursing with high hopes and pride in being a nurse. I soon found out what nursing is really all about. We are used and abused by the healthcare industry. They expect one nurse to do the work of three and to do everything perfectly including keeping the patient safe at all times! One person can only do so much and that is when mistakes happen. This is why I'm going back to working as an office nurse. Nurses who practice neglectfully in any way knowingly should have their license revoked or they should not have entered into the nursing profession to begin with!!!
kasdetroit
almost 5 years ago
4 comments
nursing is a challenging, rewarding and stressful career. nurses using drugs is a reality of life in this day and age. i agree what you do on your own time is your business until you come to work impaired, under the influence and the LAW gets involved, then you are in a different leauge. Addiction is a disease and addicts in denial are the worst . But there are programs to protect nurses when they make mistakes before the board gets involved
Crimsonandclover_85
almost 5 years ago
58 comments
Thats unfreakin' believeable...what does this have to do with the kind of Nurse that she is!!! Whatever someone chooses to do in their OWN time is their business not the Nursing Boards!
RochelleRN
almost 5 years ago
6 comments
The issue of patient neglect is what made me leave nursing home/geriatric nursing. I could not stand to see the patients not being taken care of. The quality of nursing care in nursing homes is awful. Unfortunately, working with the elderly is my favorite of all the positions I have held. I left geriatrics and got into HIV/AIDS care, working for the county clinic that was established for outpatient HIV/AIDS care. I saw mistreatment of patients there as well. I agree that a lot of times nurses are overworked and have to assume the responsibility of administratioin as well as the nurse's aides....when you have worked long hours and have to do it all sometimes things can fall between the cracks. I agree that the nursing facility should be liable for some of it. But there are a lot of nurses that are just working to get a paycheck and don't do what is required to ensure quality of care for patients. And I think this is wrong. There is also a lot of drug stealing going on in the nursing home and this is a very real problem that affects the patient as well as othe nurses working with a nurse that does this. If you've ever been through a FBI investigation for drugs that were stolen, you know that it is one of the most horrifying things to have to go through. This article was enlightening...I hope other nurses take it to heart....I know I did.
hattieryan
almost 5 years ago
14 comments
As a nurse of 15 years, I have seen many of the above violations occur and how sad it is to think that these are our "peers" and we are considered professionals. Nurses, stay vigilant and remember that it could be us or our family who is the patient that is affected by one of these violations.
oldschool
almost 5 years ago
2 comments
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raymoss1
almost 5 years ago
220 comments
What if the nurse did not harm the patient on purpose because she/he in overworked. Did not have a break on a 16 hour shift. Was given an unsafe, unfair assignment. Expected not only to do her job, but the supervisors, the nursing aides and what ever job is thrown at them. Why is the nurse always made the scapegoat? Should't the facility be disaplined because they do not have adequit staffing, do not give the staff a decent break. No the nurse is left to take the fall. If the facilities administration had to face charges and finally be accountable for their actions. Maybe nurses would not be over stressed, over worked, hungry, thirsty or did not get to use the bathroom would not be the ONLY ONE facing the music. Yes, there are unsafe nurses out there. However, many mistakes are made due to overwork and no back up from the adminisration.
Account Removed
almost 5 years ago
The worst thing a nurse could do is still meds from their patients. Especially from patients that can't communicate at all.
dennis530
almost 5 years ago
14 comments
I think these are obvious no no's. It's scary to think that there are people out there in the healthcare field still continue to do these things.
twinthang
almost 5 years ago
30 comments
This article was very helpful. I didn't know there were so many ways to lose your license. This gives you something to think about.