Will a nurse lose his or her job for substance abuse?

Posted on by Paul Walker, Esq.

Receiving a letter from the Office of Professional Discipline is never a situation a medical professional wants to be in. When you get a letter, it means that someone has submitted a complaint about you to the board and that you will be investigated as a result of that complaint. If the investigation determines that you have committed serious violations of medical ethics, you may lose your nursing license.

If you received a complaint regarding substance abuse issues, there are many steps that you can take to try and prevent your license from being revoked. The first thing you should do is to hire an experienced medical defense attorney who can provide you with strong legal representation. They will take a look at the specifics of your case and determine what needs to be done to fix the problem. If it is an instance of using drugs, you will have to be upfront about any substance abuse issues that you may have. This is not an easy task for many people. The most important thing is that you get professional help as soon as possible. Obtaining the necessary assistance can be the difference between keeping the nursing license you worked so hard to obtain. It is important that you put yourself into a drug rehabilitation program to prove to the board that you are working towards a solution to the substance abuse issues.

You do not automatically get to keep your license just because you went to rehab. That’s not how it works. You have to submit to random drug testing after the rehabilitation program has been complete.  It will take some time for you to prove to the Office of Professional Discipline that you have overcome any substance abuse issues because they know that it doesn’t happen over night and that this is something you will really have to work towards.

If you have received a letter from the OPD regarding substance abuse issues, it is important that you speak with an experienced medical defense attorney who can assist you.

If you require a medical law attorney for your legal matters, call Paul E. Walker, an experienced New York City OPMC & OPD Lawyer. Please contact the Walker Medical Law firm to set up a free initial consultation.