As a nurse, you are the frontline of patient care. You are the one that your patient and their family are going to see the most, and you are the one that is going to do the majority of their medical care, answer their questions, calm their worries, and watch out for their wellbeing. While most of your patients are going to be able to leave your care as healthy as possible and with no complaints, occasionally, you are going to have patients or families who are going to be very upset with you, for whatever reason, and who are going to want to file a complaint with the licensing board against you. If that happens, what should you do?

Contact Your Malpractice Insurance Carrier

Before you do anything, you are going to want to contact your malpractice insurance carrier. You will need to alert them to the fact that the licensing board is investigating a complaint against you. They may have additional resources that you can take advantage of as well as possibly negotiating on your behalf if it comes to the point of a settlement. 

Contact an Attorney

You don't want to talk to just any lawyer though, you want to talk to one who specializes in this kind of law. They will be able to help you handle the investigation well and to do everything that you need to do in order to get through the investigation quickly. If you aren't sure who to talk to, you can consult with your union, if you are a member of one, or any professional organizations that you may be a member of. Your insurance company may also have recommendations as to who you could work with. When you find your lawyer, make sure that you answer all their questions as clearly and plainly as possible, even if the questions feel like they are intrusive or uncomfortable. Your lawyer is going to need to know what your thinking was when you were treating the patient in the complaint and why you did one thing over another. Your attorney may ask the same question a number of ways, just to make sure that they are getting the same answer or a clearer answer. 

If you are under investigation by the licensing board, then you need to do everything you can to protect yourself and make sure that you are going to come out of the investigation in good shape.  For more help, schedule a nursing licensing board investigation consultation with a professional.