As a licensed professional, you’re dedicated to providing quality services to your clients. You’re also committed to following a code of professional ethics. Behaving ethically in your practice is the right thing to do, but it can also benefit you when you least expect it to — like when your professional license is at risk.
Do you have a long history as an ethical medical provider, teacher, accountant, or other licensed professional? If so, that history may ultimately play a major role in your license defense.
When Ethical Issues Lead to Licensing Issues
Not all license investigations are triggered by ethics violations, but many are. Whenever a licensed professional behaves unethically, it reflects negatively on others in the field. As a result, licensing boards often impose strict penalties on professionals who have violated their professional code of ethics in some way.
These are some of the ethical violations that commonly lead to license investigations, suspensions, and revocations:
Failures to meet the standard of care
- Conflicts of interest
- Breaches of confidentiality
- Inappropriate relationships with patients, clients, or students
- Fraud
- Discrimination
- Substance abused
Some ethical violations may land you in deeper trouble than others. For instance, while any ethics violation will generally run against licensing regulations, some violations will break the law as well.
One example is phantom billing, which is when medical providers charge patients for services they never received. This is a common way for doctors to commit medical fraud. Because the patient isn’t the one paying the bill, they often don’t even know the doctor’s office is overbilling.
This is obviously unethical, but it also involves defrauding a government agency, which is an illegal act. In California, medical professionals convicted of medical fraud may face up to five years in jail, as well as tens of thousands of dollars in fines.
How Can Professional Ethics Play a Role in Your Defense?
If your license is in jeopardy, the first thing you should do is contact an attorney whose practice is focused on professional license defense. Your attorney will be able to build a defense that can be used in situations like these:
- Licensing board investigations
- Formal disciplinary action
- License suspension
- License denials
- Petitions for license reinstatement
However, your attorney can’t simply spin a stellar defense out of thin air. The strategies they choose are based, at least in part, on your record as a professional.
If you have a strong reputation as a person who upholds professional ethics, that may be an effective counterweight to the
alleged ethical violation currently putting your license at risk. In contrast, if you’ve been known to behave unethically in the past, that history can substantially weaken your defense.
If the current violation is just the latest in a long line of ethical transgressions, even the strongest license defense may not be enough. No matter what your attorney says, a licensing board (or other investigative body) may still assert that the latest violation only confirms your pattern of ethical behavior.
Ethics-Based Defense: An Example
To truly understand just how much a pattern of following professional ethics can strengthen your license defense, consider the following example scenarios:
Scenario 1
Dr. Smith is a skilled physician, but he frequently comes into work while under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or both. He primarily works with younger doctors who are afraid to report him. However, one of them eventually decides that enough is enough and reports him to the licensing board.
Scenario 2
Dr. Adams is a physician who, unbeknownst to her colleagues, has struggled with an alcohol use disorder for a number of years. Historically, she has been able to make sure she is sober when she comes to work so she can still deliver the care her patients deserve.
However, one day, Dr. Adams doesn’t sober up in time for work. She arrives at the practice and starts getting ready for the day when she realizes she’s still under the influence. She decides to leave before seeing any patients. However, a colleague sees her come in, notices that she seems slightly drunk, and reports her.
In these two cases, the basic ethical issue is the same: a medical provider came into work while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. However, a closer look shows that there are several ethics-based circumstances in Dr. Adams’s case that her attorney could use to build a strong defense:
- Aside from the day she was reported, Dr. Adams has not been known to come to work under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
- She did not see any patients while under the influence.
- Once she realized her mistake, she took the initiative to remove herself from the situation.
There are no guarantees when it comes to licensing issues. However, it’s reasonable to assume that the medical licensing board would likely be more lenient on Dr. Adams than Dr. Smith.
What Not to Do if You’re Facing Investigation
When it comes to your license defense, your past history of ethical behavior matters, but so do the choices you make as soon as you learn you’re being investigated. Make sure you avoid these three common reactions:
- Trying to contact the person who filed a complaint
- Contacting the licensing board without taking time to think
- Complaining about the situation to coworkers
Each of these actions can harm your case. Even if you just want to understand the situation, trying to contact the person who filed a complaint can be construed as intimidation, which is another ethics violation.
Is Your License at Risk?
If you’re facing an investigation or are otherwise at risk of losing your professional license, there’s a lot at stake — your career, your reputation, your finances, and more. It can be hard to know what to do.
That’s where S J Harris Law comes in. Mr. Harris focuses his practice on license defense, and he has represented countless doctors, nurses, accountants, funeral directors, contractors, and other professionals. If you need a licensed defense attorney you can count on, get in touch to set up a consultation today.
