Ed Clark has extensive experience defending nurses from Complaints made to the Kentucky Board of Nursing. A nurse should take prompt and proper action when a Complaint has been filed. Even frivolous Complaints should be treated seriously given the danger that they pose to a nurse’s livelihood. We can help you evaluate any Nursing Board Complaints against you and determine whether it can be dismissed.

When a complaint is entered against a nurse

When there is a Complaint or evidence of a possible violation of the Kentucky Nursing Laws, the nurse is placed under investigation. The nurse is sent a Notice of Complaint letter, a copy of the Complaint, and a Response form to complete. If you receive a Notice of Complaint letter, please contact us immediately at (859) 219-1280. Our experience in preparing Responses to the Board of Nursing can be of great value in your license defense.

Your Response should be submitted to the Board within thirty (30) days of your receipt of the Notice of Complaint letter. After the Board receives your Response, you will be notified that an investigator has been assigned to your case.

An investigative meeting will be scheduled between the nurse, the nurse’s attorney, and the investigative staff at the Board office. Following the investigation, the case may be presented to the Kentucky Board of Nursing’s Credentials Review Panel. If it is determined that a violation of the nursing law occurred, a proposed settlement is offered to the nurse in the form of an Agreed Order or Consent Decree. If accepted, the proposed settlement will be forwarded to the Board’s Executive Director for approval on behalf of the full Board.

When the nurse does not accept the settlement, the Kentucky Board of Nursing’s prosecuting attorney will prepare the Notice of Charges and Notice of Intent to Request a Hearing. This Notice will formally charge the nurse with violations of the Kentucky nursing laws. The nurse must submit an answer to the charges, or a default judgment may be entered against the nurse. In a default judgment, the nurse may be found guilty of the charges and forfeit the right to a hearing.

To avoid a default judgment, an answer must be submitted. A prehearing conference is then scheduled between the nurse, the nurse’s attorney, the investigator, the prosecuting attorney, and the hearing officer. After the date for the hearing has been set, the hearing officer may issue subpoenas for witnesses to testify. Hearings are open to the public and are conducted with a court stenographer present.

Within sixty days following the receipt of the transcript from the hearing, the hearing officer drafts and mails the proposed decision to the nurse and the nurse’s attorney. The nurse has fifteen days to file a written response to the decision with objections. The decision and objections go to the full Board at the next scheduled Board meeting, where they are reviewed in a closed session. A vote is then taken in an open session. The decision becomes final when it is signed and filed. The decision may be appealed to the Jefferson Circuit Court, where the presiding judge reviews the transcript and pleadings and issues a ruling.

Complaints against a nurse can be resolved in a variety of ways. The most severe action is the revocation of the nurse’s ability to practice nursing in the state of Kentucky. Civil fines may also be administered.

Expungement

Disciplinary actions taken against a nurse can, in some circumstances, be expunged. The Board determines under KRS 314.131(9) and 201 KAR 20:410 what records may be expunged. An expungement has the effect of sealing the nurse’s record, and the proceedings to which the record refers is deemed never to have occurred.

If you are a nurse dealing with nursing board complaints filed against you, we’d like to help. Please call Clark Law Office at (859) 219-1280. We proudly serve Lexington, KY and the surrounding areas in Central Kentucky.