An Administrative Complaint issued by the Florida Department of Health (DOH) threatens your career, your livelihood, and your reputation. That’s why you need an experienced medical license defense attorney to handle your case. Below are some common violations Lauren Leikam has defended licenses for:
An Administrative Complaint issued by the Florida Department of Health (DOH) threatens your career, your livelihood, and your reputation. If you receive an Administrative Complaint, the first thing you should do is consult an experienced medical licensing attorney. Taking immediate action is crucial as there are critical deadlines your must meet to preserve your rights.
Let’s back up. If you receive an Administrative Complaint, it means that the Department of Health has completed an investigation of you for the alleged offenses. During this process, you had the opportunity to provide a response to the allegations and, if you requested it, to review the Department’s investigative file.
Next, the Department’s investigative file was reviewed by a prosecutor in the Department’s Prosecution Services Unit. He or she decided to recommend your case to a Probable Cause Panel as an Administrative Complaint. The Probable Cause Panel, made up of two or three members of the board that governs your license, determined that probable cause existed to support the alleged violations and approved the filing of the Administrative Complaint against you. Once filed, the Administrative Complaint became public. For more information on the DOH investigation and disciplinary process click here.
So where do you go from here? When you receive an Administrative Complaint, it will include an Election of Rights form. You have 21 days from the date you receive the Administrative Complaint to return the Election of Rights form to the Department, or you will waive your rights.
You can resolve your Administrative Complaint in one of the following ways:
Formal Hearing: You have the option of having a formal hearing before the Division of Administrative Hearings (DOAH) to dispute the facts alleged in the administrative complaint. Formal hearings are full trials before an administrative law judge.
Informal Hearing: You have the option of having an informal hearing before the respective Board where you admit the facts alleged in the administrative complaint but present mitigating evidence only. The Board can deviate from the disciplinary guidelines if there are mitigating circumstances present.
Settlement: You can also settle your case. In a settlement, you are neither admitting nor denying the facts in the administrative complaint, however it is still considered disciplinary action. Settlement offers can require the payment of costs and fines, probation, evaluations, participation in the Intervention Project for Nurses/Professionals Resource Network (IPN/PRN), continuing education, and other license restrictions.
You should consult an experienced medical licensing attorney before making your election and/or choosing how to resolve your case. As an experienced medical licensing defense attorney and former prosecutor for the Department of Health, Lauren A. Leikam has the experience you need to protect your license. Schedule a free consultation with Lauren today!
