Physical therapists can do a lot of good — they help people recover from a variety of injuries and assist others in getting their lives back on track.
Unfortunately, therapists can sometimes find themselves in hot water with their licensing board over alleged failures to adhere to the standards of their profession. While these types of inquiries and investigations don’t always lead to the loss of license, it could happen.
Here are some of the reasons why a physical therapist might have have to defend their license against suspension or revocation:
- Allegations of sexual misconduct. Any type of sexual misconduct can result in the loss of license. Since there is so much gray area with regard to what is and is not appropriate when it comes to touching, it’s important to act with caution at all times.
- Alleged substance abuse. It’s easy to believe that what you do outside of work is your business, but this isn’t always the case for physical therapists. The abuse of drugs or alcohol can result in the loss of a professional license.
- Accusations of patient abuse. This can come into play with any patient, but is most common among elderly individuals. For example, there are situations in which fractures have been the direct result of an abusive physical therapist.
- Alleged medication violations. Physical therapists must understand what they are and are not allowed to do with regard to prescribing drugs to patients.
- Poor documentation. This is often overlooked, but it can lead to a loss of license. Every physical therapist must understand the importance of accurate and timely documentation.
A physical therapist can do a lot of good, but only if he or she knows what they are permitted to do and avoids situations that could cause any type of harm.
It is not uncommon for a physical therapist to be concerned about losing their license, despite the fact that they didn’t do anything wrong. If you find yourself in this position, you need to understand why you are in this situation and the steps you can take to defend yourself.
The professional license defense strategy that you use can be the difference between keeping and losing your license.