C. Disciplinary Proceedings and Sanctions (1) If the Board of Nursing determines that further action is warranted, the Board may request an informal conference with the licensee. McClellan v. Bd. I can't give you specifics. Ms. Miller has only taken issue with the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the Board's conclusion that she was guilty of a crime. Generally for patient abandonment to occur, the nurse must: Click here for Rules and Regulations pertaining to the Tennessee Board of Nursing, Click here for Rules related to Drug Testing and Reporting, Enhanced Nurse Licensure Compact Final Rules Effective January 19, 2018, Tennessee Department of Health Publications. Invoking its authority to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of Tennessee, the Board thereafter suspended Ms. Miller's nursing license pending a psychological examination arranged through Tennessee Peer Assistance and directed that the results of this evaluation be forwarded to its application committee for further recommendations regarding the suspension of Ms. Miller's license. 1000-2-.13(1)(c). Many complaints (and threats to report) are employment issues. A position statement is a scope of practice determination made by the Bo ard, as to § 40-35-313(a). It is not patient abandonment for nurses to leave at the end of their shift. For its part, the Board asserts that its punitive and remedial actions with regard to Ms. Miller are carefully calibrated and entirely supported by the evidence. Ct. App. The only financial penalty imposed by the Board was the $1,000 penalty for patient abandonment. We have determined that the record contains substantial and material evidence that the nurse abandoned her patients and that the Board did not act arbitrarily by requiring the nurse to pay a $1,000 civil penalty. The Board conducted a contested case hearing on June 27, 2003. § 63-7-115(a)(1)(B). The Division's original notice of charges requested that two $500 civil penalties be assessed against Ms. Miller for her guilty pleas and convictions for vandalism and resisting arrest. 2. § 63-7-115(a)(1)(B). See Tenn.Code Ann. 1000-1-.04. Abandonment NDAC 54-01-03-01 defines “abandonment” as accepting the client assignment and disengaging the nurse and client relationship without giving notice to a qualified person. of Equalization, 682 S.W.2d 196, 199 (Tenn.1984);  Papachristou v. Univ. Ms. Miller was working for the Starmed Staffing Group (“Starmed”), and, in January 2002, she had been contracted for thirteen weeks to the Cookeville Regional Medical Center. In addition, Cookeville Regional Medical Center reported Ms. Miller to the Tennessee Board of Nursing (“Board”). While the letter proves Ms. Miller has not mastered the fine points of the rules of grammar and spelling, the mere length, organization, and content of the letter provided insufficient basis for concluding that Ms. Miller is unfit to practice nursing. In order to assist licensees and employers, the Board Her arrest, incarceration, and conviction affected Ms. Miller significantly. § 63-7-115(a)(1)(B) (2004) and had engaged in unprofessional conduct by abandoning or neglecting a patient requiring nursing care in violation of Tenn.Code Ann. It might be helpful to explore the definition of patient abandonment, how it applies to nursing practice, and considerations to avoid such an allegation. Ms. Miller was informed of this policy, but she chose to ignore it. This stress did interfere with work in the past and the Board wants to make sure that doesn't happen again. Judicial review of decisions by administrative agencies following contested case hearings is governed by the Tennessee Uniform Administrative Procedures Act. As defined in the Board's rules, patient abandonment occurs when a nurse abandons or neglects a patient requiring nursing care. Pizzillo v. Pizzillo, 884 S.W.2d 749, 754 (Tenn.Ct.App.1994). Jones v. Greene, 946 S.W.2d 817, 828 (Tenn.Ct.App.1996). The Board, following specific notice requirements and hearings, adopts rules. She has not challenged this statutory ground for vagueness or overbreadth, and she has not raised any due process challenges to the statute. 1. Meetings are open to the public. 1000-1-.13(1)(c). Tennessee Board of Nursing • 665 Mainstream Drive • Nashville, TN 37243 Tel: 615-532-5166 • Fax: 615-741-7899 • tn.gov/health 6 * No new offers of admissions may be extended - effective immediately. During the present crisis, phone lines may be very busy. The Division argues for the first time in its petition for rehearing that a “long, rambling letter” written by Ms. Miller provides ample evidence that she is sufficiently psychologically impaired to be suspended from nursing. Instead, the Board noted that. The Board also asserts that it has the authority to impose “sanctions that go beyond any sanctions requested by the Division.”. ABANDONMENT OF PATIENTS . Tenn.Code Ann. Practice Information Abandonment in Nursing. Microsoft Edge. However, in light of the absence of any evidence or factual findings regarding Ms. Miller's current psychological condition, we have concluded that the Board acted arbitrarily and capriciously by immediately suspending her license as part of this disciplinary proceeding. However, it did not proceed with this charge at the administrative hearing and thus presented no evidence of any sort regarding Ms. Miller's psychological fitness to practice nursing. Learn more about FindLaw’s newsletters, including our terms of use and privacy policy. Begin typing to search, use arrow keys to navigate, use enter to select. The nurse appealed. Patient abandonment is a form of medical malpractice that occurs when a physician terminates the doctor-patient relationship without reasonable notice or a reasonable excuse, and fails to provide the patient with an opportunity to find a qualified replacement care provider. After receiving a report that a registered nurse left her patients in a hospital's medical/surgical unit before the end of her shift, the Tennessee Board of Nursing commenced a contested case proceeding to discipline the nurse. 63-7 (Nursing). This oversight could potentially pose a problem for the Division because, based on the Board's rule, patient abandonment cannot occur unless the patient “requires care.”   However, Ms. Miller cured the deficiency in the Division's evidence when she stated that her patients would have required the administration of medications and the prenatal patient required monitoring of her fetal heart tones between the time she left the hospital and the end of her shift. The Board requests this Court to revisit the conclusion in our September 26, 2007 opinion that is lacked authority to suspend Ms. Miller's nursing license pending a psychological evaluation in the absence of an competent evidence that Ms. Miller was psychologically impaired. Based on our examination of the Division's notice of charges, we concluded in our September 26, 2007 opinion that the notice did not fairly appraise Ms. Miller that the Division was seeking either the revocation or the suspension of her nursing license. of Tenn., 29 S.W.3d 487, 490 (Tenn.Ct.App.2000). Gluck v. Civil Serv. 63-1 (Division of Health Related Boards) and T.C.A. However, the observations of a regulatory board, even a board made up of persons with relevant expertise, cannot replace competent evidence. A quorum of six members is required to conduct business. She got into a disagreement with the police officer to whom she was reporting these thefts. We have also concluded, however, that the Board acted arbitrarily and capriciously by ordering the immediate suspension of Ms. Miller's nursing license pending a psychological evaluation. The Division of Health Related Boards made that strategic decision to address its concerns regarding Ms. Miller's psychological condition in the context of a disciplinary hearing. While Ms. Miller conceded that she pled guilty to vandalism and resisting arrest, she insists that the Board could not consider either of these offenses because her record was expunged following the successful completion of her probation. She testified later that, as she left, she was not concerned about any of her patients, except for the prenatal patient whose fetal heart tones had not been monitored before she left. A thorough understanding of expectations and requirements in this regard is central to ensuring the best interests of patients and practitioners alike. R. & Regs. § 63-7-115(d) and Tenn. Comp. The effect of expunging the records of a criminal charge is to restore the person to the position he or she occupied prior to the arrest or charge. We may not reverse an administrative decision supported by substantial and material evidence solely because the evidence could also support another result. Board Rule 217.11, Standards of Nursing Practice is the heart of nursing practice. Jean Louise Miller worked as a licensed practical nurse for five years before she completed nursing school and became licensed as a registered nurse in Pennsylvania in 1988. Because of the uniqueness of each nursing situation, the following is a general framework the Board of Nursing utilizes when investigating the allegation of Abandonment. The record also contains a revised “position statement” issued by the Board in December 2002 drawing a distinction between patient abandonment and “employment abandonment.”   This document states: For patient abandonment to occur, the nurse must: a) Have first accepted the patient assignment, thus establishing a nurse-patient relationship, and then. § 63-7-115(a)(1)(E) (2004) because she was mentally incompetent. R. & Regs. § 40-35-313 (2006). The only remedies specifically requested by the Division were (1) civil penalties linked with specific causes of action and (2) the costs of the proceeding. We certainly do not find that the Board erred by declining to assess a civil penalty against Ms. Miller for committing these two offenses. Procedural due process required a government entity to employ fundamentally fair procedures whenever it acts to deprive a person of a right to or interest in life, liberty, or property. The Tennessee Board of Nursing has filed a petition in accordance with Tenn. R. App. § 63-7-115(a)(1)(B).2  Even though she claimed that her circumstances forced her to plead guilty, Ms. Miller admitted that she pled guilty to vandalism and resisting arrest. Trial and appellate courts use the same standard of review. Even though the Board determined that Ms. Miller was guilty of two crimes, it decided not to require Ms. Miller to pay the civil penalties requested by the Division. § 4-5-322(a)(1) (2005). Solid Waste Disposal Control Bd., 907 S.W.2d 807, 810 (Tenn.1995);  Willamette Indus., Inc. v. Tenn. Assessment Appeals Comm'n, 11 S.W.3d 142, 147 (Tenn.Ct.App.1999). We turn first to the most serious charge against Ms. Miller-patient abandonment. Like the trial court, we affirm the Board's finding that Ms. Miller abandoned her patients and the Board's decision requiring her to pay a $1,000 civil penalty and the costs of the administrative proceeding. In light of its conclusion that the record contained substantial and material evidence that Ms. Miller had abandoned her patients when she left work early, the trial court declined to rule on the issue of whether Ms. Miller was “guilty of a crime” under the nursing statutes. She characterizes herself as a “traveling nurse,” and she has frequently worked for staffing agencies that would find her temporary assignments at different institutions and locations. Internet Explorer 11 is no longer supported. of Comm'rs, 204 Tenn. 298, 305, 319 S.W.2d 481, 484 (1958);  Metropolitan Gov't v. Tenn. We tax the costs of this appeal to the Tennessee Board of Nursing. Ms. Miller has perfected this appeal. There she informed the other four nurses on duty in the med/surg unit that night that she was ill and that she was leaving the hospital to go home. Accordingly, she explained that she “lost a lot of sleep” and was “stressed out” because she was convinced that she would be returned to jail if she was arrested again while on probation. Fuentes v. Shevin, 407 U.S. 67, 80, 92 S.Ct. Both the nurse leader and the caregiver have legal duties in this area. § 63-7-115(a)(1)(E). Stay up-to-date with FindLaw's newsletter for legal professionals. The only evidence in the record regarding Ms. Miller's fitness to practice nursing consisted of three reports prepared in 2003 and 2004 that failed to point to any basis for concluding that Ms. Miller was “mentally incompetent.”. 1400, 1411, 3 L.Ed.2d 1377 (1959); McNiel v. Cooper, 241 S.W.3d 886, 895 (Tenn. Ct. App. She also decided that the other nurses knew that she had been trying to have someone monitor the fetal heart tones of the prenatal patient and that they would follow up on that procedure as well. P. 30 requesting a rehearing in this case. Board of Nursing E-Prescribing Waiver Information and Application T.C.A. 2005). 615-532-5166 local or 1-800-778-4123 nationwide Nursing.Health@tn.gov Tennessee Board of Nursing 665 Mainstream Drive, 2nd Floor Sanifill of Tenn., Inc. v. Tenn. Patient and Employer Abandonment - Frequently Asked Questions & Answers. 63-7 (Nursing). Tenn.Code Ann. Click here to review the Tennessee Code Annotated. Patient abandonment is a term which is often used by health care regulatory agencies, employers of health care personnel, the nursing profession and the consumer. Second- Facilities use this tactic to bully their staff. The email address cannot be subscribed. It asserted that Ms. Miller should be disciplined in accordance with Tenn. Code Ann. Tangential to withdrawing from a case in which treatment has already begun is the refusal to initiate treatment, which many patients also take as an act of abandonment. The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) is a not-for-profit organization whose purpose is to provide an organization through which boards of nursing act and counsel together on matters of common interest and concern affecting the public health, safety and welfare, including the development of licensing examinations in nursing. Ms. Miller left the floor and got on the elevator. § 63-7-115(a)(1)(F) and Tenn. Comp. In its most general terms, procedural due process requires appropriate notice and an opportunity to be heard at a meaningful time and in a meaningful manner. The Texas Board of Nursing will continue normal operations as the State of Texas deals with the COVID-19 outbreak. Following the hearing, the Board ordered the nurse to pay a $1,000 civil penalty and also immediately suspended the nurse's license pending a psychological evaluation. If there is no one to do this and you leave, that is abandonment. Martin v. Sizemore, 78 S.W.3d 249, 269-71 (Tenn.Ct.App.2001) (expert evidence was required to support discipline of an architect for malpractice). She also asserts that the record does not support the Board's conclusion that she was “guilty of a crime.”. But I completed most of my nursing coursework in FL, and I understand it that you can't refuse an assignment or even a patient unless there is someone else who can/will take your place. The Division noted that the Board has the authority to revoke or suspend a license for mental incompetency, but it did not specifically request this punishment.