In Texas, the government has created a special agency that has the jurisdiction to handle controversies and cases involving the nursing profession. This tribunal is called the Texas Board of Nursing (BON). Every RN or LVN subjected to a disciplinary proceeding or administrative case before the Board is given an opportunity to be heard and defend himself from all accusations. Thus every nurse with a pending case before the Texas Board of Nursing (BON) is encouraged to hire a good nurse attorney.
At the time of the initial incident, she was employed as an RN at a hospital in Austin, Texas, and had been in that position for two (2) months.
On or about April 5, 2020, through April 6, 2020, while employed as an RN at a hospital in Austin, Texas, RN was accused of the following:
1. RN withdrew lorazepam from the medication dispensing system for a patient and failed to appropriately waste the unused portion of the medication. RN’s conduct was likely to deceive the hospital pharmacy and placed them in violation of Chapter 481 of the Texas Health and Safety Code (Controlled Substances Act).
2. RN failed to document an assessment and/or note that the above-mentioned patient was experiencing agitation to justify the reason for the administration of as needed lorazepam to the patient. RN’s conduct was likely to injure the patient in that subsequent caregivers did not have accurate and complete information on which to base their decisions for further care.
In response to the above incidents, RN states that she wasted all medications, but during the time at hand, it was busier than usual and there was not always another nurse at the nurse’s station to witness a waste of medication. Furthermore, RN states that she documented an assessment of the patient where she indicated that the patient’s mood and behavior was irritable.
The above actions constitute grounds for disciplinary action in accordance with Section 301.452(b)(10)&(13), Texas Occupations Code, and is a violation of 22 TEX. ADMIN. CODE §217.11(1)(A),(1)(B),(1)(C),(1)(D)&(3)(A) and 22 TEX. ADMIN. CODE §217.12(1)(A),(1)(B),(1)(C),(4),(10)(C),(10)(D)&(11)(B).
Unfortunately, the Texas Board of Nursing found her guilty of her deeds. Her RN license was subjected to disciplinary action. She did not hire a skilled Texas BON attorney to fully defend her case which led to this decision by the Texas Board of Nursing.
Do you have questions about the Texas Board of Nursing disciplinary process? Contact The Law Office of Texas Nurse Attorney Yong J. An for a confidential consultation by calling or texting 24/7 at (832) 428-5679. Texas Nurse Attorney Yong J. An is an experienced nurse attorney who represented more than 200 nurse cases for RNs and LVNs for the past 16 years.
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