To become a speech-language pathologist (SLP), audiologist, or hearing aid dispenser, you should complete years of rigorous clinical and academic training focused on studying, diagnosing, and treating hearing loss and hearing disorders. That is why if any person files a complaint with your licensing board, you should take the matter seriously. You cannot afford to lose your livelihood, future, and career; the complaint can result in disciplinary proceedings. The qualified team at San Francisco License Lawyer can give you insights into the allegation and the evidence against you. That way, we can help you prepare adequately to defend your license.
The Duties of a Competent SLP
Also called a speech-language pathologist, a speech therapist is a professional who diagnoses and treats swallowing and communication issues. As an SLP, you will work with adults and children of all ages in clinics, hospitals, and schools.
First, you will check whether your patient can swallow or communicate. If the patient has an issue, you will identify the root cause and develop the most effective treatment plan. You will work with your patient and offer speech therapy. Finally, you will continue to monitor the patient’s progress.
Some of the conditions you will treat include the following:
- Articulation issues
- Cognitive communication disorder
- Language disorders
- Phonological disorders
- Resonance disorders
- Social communication disorders
- Swallowing disorders
- Voice disorders
- Speech impairments
The Duties of an Experienced Audiologist
Hearing is a fundamental sense that allows human beings to maintain connections and relationships with their loved ones, fully engage in community and team activities, and experience life events. An audiologist specializes in diagnosing, managing, and treating balance and hearing disorders.
While you might have various areas of speciality as an audiologist, here are some of your daily duties:
- Examining people with balance issues and hearing loss, among other issues associated with the ears
- Administering hearing assessments and tests, including determining emotional or medical symptoms
- Assessing medical history and reviewing test results
- Fitting your patients for implanted devices and hearing aids
- Offering aura rehabilitation and balance therapy, or tinnitus treatment
- Performing an ear wax removal procedure
- Referring the patient to other medical practitioners for surgical procedures, specific care, or surgery
- Supporting your patients with preventative care, including earplugs and earmuffs
The Duties of a Qualified Hearing Aid Dispenser
As a qualified hearing aid dispenser, you work directly with hearing aids. Here are your duties:
- Performing an audiometric test to measure hearing loss and identify the root cause
- Reviewing your patients’ ability to detect sounds
- Helping patients select the most effective hearing aids
- Maintaining the stock of hearing aid equipment and replacement parts
- Determining the price of hearing aids and billing patients
California Speech-Language Pathology, Audiology, & Hearing Aid Dispensers Board
The primary role of this licensing board is to safeguard public interests and well-being. Everything the licensing board does, including issuing licenses and imposing disciplinary action, is motivated by its primary mandate.
Before the board can issue you a professional license, it must ensure you have the essential training in your field of expertise. For instance, as an SLP, you should be qualified to treat and diagnose various types of speech-related health conditions. A hearing aid dispenser should demonstrate an understanding of different hearing diseases and the hearing aids that can improve patients’ health. In addition, the board should ensure you understand the standards of operation and the rules and regulations governing your profession. You should be willing to comply with these regulations and maintain professionalism to keep your license.
To enforce the set regulations, the board imposes disciplinary measures against those who engage in professional misconduct or are convicted of a crime. Here are allegations that trigger professional investigations and disciplinary proceedings:
- Being drunk with drugs or alcohol while working
- Engaging in fraud, including using fraudulent means to renew or acquire your professional license or committing insurance fraud
- Failing to maintain professionalism with your patients, employers, or colleagues
- Allowing an unlicensed or untrained assistant to work under your supervision
- Offering or asking to pay for a referral
- Demanding or receiving kickbacks to endorse or issue a given piece of equipment or treatment
- Being accused of ordinary negligence, incompetence, or gross negligence when denying or providing services
- Using misleading or false advertisements to acquire clients
- Another law enforcement agency is investigating you
A Summary of What to Expect with the Disciplinary Proceeding
Here are the various stages of the disciplinary process
Serving You with an Accusation
After receiving the complaint, the licensing board will first review the allegation to determine whether it is within its jurisdiction. If the complaint falls within the board’s jurisdiction, the board will send you a formal accusation that outlines the allegation against you.
You should take your service of accusation seriously and hire a qualified defense attorney. The attorney will review the formal accusation and collect evidence to draft a competing notice of defense. Filing the notice of defense within fifteen days preserves your right to an administrative hearing. Failing to send the notice may result in a default judgment against you, leading to license revocation or denial.
In your notice of defense, you can object to the accusation or object that the accusation is ambiguous or uncertain. Finally, ensure the notice includes your signature and mailing address.
The Board will Conduct the Investigations
The board investigators might contact you or request an interview. You should avoid contacting the board without your attorney. Remember, the board is not on your side, and the investigators could use your statements against you.
After the investigation has started, the board will start collecting information related to the complaint. It can request you for interviews, records, and materials to help it understand what occurred. During this time, you should collect and organize relevant records for the investigation. The records might alter the narrative of your case defense. Remember, it is your records against the complaint against you, not your words against the complaint.
When organizing the record, do not dispose of or change essential documentation. Even when the document does not paint a good picture of you, it is better to have a document that shows you made an error than to destroy or hide it. Concealing or destroying information can result in severe penalties.
Avoid discussing your case with your loved ones or on social media. While it can be tempting to vent, what you say could be used against you. However, if you talk to your defense attorney, the client-attorney privilege protects your statements, and they cannot be used against you.
Your defense attorney can negotiate with the authority to reach a settlement that eliminates the need for an administrative hearing. The benefits of a settlement include the opportunity to resolve your disciplinary case early, reduced legal stress and costs, and the preservation of your professional license.
Administrative Hearing
If you fail to agree, the case will proceed to an administrative hearing presided over by an administrative law judge. The following will happen during the hearing:
- Presentation of evidence by both parties
- Cross-examination of witnesses
- Live testimonies by oath
The ALJ will then make a proposed decision, which serves as a recommendation to the board. The board can reject, amend, or adopt the recommendation and impose it as your disciplinary action. Common disciplinary actions imposed include probation, license revocation, suspension, and public reprimand.
The disciplinary action the board imposes depends on numerous factors, including whether your conduct harmed your client, your criminal history, the presence of mitigating evidence, the severity of your misconduct, and whether you have previously faced professional discipline.
If you are dissatisfied with the board’s decision, you can file an appeal with the Superior Court.
Common Probation Terms and Conditions
The licensing agency recognizes that the following probation terms are recommendations and that every disciplinary case should be analyzed individually. If there are case facts that justify deviation or omission from the recommendations, the board will request the AJ to advise it accordingly. That way, the agency can better review the proposed decision and make an informed decision based on the case facts.
Here are the standard probation terms:
- You should comply with all laws and regulations, including those governing your practice. You should submit a comprehensive written arrest report to the agency within five days of the arrest.
- You should notify the board of any changes to your mailing or residence address within five days.
- You should tell the board if you leave the state to practice or reside in another state. Your probation will be tolled while you are away.
- You should notify your current or potential employer of your probationary status regarding your license. You should inform your potential employer before accepting the employment. You should also request your employer to submit quarterly declarations to your licensing board. The declarations should include your performance evaluations.
- During your probation duration, you must not work in an approved or accredited school of audiology
- You should enroll and complete coursework significantly related to your misconduct. Within sixty days of the board’s decision, you should submit a plan to adhere to the requirement. The board must then approve your plan before you enroll in your course of study.
- You should undergo a psychological or psychiatric evaluation to determine your current emotional, psychological, and mental fitness to perform your professional duties safely.
- If your violation is alcohol or substance abuse related, you should start attending a chemical dependency group like Alcoholics Anonymous within five days of the board’s decision. You should submit your attendance report to the board quarterly.
Mistakes to Avoid after Learning the Board Has Received a Complaint against You
Discovering a person has filed a complaint with the board can be devastating and intimidating. Disciplinary measures can jeopardize your career and professional license. Failure to handle the complaint effectively can result in mistakes that might work against you during the disciplinary hearings. Some of the common mistakes to avoid are as follows:
Failure to Take Your Complaints Seriously
You should take your allegations seriously, even if you believe they are without merit. The board will review the complaint, regardless of who made it or how baseless it may seem.
Ignoring the complaint because you believe the board will side with you or that it will go away on its own is unwise. The truth is that the board will focus on protecting the public and will be zealous if you violate a statute governing your practice.
Lying to the Licensing Board
Even the most qualified professionals make mistakes. However, lying to cover up mistakes would worsen the situation. Also, do not destroy, hide, alter, or forge proof associated with your disciplinary proceedings. If your licensing agency requests evidence and discovers that you destroyed the proof, you could face disciplinary sanctions and charges.
Responding Emotionally and Angrily
Either out of fear or indignation about the impact of a complaint on your practice, your first reaction might be to respond emotionally or angrily. You might be tempted to blame others for getting you into trouble with the licensing board.
Before speaking with your licensing board, relax. Remember that board members know most complaints are filed without merit, and that professionals can be falsely accused, regardless of how ethical or competent you are. On the contrary, the board is tasked with protecting the public and might be under increased scrutiny from the public and the press.
You should also allow your professional defense lawyer to handle your communications with the board.
Find a Competent Professional Defense Attorney Near Me
Your professional license as a speech-language pathologist, audiologist, or hearing aid dispenser represents years of commitment and hard work, and it is the foundation of your finances and livelihood. However, a complaint or allegation against you can jeopardize your career.
San Francisco License Lawyer can offer you individualized guidance and aid you in understanding the allegations you are facing and the specific standards your licensing board enforces. Whether it is preparing a notice of defense, representing you before an administrative law judge, or collecting and reviewing evidence, we can protect your rights and reduce the impact of disciplinary proceedings on your career. Please call us at (415) 496-2811 to schedule your no-obligation case review.
