Licensed nursing professionals are dedicated to helping people when they are sick and helping them stay healthy. One of the tools of their job is accessing a patient’s medical record to look up and record important and relevant information about the patient. But those medical records are highly confidential. They are so confidential that the federal government passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to ensure that patients’ privacy is protected. Violating HIPAA could result in serious consequences and could even put your…

Medical practitioners in Illinois owe their patients a duty of care to provide them with reasonable medical care according to their education and skill. Part of this duty of care is the responsibility to protect patients from harm. Although an essential part of being a doctor is constantly weighing the risks and rewards of particular treatments, evaluating important factors becomes difficult or impossible when a doctor is working under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Studies show that the vast majority of…

In response to growing levels of burnout and psychological distress in the pharmacy industry, the National Association of Board of Pharmacy (NABP) in coordination with the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) has developed an online self-assessment tool. The tool, which is designed to be taken by pharmacists, pharmacy students, and pharmacy technicians, consists of nine questions and can be completed in less than one minute. The respondents retain anonymity but, based on their responses, are given resources that can help improve their well-being. They can also compare their results to…

When entering the field of clinical psychology, you work hard to earn the trust of your patients. So any perceived breach of that trust, especially around the disclosure of confidential information, is taken very seriously. Violations can put psychologists at risk of disciplinary action toward their license. If you are facing a case before the Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board, you need to contact an experienced license defense attorney. Threats to a Psychologist License in Illinois Clinical psychologists, like all other licensed professionals in the medical field, are expected to have a…

As a doctor, you take your duty to care for your patients with the utmost seriousness. So, if you are accused of misdiagnosing or failing to diagnose a patient, you may have many questions. You may also be concerned about how the allegations may affect your medical license. If you feel your license may be threatened, it is important to be proactive and contact an experienced license defense attorney who can begin discussing your options with you. We are often able to help our clients resolve these types of matters…

For those who are looking to enter the field of dentistry and become a dental hygienist, you must first go through the required training and meet a variety of other requirements to obtain a dental hygienist license. The understandable fear of any potential licensee is to have their application denied by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). If you have a past criminal conviction, you may receive a Deficiency Checklist from IDFPR asking you to provide information on the conviction as part of the application review process….

People across the state rely on real estate brokers, more commonly known as agents, every day when they are buying or selling a house, condo, townhouse, or other property. They trust that agents will act ethically and keep high standards of professionalism. These ethics and standards are enforced by the Real Estate Administration and Disciplinary Board, which regulates licenses for those in the real estate industry, including real estate agents, managing brokers, and leasing agents. Professional and Personal Infractions Can Cause Licensing Issues There are a wide variety of reasons that a…

The state of Illinois has enacted several pieces of legislation designed to address the growing opioid crisis. The bills were signed last week by Governor Pritzker, and three bills, in particular, are of interest to pharmacists and other medical professionals who handle opioids on a daily basis. Opioid Legislation to Prevent Overdoses and Expand Resources Senate Bill 2535 requires pharmacists and medical professionals who write prescriptions for opioids to inform the patients of the drugs’ addictive nature. They also must give the patient the option to receive a drug that may be used to reverse…

With the trust that doctors and pharmacies are given to prescribing controlled substances, they also have a responsibility to ensure that the substances are being used for legitimate medical purposes. Physicians and pharmacists may fall under investigation for drug diversion if they are suspected of facilitating prescription drugs to be obtained, shared, or transferred inappropriately. This can be for their own personal use, the use of their patients, or by outside individuals. These investigations can lead to discipline to their medical license as well as criminal charges. Any medical…