Should I Self-Report a DUI to the Licensing Board?

Being a physician, nurse, pharmacist or any other licensed health care professional comes with obligations, the first of which is: “First, do no harm.”

In the eyes of your professional licensing board, incurring a drunken driving or drugged driving offense puts you at risk of doing harm — not just to your patients/clients, but to the public at large.

When you are cited for impaired driving, as a licensed health care professional you are required to report the DUI or DWI to your relevant board. Failure to report can lead to probation or a suspended or revoked license.

But before you report, the best advice is to contact a professional licensing lawyer. Having an attorney prepare your report properly to the board could mean avoiding or reducing fines and sanctions — and, ultimately, preserving your license.

What If I Already Reported My DUI/DWI?

If you reported, you probably already received notice of a subsequent action against your license. But you need to be very careful in how and when you respond to the board or investigator — and a professional licensing attorney can help put your response together to put you in the best position possible.

This Was an Isolated Incident, and I Don’t Have Substance Abuse Problem. What Do I Do?

The Department of Health, LARA and your respective licensing board — such as the state Board of Medicine, Board of Nursing, Board of Dentistry, Board of Pharmacy and Board of Chiropractic Medicine — take such criminal offenses seriously. They want to be sure you are safe to practice and you are not impaired.

Programs such as Health Professionals Recovery Program (HPRP), Intervention Project for Nurses (IPN), and Professionals Resource Network (PRN) are set up to help licensed health care professionals get the help they need for substance abuse. But if you do not have a dependency/impairment problem, those intervention programs can make things worse for you. They are very invasive and expensive — and they may still end in formal disciplinary action.

Our network of Ph.Ds and MD/DOs who specialize in substance dependency/addiction can provide a complete assessment, to show your board this was an isolated situation; you are safe to practice; you would not benefit from a period of monitoring; and you do not need active supervision.

Robert Andretz, who handles criminal and regulatory matters at Chapman Law Group, talks about what happens when physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other licensed healthcare professionals are charged with DUI/DWI/OWI — and the possible solutions when you have a healthcare-based criminal law attorney on your side.

How Can the Healthcare Licensing Attorneys at Chapman Law Group Help Me?

At Chapman Law Group, we are dedicated solely to the defense of health professionals, including those who are convicted of or currently facing a DUI.

We assist with:

Pending DUI charges
Reporting DUIs to the professional boards
State disciplinary actions relating to DUIs
Obtaining licensure with a prior DUI conviction
Other matters affecting licensure following a DUI

We represent licensed medical professionals, including:

Being cited for DUI or DWI means not just shame and embarrassment, it also puts your career at high risk to be halted.

Our clients include practitioners in cities, counties, and communities all across Florida and Michigan.

Our Florida offices are in Miami and Sarasota, Florida. We serve all of the state for Florida medical licensing defense, including Miami, Jacksonville, Tampa, Gainesville, Orlando, West Palm Beach, Lakeland, and Sarasota, as well as Miami-Dade County, Broward County, Pinellas County, Brevard County, Hillsborough County, Duval County, Escambia County, and Orange County.

For our Detroit office, our clients include practitioners in cities, counties, and communities all across Michigan — Detroit, Ann Arbor, Dearborn, Grand Rapids, Troy, Lansing, Flint, Saginaw, Midland, Muskegon, Bay City, and Kalamazoo, as well as Oakland County, Wayne County, Macomb County, Washtenaw County, Genesee County and St. Clair County.

You worked hard for your license. We are here to help you keep it. Contact us today so we may help preserve your livelihood.

Need an attorney? Contact us now!

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Robert J. Andretz

Senior Attorney

Michigan Office
1441 W. Long Lake Road, Suite 310
Troy, MI 48098
Phone: (248) 644-6326

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