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Your professional license is your ticket to the career you want and it is only earned after years of hard work and education. People who choose career paths that require professional licenses often sacrifice much of their personal lives to obtain these licenses and must uphold rigorous standards to maintain them once they’ve been granted.
Any brush with the law, no matter how minimal the offense, could put that license — and those years of hard work — in jeopardy and could endanger your future. For this reason, it’s important to analyze all your options for defending yourself and your license.
An investigation into your professional license can be launched for any number of reasons, including professional behaviors such as alleged misconduct or mistreatment of patients, theft or failure to follow orders. Criminal activity can also lead to investigation of a person’s license, especially crimes related to the person’s job.
In New Jersey, an alternative sentencing program can help professionals who face license investigations and suspensions from losing their career paths altogether. A nurse who has lost her professional license, for example, will be unable to find work in healthcare following her case. Because the license is a requirement for the job, her career options will be limited and she may spend years out of work (or working in unrelated fields), unable to make use of the training and education she has.
Recovery and Monitoring Program
A popular alternative sentencing program is New Jersey’s Recovery and Monitoring Program (RAMP). RAMP was established in 2003 as an Alternative to Discipline program for nurses in the state who find themselves under investigation. The Institute of Nursing for the New Jersey Board of Nursing manages the confidential program.
Substance abuse is an ongoing problem in America and nurses and others who work high-stress jobs can be susceptible to substances that alter their mental states. Dependence on drugs and alcohol could cause serious harm to patients -- particularly if a professional goes to work high or drunk -- and it could lead to censure from the licensing board.
Nurses who have been charged with actions that could lead to disciplinary measures against their licenses can volunteer to participate in RAMP in efforts to control whatever addictions or issues may have triggered such actions. In cases where a nurse might be addicted to drugs or alcohol, RAMP offers a plan for getting sober and recovering.
The program is intended to provide participants with a safe way to manage their problems without causing harm to themselves or others, and in many cases, participants can act as their own advocates to return to work once they have completed their programs.
Protect Your Future
At Helmer, Conley, and Kasselman, PA, we represent anyone who has been charged with crimes or actions that could jeopardize his or her professional license. If you are facing an investigation into your actions, contact a New Jersey professional license lawyer at our firm today. An alternative sentencing program could be the best way to keep you from losing your job and the future your license can grant you.
