Nursing is a great profession. It takes a lot of effort and resources to train and obtain your nursing certification and practice license – but all it takes to ruin things is a simple mistake in your personal life.
The California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN) requires licensed nurses to report certain convictions. Here are two crimes whose convictions can lead to the suspension or revocation of your nursing license:
1. Any felony conviction
A felony conviction can automatically result in the revocation of your nursing license. Even if your conviction has been expunged, you will still be under obligation to make a disclosure.
Failure to disclose a conviction (including those that happened while you were a minor) or falsifying information may lead to disciplinary action that may include the withdrawal of your license. Felony charges that can threaten your nursing license include forgery, theft, aggravated assault, arson and unintentional homicide that involve a serious traffic offense like reckless driving.
2. A conviction for drunk driving
If you cannot perform your duties because of an addiction, then you might lose your nursing license – and drunk driving is a potential sign of a substance abuse problem.
The California nursing board has a strict reporting policy for nurses who are convicted of drunk driving. According to this policy, you are required to report all DUI convictions or convictions where you entered no-contest pleas. While you may not lose your license due to the first misdemeanor DUI conviction, you can be certain that repeat convictions will attract serious consequences.
A criminal conviction may not only come with legal consequences, but it can also lead to the revocation of your nursing license. Find out how you can protect your rights if your nursing license is under threat of revocation.
