58-31b-401 - Grounds for denial of licensure or certification and disciplinary proceedings. - Utah Statutes

58-31b-401. Grounds for denial of licensure or certification and disciplinaryproceedings.
(1) Grounds for refusal to issue a license to an applicant, for refusal to renew the licenseof a licensee, to revoke, suspend, restrict, or place on probation the license of a licensee, to issuea public or private reprimand to a licensee, and to issue cease and desist orders shall be inaccordance with Section 58-1-401.
(2) If a court of competent jurisdiction determines a nurse is an incapacitated person asdefined in Section 75-1-201 or that the nurse is mentally ill as defined in Section 62A-15-602,and unable to safely engage in the practice of nursing, the director shall immediately suspend thelicense of the nurse upon the entry of the judgment of the court, without further proceedingsunder Title 63G, Chapter 4, Administrative Procedures Act, regardless of whether an appeal fromthe court's ruling is pending. The director shall promptly notify the nurse in writing of thesuspension.
(3) (a) If the division and the majority of the board find reasonable cause to believe anurse who is not determined judicially to be an incapacitated person or to be mentally ill, isincapable of practicing nursing with reasonable skill regarding the safety of patients, because ofillness, excessive use of drugs or alcohol, or as a result of any mental or physical condition, theboard shall recommend that the director file a petition with the division, and cause the petition tobe served upon the nurse with a notice of hearing on the sole issue of the capacity of the nurse tocompetently, safely engage in the practice of nursing.
(b) The hearing shall be conducted under Section 58-1-109 and Title 63G, Chapter 4,Administrative Procedures Act, except as provided in Subsection (4).
(4) (a) Every nurse who accepts the privilege of being licensed under this chapter givesconsent to:
(i) submitting to an immediate mental or physical examination, at the nurse's expenseand by a division-approved practitioner selected by the nurse when directed in writing by thedivision and a majority of the board to do so; and
(ii) the admissibility of the reports of the examining practitioner's testimony orexamination, and waives all objections on the ground the reports constitute a privilegedcommunication.
(b) The examination may be ordered by the division, with the consent of a majority of theboard, only upon a finding of reasonable cause to believe:
(i) the nurse is mentally ill or incapacitated or otherwise unable to practice nursing withreasonable skill and safety; and
(ii) immediate action by the division and the board is necessary to prevent harm to thenurse's patients or the general public.
(c) (i) Failure of a nurse to submit to the examination ordered under this section is aground for the division's immediate suspension of the nurse's license by written order of thedirector.
(ii) The division may enter the order of suspension without further compliance with Title63G, Chapter 4, Administrative Procedures Act, unless the division finds the failure to submit tothe examination ordered under this section was due to circumstances beyond the control of thenurse and was not related directly to the illness or incapacity of the nurse.
(5) (a) A nurse whose license is suspended under Subsection (2), (3), or (4)(c) has theright to a hearing to appeal the suspension within 10 days after the license is suspended.

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(b) The hearing held under this Subsection (5) shall be conducted in accordance withSections 58-1-108 and 58-1-109 for the sole purpose of determining if sufficient basis exists forthe continuance of the order of suspension in order to prevent harm to the nurse's patients or thegeneral public.
(6) A nurse whose license is revoked, suspended, or in any way restricted under thissection may request the division and the board to consider, at reasonable intervals, evidencepresented by the nurse, under procedures established by division rule, regarding any change inthe nurse's condition, to determine whether:
(a) the nurse is or is not able to safely and competently engage in the practice of nursing;and
(b) the nurse is qualified to have the nurse's license to practice under this chapter restoredcompletely or in part.
(7) Nothing in Section 63G-2-206 may be construed as limiting the authority of thedivision to report current significant investigative information to the coordinated licensureinformation system for transmission to party states as required of the division by Article VII ofthe Nurse Licensure Compact in Section 58-31c-102.
(8) For purposes of this section:
(a) "licensed" or "license" includes "certified" or "certification" under this chapter; and
(b) any terms or conditions applied to the word "nurse" in this section also apply to amedication aide certified.

Amended by Chapter 214, 2008 General Session
Amended by Chapter 382, 2008 General Session