Veterinarian

Veterinarians are experts authorized to diagnose, treat, and prevent animal diseases. To obtain a practicing license, you must study veterinary medicine and acquire the requisite skills from a recognized university. After studies, you must obtain a permit to put your skills into practice legally. It is illegal to practice veterinary medicine without a valid license.

You are under the authority of the California Veterinary Medical Board (CVMB), which issues and revokes licenses. Therefore, you risk disciplinary action from the board when you receive a complaint for unprofessionalism or negligence. We understand veterinary license laws at Sacramento License Attorney and can represent you for a fair verdict.

Veterinarian Roles

Veterinary medicine is a lucrative and fulfilling field of practice, as veterinarians help animals regain their health. As a veterinarian, you must be compassionate with animals, particularly when they are unwell, and appreciate their crucial role in human life. Pets are essential family members in some places; others have created strong friendship ties with their pets. Dogs act as security in properties and homes. Apart from pets, you see animals from farms, animal zoos, and in the wild.

Your role is to safeguard animals and the families and public living or interacting with them through vaccinations, treatment of various ailments, and conducting advanced surgical procedures.

To perform these roles, you undergo years of training in veterinary medicine to obtain the skills for the job. Additionally, you must apply for a permit, pay the required fee, and pass the test to secure a practicing permit. Even after licensing by CVMB, you must adhere to their standards; otherwise, you risk losing your license or being denied a renewal. The standards for obtaining and retaining a practicing license are high. Unfortunately, a small mistake or exaggerated accusation can threaten your hard-earned license.

The Responsibilities of CVMA

Apart from vetting license applicants and issuing licenses to eligible candidates, CVMB performs other roles geared towards maintaining the high standards of the medical field. Many veterinarians recognize CVMB for its license issuance, primarily if they serve their careers without accusations. However, the few who have faced disciplinary roles are familiar with other roles of the board, which include receiving complaints from the public and taking action that leads to disciplinary measures if one is found guilty of their allegations.

If you face an accusation relating to your professional license, you should understand all the roles of CVMB, particularly in disciplinary matters. When you know the action the board will take against you, you can sufficiently prepare to counter their accusations for a favorable verdict. The typical roles of the licensing agency are:

Setting Industry Performance Standards and Regulations

Before you receive accreditation as a veterinarian, you must study veterinary medicine for years to obtain the skills to uphold the industry's high standards and integrity. Part of the training involves learning the industry’s code of conduct set by CVMB. The agency sets these standards to ensure those who obtain permits to practice have the requisite skills and experience to offer high-quality services that keep animals safe from injuries and harsh living conditions. Besides, some of the conditions the board sets for veterinarians to adhere to reduce or prevent animal abuse cases.

Enforcing Rules

CVMB enforces the guidelines that govern veterinary medicine in the state and ensures all licensed professionals comply to maintain the industry’s integrity. The agency holds practitioners accountable for their actions or inactions by implementing the rules.

Therefore, if you are a licensee running a practice, you should expect inspectorate officers to visit your office for inspections, ask for performance or appraisal reports, and perform surveys to improve enforcement of the rules. Additionally, the board will impose severe disciplinary measures on those found to engage in misconduct or negligence to discourage others from similar behavior.

Conducting Investigations on Allegations

Another role of CVMB is to receive complaints from the public. Once an accusation reaches its desk, the agency determines the type of accusation you face and conducts preliminary investigations to establish if the allegation can be substantiated.

The board will send its investigators to your office to investigate an alleged violation and gather information. Furthermore, they can call you asking you to provide information or documents to help with their inquiries, especially in fraud or funds misappropriation cases. The investigators from the agency also identify witnesses and record statements depending on the accusation.

Imposing License Restrictions on Parties that Violate the Industry’s Code of Conduct

Once the investigations are over and the board establishes that your accusations are true, they can restrict the permit. These restrictions prevent you from practicing or minimize your participation in the industry until you can prove that you are fit to start practicing.

Alternatively, CVMB can bar you from practicing indefinitely, meaning that all the years you put into acquiring the skills and knowledge will go down the drain, forcing you to start afresh in another industry. License termination usually happens when you face gross negligence accusations for a second or more times, or when your actions or negligence result in severe injuries or the death of an animal.

Regardless of the gravity of your accusations, you have a right to defend your license. No case is entirely hopeless if you have an experienced license defense attorney in your corner. The legal representative will examine the facts of your case and craft viable defenses that will prevent disciplinary measures or reduce their severity.

Common Accusations Against Veterinarians

With your compassion for sick animals, you try to provide quality services to your clients. Unfortunately, your best will not always satisfy the clients, as some could be discontent about the outcome of a treatment, leading to blown-out accusations of incompetence or negligence. Other times, you make genuine mistakes, but unfortunately, these are reported, prompting the board to investigate your practice.

So, as a committed veterinarian who wants to continue offering quality services to your clients, you should understand the allegations that are likely to jeopardize your career and how to counter them to prevent disciplinary action. The allegations you will face in this profession are:

1. Being Drunk or Drugged When Treating Animals

It is unlawful to go to work under the influence of drugs or alcohol, as they impair your motor skills and ability to make informed decisions. With impaired judgment, you could place the safety of the animal you are attending to at risk, causing injuries or death that could have been avoided.

With the risk you expose the animals to when intoxicated, a concerned colleague, client, or third party can report you to the board. If this happens, you should prepare to face the CVMB. Typically, the board looks into the allegations to determine the frequency at which you show up intoxicated and whether the intoxication inconveniences your clients or puts the animal at risk.

2. Acquiring a License Fraudulently or Offering Services Without One

You must study veterinary medicine at a recognized university in the country and undergo a rigorous licensing process to obtain the necessary accreditation to practice. Even after studies, you cannot put your skills into use without a valid license. The licensure intends to ensure those offering the services uphold the quality standards required in this field. Without a license, you are unfit to practice, as you do not have the relevant training and knowledge of the code of conduct to apply in the field.

Using an expired license also amounts to a violation, as it means you could have engaged in a violation that barred the board from renewing your license. Besides, using false information to obtain permits puts animals and the public at risk of disease, injuries, or death. So, when the CVMB receives a complaint regarding a fraudulent or invalid license, they take it with the weight it deserves and conduct inquiries to uncover the truth.

3. Demonstrating Professional Incompetence or Gross Negligence

The training you undergo at the university equips you with the basic skills of veterinary medicine. You learn procedures to follow when performing your duties, and you are expected to follow these guidelines to prevent negligence or expose animals to the risk of harm.

For instance, it is standard protocol for a veterinarian to measure a dog's weight before administering anesthesia. If you administer the anesthesia without measuring the dog’s weight, it could be excessive, putting the dog’s life at risk. Also, injecting a small amount of the drug means that it will not take effect, exposing the dog to severe pain, which amounts to animal abuse.

Negligence when offering services can attract serious accusations and possible disciplinary actions. The incompetence can be due to poor training, lack of experience, or basic training. If your client or coworker notices you lack the basic skills to diagnose, treat, or prevent animal disease, they should report you to the board to investigate your training and licensing process. Allowing you to continue practicing compromises the integrity of the standard services required in the industry, meaning your license could be suspended, terminated, or placed on probation with a requirement to undergo a continuing education program in the areas you are struggling in, contingent on the conclusion of the CVMB’s investigations.

4. Encouraging Fraudulent Activities in Your Practice

Falsifying information or giving false details to illegally receive authorization, services, or a product while practicing veterinary medicine can attract investigations and possibly disciplinary measures. When a complaint relating to fraud is filed against you, the CVMB can issue an interim suspension to prevent you from practicing until it concludes its inquiries on the fraudulent dealings.

If you receive the interim suspension order, contact your attorney to compel the board to lift the order because you do not know how long the investigations will take. When the board agrees to lift the orders, you can continue practicing as the case is heard. This means you will still have a source of livelihood, unlike when the orders stay in effect, hampering your capacity to offer services.

5. Breach of Health Code Guidelines

Veterinary medicine is as critical as human medicine. So, veterinarians must adhere to the field's health code to ensure quality services. The guidelines ensure safety and maintain the integrity of the services offered.

A breach of these guidelines dents your reputation and increases scrutiny of your business, pushing clients away. When you face the accusations, partner with an experienced attorney early in the case to understand the alleged guidelines you are alleged to have violated and craft defenses to counter the accusations.

Consequences of Unprofessionalism or Violation of CVMB Guidelines

If an accusation can be substantiated, the board will continue with investigations to find incriminating evidence. You will have a case to answer, so you must prepare your defenses.

Depending on the circumstances, the agency could send you a temporary license suspension letter, meaning you must halt your operations pending the conclusion. The suspension causes inconveniences, so your attorney should petition the court to lift it.

The board will allow you to settle the claim with their attorneys through mediation. However, when no settlement is reached, the case will proceed to an administrative proceeding. Here, you will appear before an administrative judge to counter the accusations by the deputy attorney general representing the CVMB. Even though this is an administrative proceeding, you should treat it like a court trial and seek representation from an experienced professional license defense attorney. A legal representative must ensure you respond to questions and present evidence compellingly to enhance the chances of a fair outcome.

The hearing is conducted per CVMB guidelines. Therefore, go through these guidelines and understand them to improve your chances of a fair verdict. Your attorney should also craft viable defenses to enhance your chances of a fair verdict.

Possible Consequences of a Violation

The outcome of an administrative hearing is not guaranteed even after a strong defense. So, if the verdict is unfavorable, the board will impose various disciplinary measures depending on the severity of your allegations. Some of the lenient penalties you will face are:

• Issuance of a reprimand letter
• Issuance of a public citation, which could be made public, dents your reputation

In severe cases, the board will suspend your license for a given duration, after which you will apply for reinstatement. A license termination or revocation is also possible, but this is severe because it is indefinite.

Find an Experienced Professional License Defense Attorney Near Me

If you are an accredited veterinarian facing an accusation or under investigation by CVMB, you should immediately hire a permit defense lawyer. Many accusations result in disciplinary action like suspension, probation, or license termination. Therefore, defending yourself with the help of a competent attorney is the best way to protect your career and license. At Sacramento License Attorney, we provide quality defense services to help you keep your license and protect your reputation. Call us at 279-242-4711 for a free consultation and to start preparing your defenses.