Meeting of the Board of Regents | January 2008

Report of

REGENTS COMMITTEE

ON PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

to

The Board of Regents

October 21, 2008

 

              Your Professional Practice Committee held its scheduled meeting on October 21, 2008.  All Committee members were present, except Vice Chancellor Merryl H. Tisch and Regent Arnold B. Gardner, who were excused.

 

                                                                  ACTION ITEMS

 

Professional Discipline Cases

 

              Your Committee recommends that the reports of the Regents Review Committees, including rulings, findings of fact, determinations as to guilt, and recommendations, by unanimous or majority vote, contained in those reports which have been distributed to you, be accepted in 8 cases.  In addition, your Committee recommends, upon the recommendation of the Committee on the Professions, that 41 consent order applications and 1 surrender application be granted.  [PPC EXS (A) 1-3]

 

              In the case of Dawn M. Fields, Licensed Practical Nurse, Calendar No. 22846, we recommend that the recommendation of the Regents Review Committee as to the determination of the hearing panel be clarified and that the determination as to guilt rendered by the hearing panel be accepted, except that the determination of the hearing panel not be accepted solely to the extent that, in the first full paragraph of page 6 of the report of the hearing panel, the entire second and third sentences (“We understand that the respondent’s failure to act under the circumstances could reflect a judgment as to the patient’s condition that could only be made by a physician.  She made a decision not to resuscitate the patient.”) as well as the first word of the fourth sentence therein (“However,”) each be deleted and the fourth sentence therein read “We do not believe that the respondent, by not taking certain actions, was practicing medicine.”

 

              These recommendations are made following the review of 50 cases involving 11 registered professional nurses, seven licensed practical nurse, seven licensed practical nurses who are also registered professional nurses, four dentists, three licensed clinical social workers, two chiropractors, two massage therapists, two pharmacies, one dental professional corporation, one licensed master social worker, one pharmacist, one physical therapist, and one professional engineer.

 

Restoration Petition

 

The Committee’s recommendation is that the Board of Regents deny the petition for the restoration application of the licensed practical nurse of Maxine E. Mears-Clarke. [PPC EXS (A) 4]  

 

Consent Agenda Items

 

              Your Committee recommends that the Board of Regents approve the recommendations of the Committee on the Professions regarding licensing petitions.  [PPC (CA) 1]

 

              Your Committee recommends that the Board of the Regents approve the appointments and reappointments of members to the State boards for the professions; and appointment of an extended member to the State boards for the professions for service on licensure disciplinary and/or licensure restoration and moral character panels.  (Please note:  the three appointments to the State Board for Social Work are new appointments – not reappointments)  [PPC (CA) 2] 

 

                                           MOTION FOR ACTION BY FULL BOARD

 

              Mr. Chancellor and Colleagues:  Your Professional Practice Committee recommends, and we move, that the Board of Regents act affirmatively upon each recommendation in the written report of the Committee's deliberations at its meeting on October 21, 2008, copies of which have been distributed to each Regent.

 

                                      MATTERS NOT REQUIRING BOARD ACTION

 

              Your Committee discussed several topics of interest, including:

 

• Associate Commissioner’s Report – This was an oral report updating the Committee on recent events and activities of the Office of the Professions, including:
• • a proposal to include in the Governor’s budget an increase in the fees related to professional licensing, based on a review of the Office of the Professions budget and emphasizing the importance of technology initiatives within the Office of the Professions;
  • the status of efforts to address through legislation professional practice issues relating to 4410 programs (preschool special education);
  • the status of legislative efforts related to the scope of practice of public accountancy and related issues; and
  • upcoming emergency regulations to implement legislation authorizing pharmacists to administer certain immunizations.

 

• Public Accountancy Education and Examination Regulations – This item discussed proposed regulations relating to the education and examination requirements for licensure and would update and expand the curricular content for licensure qualifying registered programs in public accountancy to reflect the current educational model.  This would provide greater flexibility to colleges and universities seeking to adapt their programs to a changing professional practice environment.  The proposed amendment would also allow students to be admitted into the licensing examination after completing 120 semester hours while maintaining the professional study requirements already established. This will be important when the professional study requirement is increased from 120 hours to 150 hours, effective August 1, 2009.  [PPC (D) 1]

 

              That concludes our report.

 

 

 

                                                                                                  ________________________________

                                                                                                  Harry Phillips, 3rd, Co-Chairperson

 

 

 

                                                                                                  ________________________________

                                                                                                  Milton L. Cofield, Co-Chairperson