Veterinary medicine is a remarkably difficult career to embark upon, due in no small part to the amount of education and training one must undertake to earn a license in Texas. Naturally, it is necessary for veterinary practitioners to be well aware of the principles of the industry and to engage in best practices for the standard of care at all times. Failure to closely adhere to the official requirements is a fast track to a heightened risk of losing your license as a result of a formal complaint before the Texas State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.
Among the acts likely to result in disciplinary action not involving criminal behavior, an allegation of violation of the standard of care in the form of a botched procedure is considered highly problematic. A botched procedure can indicate that a veterinary practitioner is not in fact competent to perform the function for which they have been licensed. Of course, complaints of botched procedures are not uncommon in cases where a veterinarian has done all they could for a given animal, but grief or anger clouds the reason and decision-making of an accuser.
When the Board receives a properly-completed complaint, it first will consider the allegations to determine if the acts in question fall within its competence. (Fee disputes, for example, do not fall under the Board’s authority; while a botched procedure does.) If so, the Board will alert the practitioner about the complaint and assign an investigator to gather factual information about the situation. If the investigation determines that a procedure did not go as it should have given the proper standard of care, the Board will ultimately review the case for disciplinary action. Depending on the severity of the case, discipline may range from reprimand through forced revocation of the practitioner’s license.
In order to give yourself the best chance of a favorable outcome when dealing with an accusation of a botched veterinary procedure, you should contact an experienced license defense attorney as soon as you receive notice of the complaint against your license. BERTOLINO LLP will go the distance, from the very first stage of the complaint process (where we can be effective at forestalling disciplinary proceedings) to the end of any disciplinary proceedings that occur.
To best serve our clients, we have offices in Austin, Houston, and San Antonio. Contact us today or call (512) 476-5757 and schedule a case evaluation.
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