Physical therapists do a great deal of good by healing the physically disabled people of Texas—those who have lost certain abilities as a result of illness or injury. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree and either a master’s degree or doctoral degree in physical therapy (DPT), and passing the national exam, they earn the right to be granted a license by the Executive Council of Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy Examiners, the organization that performs the consumer protection, statutory review, and administrative functions for the Texas Board of Physical Therapy Examiners. So naturally, licensees find it alarming when that license is threatened by the filing of a complaint with the Council.
The Council describes its mission as: “to protect the health of those in Texas who find themselves in need of physical therapy or occupational therapy services.” This means it considers itself on the side of the public as against professional physical therapists, and the investigation it undertakes will be directed to determine if the physical therapist at question has broken any rules. These investigations have a way of increasing in scope—meaning the Council will look beyond merely the initial complaint to see if there has been any sort of rule-breaking, and soon a physical therapist may find their entire lives under investigation—unless the physical therapist takes proactive measures to establish a narrow scope to the proceedings.
The best action a physical therapist in this situation can do is to contact a professional license defense attorney, This needs to happen as soon as possible after they receive the notice from the Council that an investigation has been initiated. The sooner an attorney is brought in, the more time they will have to craft a compelling response to the complaint, designed to contain the scope of the investigation.
We here at BERTOLINO LLP can help. We are experienced professional license defense attorneys and we know how to navigate the complaint process. We are skilled at assisting physical therapists in doing everything that can be done to ensure the most favorable possible outcome to their cases.
With offices in Austin, Houston, and San Antonio, we serve clients all over the state. Contact us today or call (512) 476-5757 and schedule a case evaluation.
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