Current through all regulations passed and filed through September 16, 2024
(A)
The board of
nursing, by the vote of a quorum, may impose one or more of the following
sanctions if it finds that a person committed fraud, misrepresentation, or
deception in applying for a doula certificate: deny, revoke, suspend, or place
restrictions on a certficate issued by the board; reprimand or otherwise
discipline a certificate holder; or impose a fine of not more than five hundred
dollars per violation.
(B)
By the vote of a quorum, the board may impose one or
more of the following sanctions on an individual who applies for or holds a
doula certificate: deny, revoke, suspend, or place restrictions on a doula
certificate, or reprimand or otherwise discipline a holder of a doula
certificate. The sanctions may be imposed for any of the following:
(1)
Denial,
revocation, suspension, or restriction of authority to engage in a licensed
profession or practice a health care occupation, or to practice as a doula, in
Ohio or another state or jurisdiction, including but not limited to nursing,
practice as a dialysis technician, nurse aide, community health care worker,
medication aide, or doula, for any reason other than a failure to
renew;
(2)
Using or assuming the title "certified doula" having
failed to renew a doula certificate issued under Chapter 4723. of the Revised
Code, or while a doula certificate is under suspension or
inactive;
(3)
Conviction of, a plea of guilty to, a judicial finding
of guilt of, a judicial finding of guilt resulting from a plea of no contest
to, or a judicial finding of eligibility for a pretrial diversion or similar
program or for intervention in lieu of conviction for a misdemeanor committed
in the course of practice as a doula;
(4)
Conviction of, a
plea of guilty to, a judicial finding of guilt of, a judicial finding of guilt
resulting from a plea of no contest to, or a judicial finding of eligibility
for a pretrial diversion or similar program or for intervention in lieu of
conviction for any felony or any crime involving gross immorality or moral
turpitude;
(5)
Conviction of, a plea of guilty to, a judicial finding
of guilt of, a judicial finding of guilt resulting from a plea of no contest
to, or a judicial finding of eligibility for a pretrial diversion or similar
program or for intervention in lieu of conviction for violating any municipal,
state, county, or federal drug law;
(6)
Conviction of, a
plea of guilty to, a judicial finding of guilt of, a judicial finding of guilt
resulting from a plea of no contest to, or a judicial finding of eligibility
for a pretrial diversion or similar program or for intervention in lieu of
conviction for an act in another jurisdiction that would constitute a felony or
crime of moral turpitude in Ohio;
(7)
Conviction of, a
plea of guilty to, a judicial finding of guilt of, a judicial finding of guilt
resulting from a plea of no contest to, or a judicial finding of eligibility
for a pretrial diversion or similar program or for intervention in lieu of
conviction for an act in the course of practice in another jurisdiction that
would constitute a misdemeanor in Ohio;
(8)
Self-administering or otherwise taking into the body any
dangerous drug, as defined in section
4729.01 of the Revised Code, in
any way not in accordance with a legal, valid prescription issued for that
individual, or self-administering or otherwise taking into the body any drug
that is a schedule I controlled substance;
(9)
Habitual or
excessive use of controlled substances, other habit-forming drugs, or alcohol
or other chemical substances to an extent that impairs the individual's ability
to comply with the standards of safe practice established in rule 4723-24-06 of
the Administrative Code;
(10)
Impairment of the ability to comply with standards of
practice established in rule 4723-24-06 of the Administrative Code because of
the use of drugs, alcohol, or other chemical substances;
(11)
Impairment, as
defined in rule
4723-3-02 of the Administrative
Code, of the ability to comply with standards of practice established in rule
4723-24-06 of the Administrative Code because of a physical or mental
disability;
(12)
Assaulting or causing harm to a client or depriving a
client of their autonomy;
(13)
Misappropriation
or attempted misappropriation of money or anything of value in the course of
practice as a doula;
(14)
Adjudication by a probate court of being mentally ill
or mentally incompetent. The board may restore the person's doula certificate
upon adjudication by a probate court of the person's restoration to competency
or upon submission to the board of other proof of competency;
(15)
The suspension
or termination of employment by the department of defense or the veterans
administration of the United States for any act that violates or would violate
this chapter;
(16)
Violation of Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code or any
rules adopted under it;
(17)
Violation of any restrictions placed on a doula
certificate by the board;
(18)
Failure to use
standard and universal precautions including those set forth in Chapter 4723-20
of the Administrative Code, as applicable to the doula's
practice;
(19)
Engaging in activities that exceed those permitted
under section 4723.89 of the Revised Code or
this chapter;
(20)
Failure by a certified doula to conform to the
standards of practice established in rule 4723-24-06 of the Administrative
Code;
(21)
Regardless of whether the contact or verbal behavior is
consensual, engaging with a client other than the spouse or partner of the
doula in any of the following:
(a)
Sexual contact, as defined in section
2907.01 of the Revised Code;
or
(b)
Verbal behavior that is sexually demeaning to the
client or may be reasonably interpreted by the client as sexually
demeaning.
(C)
The hearings of
the board shall be conducted in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised
Code and Chapter 4723-16 of the Administrative Code. The board may appoint a
hearing examiner, as provided in section
119.09 of the Revised Code, to
conduct any hearing the board is authorized to hold under Chapter 119. of the
Revised Code.
(D)
In any instance in which the board is required under
Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to give notice of an opportunity for a hearing
and the applicant or certificate holder does not make a timely request for a
hearing in accordance with section
119.07 of the Revised
Code:
(1)
The
board is not required to hold a hearing but may adopt, by vote of quorum, a
final order that contains the board's findings; and
(2)
In the final
order, the board may order any of the sanctions listed in paragraph (A) or (B)
of this rule.
(E)
If a criminal action is brought against a doula for an
act or crime described in paragraphs (B)(3) to (B)(7) of this rule and the
action is dismissed by the trial court other than on the merits:
(1)
The board shall
conduct an adjudication to determine whether the certified doula committed the
act upon which the action was based.
(2)
If the board
determines on the basis of the adjudication that the certified doula committed
the act, or if the certified doula fails to participate in the adjudication,
the board may take action as though the certified doula had been convicted of
the act.
(F)
If the board takes action on the basis of a conviction,
plea, or a judicial finding as described in paragraphs (B)(3) to (B)(7) of this
rule that is overturned on appeal, the certified doula may, on exhaustion of
the appeal process, petition the board for reconsideration of its action.
(1)
On receipt of the
petition and supporting court documents, the board shall temporarily rescind
its action.
(2)
If the board determines that the decision on appeal was
a decision on the merits, it shall permanently rescind its
action.
(3)
If the board determines that the decision on appeal was
not a decision on the merits, it shall conduct an adjudication to determine
whether the certified doula committed the act on which the original conviction,
plea, or judicial finding was based.
(a)
If the board determines on the basis of the
adjudication that the certified doula committed such act, or if the certified
doula does not request an adjudication, the board shall reinstate its
action.
(b)
If the board determines that the certified doula did
not commit such act, the board shall permanently rescind its
action.
(G)
The board may
investigate an individual's criminal background in performing its duties under
this rule and sections
4723.89 to
4723.90 of the Revised Code. As
part of such investigation, the board may order the individual to submit, at
the individual's expense, a request to the bureau of criminal identification
and investigation for a criminal records check and check of federal bureau of
investigation records in accordance with the procedure described in section
4723.091 of the Revised
Code.
(H)
During the course of an investigation the board may
compel any certified doula, or applicant under section
4723.89 of the Revised Code, to
submit to a mental or physical examination, or both, as required by the board
and at the expense of the individual, if the board finds reason to believe that
the individual under investigation may have a physical or mental impairment, as
defined in rule
4723-3-02 of the Administrative
Code, that may affect the individual's ability to perform doula services.
Failure of any individual to submit to a mental or physical examination when
directed constitutes an admission of the allegations, unless the failure is due
to circumstances beyond the individual's control, and a default and final order
may be entered without the taking of testimony or presentation of
evidence.
(I)
If the board finds that an individual is impaired in
accordance with paragraph (H) of this rule, the board shall require the
individual to submit to care, counseling, or treatment approved or designated
by the board, as a condition for an initial, continued, reinstated, or renewed
certified doula certificate.
(1)
The individual shall be afforded an opportunity to
demonstrate to the board that the individual can begin or resume the
performance of practice as a doula in accordance with standards established
under rule 4723-24-06 of the Administrative Code.
(2)
For purposes of
this paragraph, any certified doula or applicant under this rule shall be
deemed to have given consent to submit to a mental or physical examination when
directed to do so in writing by the board and to have waived all objections to
the admissibility of testimony or examination reports that constitute a
privileged communication.
(J)
The provisions of
division (I) of section
4723.28 of the Revised Code
apply to information, investigations and adjudications involving certified
doulas or applicants under sections
4723.89 to
4723.90 of the Revised Code and
this chapter.
(K)
The provisions of section
4723.29 of the Revised Code
apply with respect to any matter that the board has authority to investigate,
inquire into, or hereunder sections
4723.89 to
4723.90 of the Revised Code and
this chapter.
(L)
When the board refuses to grant a doula certificate to
an applicant, revokes a certificate, or refuses to reinstate a certificate, the
board may specify that its action is permanent. An individual subject to
permanent action taken by the board is forever ineligible to hold a doula
certificate and the board shall not accept from the individual an application
for reinstatement of the certificate or for a new certificate.
