Jenny Barnhouse, Executive Director
Oklahoma Board of Nursing
P.O. Box 52926
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73152
Re: Hagens, Case No. 3.2024030133.25
Dear Executive Director Barnhouse:
This office has received your request for a written Attorney General Opinion regarding action that the Oklahoma Board of Nursing intends to take in the above-referenced case. Respondent holds a suspended single-state RN license and a lapsed single-state LPN license.
The Oklahoma Nursing Practice Act authorizes the Board to impose discipline, including a denial of licensure, when a nurse “[i]s guilty of unprofessional conduct[,]”1 or “defaulted . . . from the peer assistance program[.]” 59 O.S.2021, § 567.8(A), (B)(7, 11).
According to an Amended Complaint, on or about October 26, 2017, the Respondent voluntarily entered the Board’s Peer Assistance Program after admitting to an issue with substance abuse, including alcohol and marijuana. However, the Respondent defaulted from the program on November 21, 2017, by failing to comply with the terms and conditions of the contract. As a result, the Respondent’s RN license was suspended.
In April 2024, the Respondent submitted an application for reinstatement of her RN license. In light of her prior default from the Peer Assistance Program and the current suspension of her RN license, the Board proposes to keep the Respondent's license suspended pending an evaluation by the Board for consideration of further Orders regarding the Respondent's license.
It is, therefore, the official opinion of the Attorney General that the Oklahoma Board of Nursing has adequate support for the conclusion that this action advances the State’s policy to protect public health, safety, and welfare by ensuring nurses meet minimum standards of professional conduct.
Cheryl Dixon
Deputy General Counsel
1 Unprofessional conduct includes “conduct detrimental to the public interest.” OAC 485:10-11-1(b)(3)(H).
