§ 5-29-16. Unprofessional conduct. The term "unprofessional conduct" as used in this chapter includes, but is not limited to, the following items or any combination of them and may be further defined by regulations established by the board with the approval of the director:

(1) Fraudulent or deceptive procuring or use of a license of limited registration;

(2) All advertising of podiatry business that is intended or has a tendency to deceive the public;

(3) Conviction of a crime involving moral turpitude, conviction of a felony, or conviction of a crime arising out of the practice of podiatry;

(4) Abandonment of a patient;

(5) Dependence upon a controlled substance, habitual drunkenness, or rendering professional services to a patient while the podiatrist or limited registrant is intoxicated or incapacitated by the use of drugs;

(6) Promotion by a podiatrist or limited registrant of the sale of drugs, devices, appliances, or goods or services provided for a patient in a manner that exploits the patient for the financial gain of the podiatrist or limited registrant;

(7) Immoral conduct of a podiatrist or limited registrant in the practice of podiatry;

(8) Willfully making and filing false reports or records in the practice of podiatry;

(9) Willful omission to file or record, or willfully impeding or obstructing a filing or recording, or inducing another person to omit to file or record podiatry/medical or other reports as required by law;

(10) Failure to furnish details of a patient's medical record to a succeeding podiatrist or medical facility upon proper request pursuant to this chapter;

(11) Solicitation of professional patronage by agents or persons or profiting from acts of those representing themselves to be agents of the licensed podiatrist or limited registrant;

(12) Division of fees or agreeing to split or divide the fees received for professional services for any person for bringing to or referring a patient;

(13) Agreeing with clinical or bioanalytical laboratories to accept payments from those laboratories for individual tests or test series for patients, or agreeing with podiatry laboratories to accept payment from those laboratories for work referred;

(14) Willful misrepresentation in treatment;

(15) Practicing podiatry with an unlicensed podiatrist except in accordance with the rules and regulations of the board, or aiding or abetting those unlicensed persons in the practice of podiatry;

(16) Gross and willful overcharging for professional services, including filing of false statements for collection of fees for which services are not rendered or willfully making or assisting in making a false claim or deceptive claim or misrepresenting a material fact for use in determining rights to podiatric care or other benefits;

(17) Offering, undertaking, or agreeing to cure or treat disease by a secret method, procedure, treatment, or medicine;

(18) Professional or mental incompetence;

(19) Incompetent, negligent, or willful misconduct in the practice of podiatry that includes the rendering of unnecessary podiatry services and any departure from or the failure to conform to the minimal standards of acceptable and prevailing podiatry practice in his or her area of expertise as is determined by the board. The board does not need to establish actual injury to the patient in order to adjudge a podiatrist or limited registrant to be guilty of unprofessional conduct;

(20) Revocation, suspension, surrender, or limitation of privilege based on quality of care provided or any other disciplinary action against a license to practice podiatry in another state or jurisdiction, or revocation, suspension, surrender, or other disciplinary action as to membership on any podiatry staff or in any podiatry or professional association or society for conduct similar to acts or conduct that would constitute grounds for action as set forth in this chapter;

(21) Any adverse judgment, settlement, or award arising from a medical liability claim related to acts or conduct similar to acts or conduct that would constitute grounds for action as defined in this chapter or regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter;

(22) Failure to furnish the board, its director, investigator, or representative information legally requested by the board;

(23) Violation of any provisions of this chapter or the rules and regulations of the board or any rules and regulations promulgated by the director or of an action, stipulation, or agreement of the board;

(24) Cheating on or attempting to subvert the licensing examination;

(25) Violating any state or federal law or regulation relating to controlled substances;

(26) Failure to maintain standards established by peer-review boards, including but not limited to, standards related to proper utilization of services, and use of nonaccepted procedure or quality of care; or

(27) A podiatrist providing services to a person who is making a claim as a result of a personal injury, who charges or collects from the person any amount in excess of the reimbursement to the podiatrist by the insurer as a condition of providing or continuing to provide services or treatment.

History of Section. (P.L. 1988, ch. 274, § 2; P.L. 1999, ch. 465, § 1; P.L. 2019, ch. 308, art. 1, § 12.)