1. (a) Complaints shall be submitted to the Board in writing or by the agency's online complaint portal and should contain at least the following information: Nurse/Respondent Name, Description of Facts or Conduct, Location of Incident, and Complainant Identification (Name, Mailing Address, Email Address, and Telephone Number). Additional data to be collected in order to initiate or conduct an investigation includes Nurse/Respondent License Number, Nurse/Respondent Contact Information, Patient(s) Identifier(s), Witness Information, and Date and Time of Incident.

2. (b) Complaints shall be assigned a priority status:

   1. (1) Priority 1--those indicating that credible evidence exists showing a guilty plea, with or without an adjudication of guilt, or conviction of a serious crime involving moral turpitude; a violation of the NPA involving actual deception, fraud, or injury to clients or the public or a high probability of immediate deception, fraud or injury to clients or the public;
   2. (2) Priority 2--those indicating that credible evidence exists showing a violation of the NPA involving a high probability of potential deception, fraud, or injury to clients or the public; and
   3. (3) Priority 3--those indicating that credible evidence exists showing a violation of the NPA.
3. (c) Not later than the 30th day after a complaint is received, the staff shall complete a preliminary investigation to determine the identity of the person named or described in the complaint, if not known, and process the complaint to determine priority scheduling, which establishes a schedule for case completion.
4. (d) In compliance with Texas Occupations Code §301.457, parties to the complaint will be notified of the expected timeline of the investigation as soon as practicable. Any change in timeline must be noted in the file and all parties notified of the change not later than seven days after the change was made.

5. (e) For purposes of this rule, completion of an investigation in a disciplinary matter occurs when:

   1. (1) staff determines insufficient evidence exists to substantiate the allegation of a violation of the NPA or Board's rules; or
   2. (2) staff determines sufficient evidence exists to demonstrate a violation of the NPA or Board's rules and files formal charges.
6. (f) The staff shall provide summary data of complaints extending beyond the complaint timeline to the executive director.

Source Note:The provisions of this §213.13 adopted to be effective August 15, 2002, 27 TexReg 7107; amended to be effective May 17, 2004, 29 TexReg 4884; amended to be effective March 29, 2026, 51 TexReg 1859.