Terms Used In Arizona Laws > Title 32 > Chapter 17 > Article 3 - Regulation

• Action: includes any matter or proceeding in a court, civil or criminal. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Active license: means a valid license to practice medicine and includes the license of a licensee who has been placed on probation or on whose license the board has placed restrictions. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Address of record: means either:

  (a) The address where a person who is regulated pursuant to this chapter practices medicine or is otherwise employed. See Arizona Laws 32-1800

• Adequate records: means legible medical records containing, at a minimum, sufficient information to identify the patient, support the diagnosis, justify the treatment, accurately document the results, indicate advice and cautionary warnings provided to the patient and provide sufficient information for another licensed health care practitioner to assume continuity of the patient's care at any point in the course of treatment. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Administrative warning: means a disciplinary action by the board in the form of a written warning to a physician of a violation of this chapter involving patient care that the board determines falls below the community standard. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Adult: means a person who has attained eighteen years of age. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Board: means the Arizona board of osteopathic examiners in medicine and surgery. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Decree of censure: means a formal written reprimand by the board of a physician for a violation of this chapter that constitutes a disciplinary action against a physician's license. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Dispense: means the delivery by a physician of a prescription drug or device to a patient, except for samples packaged for individual use by licensed manufacturers or repackagers of drugs, and includes the prescribing, administering, packaging, labeling and security necessary to prepare and safeguard the drug or device for delivery. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Immediate family: means the spouse, natural or adopted children, father, mother, brothers and sisters of the physician and the natural and adopted children, father, mother, brothers and sisters of the physician's spouse. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Inappropriate fee: means a fee that is not supported by documentation of time, complexity or extreme skill required to perform the service. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• including: means not limited to and is not a term of exclusion. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Investigative hearing: means a meeting between the board and a physician to discuss issues set forth in the investigative hearing notice and during which the board may hear statements from board staff, the complainant, the physician and witnesses, if any. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Letter of concern: means an advisory letter to notify a physician that while there is insufficient evidence to support disciplinary action against the physician's license there is sufficient evidence for the board to notify the physician of its concern. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Medical assistant: means an unlicensed person who has completed an educational program approved by the board, who assists in a medical practice under the supervision of a doctor of osteopathic medicine and who performs delegated procedures commensurate with the assistant's education and training but who does not diagnose, interpret, design or modify established treatment programs or violate any statute. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Medicine: means osteopathic medicine as practiced by a person who receives a degree of doctor of osteopathy. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Minor: means a person under eighteen years of age. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Moral turpitude: means an offense, whether a misdemeanor or felony, that is related to extortion, burglary, larceny, bribery, embezzlement, robbery, racketeering, money laundering, forgery, fraud, murder, voluntary manslaughter or a sexual offense that requires the individual to register pursuant to section 13-3821. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Person: includes a corporation, company, partnership, firm, association or society, as well as a natural person. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Physician: means a doctor of osteopathy who holds a license, a permit or a locum tenens registration to practice osteopathic medicine pursuant to this chapter. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• practice of osteopathic medicine: means all of the following:

  (a) To examine, diagnose, treat, prescribe for, palliate, prevent or correct human diseases, injuries, ailments, infirmities and deformities, physical or mental conditions, real or imaginary, by the use of drugs, surgery, manipulation, electricity or any physical, mechanical or other means as provided by this chapter. See Arizona Laws 32-1800

• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Specialist: means a physician who has successfully completed postdoctoral training in an approved postgraduate training program, an approved preceptorship or an approved residency or who is board certified by a specialty board approved by the board. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• subscription: includes a mark, if a person cannot write, with the person's name written near it and witnessed by a person who writes the person's own name as witness. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Subscription provider of health care: means an entity that, through contractual agreement, is responsible for the payment, in whole or in part, of debts incurred by a person for medical or other health care services. See Arizona Laws 32-1800
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Wilfully: means , with respect to conduct or to a circumstance described by a statute defining an offense, that a person is aware or believes that the person's conduct is of that nature or that the circumstance exists. See Arizona Laws 1-215
• Writing: includes printing. See Arizona Laws 1-215