Complaints and Grievances

1. Upholding Best Practices and Integrity

QABA strives to uphold best practice and integrity in all policies and procedures. Candidates, credentialed participants, and coursework or CEU providers are required to uphold the ethical guidelines and all policies and procedures established by the QABA Board.

2. Confidentiality of Complaints and Grievances

All complaints and grievances are confidential. All parties remain anonymous unless a legal or ethical violation is substantiated. In cases where confidentiality poses a risk to the public, notifications to third parties, legal authorities, and/or employers may be necessary. Frivolous complaints made by fellow certificate holders or providers are subject to disciplinary action by the QABA Board.

3. Grounds for Sanctions

Grounds for sanctions include, but are not limited to:

Conviction of a felony or crime of moral turpitude under federal or state law.
Gross negligence, willful misconduct, or ethical violation in performance of services under QABA certification.
Fraud, falsification, or misrepresentation of qualifications or candidacy, renewal applications, or regulated policy rules of QABA.
Falsification or misrepresentation of any information requested by QABA, including: making a frivolous complaint, causing delay or disruption to investigations, or being non-responsive to requests from the QABA Board.
Misrepresentation of credentials to the public or logo in advertising or public domain.
Cheating on an exam or assisting others to cheat on an exam.
Failure to respond to an allegation within 15 business days.

4. Complaint Submission Process

Complaints regarding the exam process:

Any complaints or issues related to the exam process, technical difficulties, or rescheduling should be sent in writing to info@qababoard.com or call the office at 877.220.1839. Most issues can be resolved quickly via telephone or in coordination with Examity. Any issues or exam red flags that cannot be resolved by administration will be forwarded to the preliminary review committee.

Complaints regarding any credentialed member or QABA coursework or CEU provider:

Should be made in writing to the QABA Board president. For additional information or help in determining if a complaint is applicable, please contact info@qababoard.com or call the office at 877.220.1839.

5. Complaint Form Requirements

Complaints must be in writing through the complaint form on the website qababoard.com. All information must include:

The name, title, and credential of the person submitting the complaint.
The name of the person/company and credential of the person being reported.
All relevant information and a detailed description of the event, including dates and timelines.
All contact information, including phone, email, and written correspondence for parties noted in the complaint.

6. Resolution Prior to Filing a Complaint

Every effort to resolve employee/employer/supervisor issues should be made through supervision and employer channels prior to filing a complaint. The only ethical issues that should be referred to the board are those that affect credentialing and maintenance of a credential.

7. Evidence for Complaints

Complaints should not be filed until all corroborating evidence is available and/or other investigations are complete, including but not limited to, ongoing written internal discipline counseling documents (signed by both parties), employer or other agency investigations and dispositions of those investigations, corroborating complaints from other witnesses, etc.

8. Preliminary Review

All complaints are reviewed by the Disciplinary Review Committee (DRC), which is comprised of the board president, vice president, and one additional board member. The DRC reviews and assesses the complaint. If necessary, the QABA Ethics Committee may be included in the preliminary review. Preliminary review is completed within 5 business days.

A. Complaint Determination The complaint is determined to:

Be substantial and contain valid and sufficient information to justify a discipline committee review.
Be insufficient and returned for further information or dismissed as not qualifying as an ethics/policy violation.
Be more appropriate for administrative resolution through the QABA office.

B. Disciplinary Committee Review Prior to the submission of a complaint to the Board of Directors, the DRC is charged with determining the relevance of a complaint to the QABA Code of Ethics. The DRC conducts a preliminary investigation before sending a recommendation to the board, if necessary. A valid and substantial complaint is investigated by the DRC, which includes the board president, board vice president, and one additional board member, and if needed, the Ethics Committee. The committee(s) forward a report and recommendation to the QABA Board upon completion of all relevant investigation materials.

Notification is made within 5 days of substantiated review to the certificant or provider whose conduct is in question. Email, phone, and/or written correspondence and all contacts are documented in a written log of all data. If the recipient does not respond within 5 business days, a certified letter is issued. The respondent has 15 days upon receipt to respond. All participants and providers are responsible for maintaining current and correct information in the QABA system. Incorrect or out-of-date information is not the responsibility of the QABA Board; however, every effort will be made to contact all parties. Failure to respond within 15 days will result in automatic suspension of the certificate. During suspension, individuals cannot represent, provide services, nor bill services utilizing the credential. Employers will be immediately notified upon suspension. Further failure within an additional 15 days to respond to a suspension notice will result in revocation following a board vote and notification to the employer. Reinstatement may be requested in writing up to 30 days following the revocation to the QABA Board President, along with thorough justification and data to support the reinstatement. The investigation timeline procedures will continue at that time.

9. Board Review

If a complaint is regarding, or in any way involves QABA board members, the board members in question will recuse themselves from the case and will have no involvement in the complaint investigation, discussions, board decision, or appeal.

Determination is made upon completion of all investigation materials and reports. Final determination is not completed until all legal processes are fulfilled, if applicable. Final determinations for certificates or provider status may result in the following:

Caution/warning counseling.
Code compliance or training through voluntary professional development.
Suspension for a specific period of time or until completion of specific training, supervision, or code/policy correction is made.
Revocation: the participant or provider is immediately removed from active status and listed as revoked after the appeals process.
Dismissal: after thorough investigation, the board concludes that the complaint is unsubstantiated based on evidence provided.
Voluntary surrender of certificate or provider status: if completed before the final determination, the file is sealed and the certificate or provider is removed from the roster without comment.

Determination results/sanctions are provided to the respondent or provider through written notice within 5 business days of final board quorum vote. Revocation of the credential is permanent, and certificants and providers may not re-apply. Complainants are notified in writing of the results of their filed complaint.

10. Appeals Process

Appeals may be filed to the QABA Board within 90 days of receipt of the board’s determination. A request to begin an appeal must be made in writing to the board president; however, all pertinent documentation is not required in order to begin the appeals process.

The Appeals Committee (AC) is comprised of two board members who were not on the Disciplinary Review Committee (DRC) for the case, and at least one QABA Advisory Board member who has no association with the provider nor the employer of the respondent/provider. Respondents have the right to be present or via video conference with the committee and may include their own legal counsel.

The timeline to finalize an appeal will vary; some appeals may resolve within weeks, while others may take longer depending upon documentation availability, legal proceedings, and depth of required investigation.

11. Complaint / Grievance Timeline of Action

Preliminary Review (President, 2 Board Members)	Discipline Review Committee (President, 2 Board Members, Ethics Committee if needed)	QABA Board Review (QABA Board Quorum)	Appeals Committee (2 Board Members not on DRC and 1 Advisory Member)
5 days to assess	DRC has 5 days to notify (email and phone) respondent of charge; 30 days to notify board of an open investigation	Board receives DRC recommendation within days following all relevant materials	30 days after board determination, appeal can be filed to board president
	5 days to receive response; if no response, DRC sends certified letter	60 days to vote on determination; respondent receives notification of results in 5 business days; complainant receives results	Appeals Committee receives appeal with evidence, has 60 days to investigate and make determination
	Automatic suspension 15 days following notification of suspicion to respond before board votes to revoke.	Board revokes credential after 30 days of no response. Respondents may submit reinstatement request to board president within 30 days	Appeals Committee submits justification report to board for re-determination; board has 30 days for re-determination
	Additional 15 days following notification of suspicion to respond before board votes to revoke	Employer is notified	Appeals Committee notifies all parties within 5 business days

Note: Deadlines may be extended for gathering additional data or legal/ professional board resolutions prior to the QABA Board final determination. The QABA Board is dedicated to reaching a timely determination for the sake of all parties.

*Deadlines may be extended for gathering additional data or legal/ professional board resolutions prior to the QABA final determination.

Complaints and Grievances

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