Medical Malpractice
Fall Risk and the LNC
Healthcare-Related Falls and Fall Risk Falls and falls risk are a public health concern because they affect so many. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2024a), one in four Americans aged 65 and older will fall this year. Falls are the primary cause of both fatal and nonfatal injuries in…
Read MoreNurse Practitioners’ Malpractice Claims
Despite their vital role in the healthcare workforce, NPs often face malpractice claims comparable to that of physicians. As NPs’ scope of practice expanded, so too have malpractice claims. The Nurse Services Organization (NSO) revealed these claims arose from misdiagnosis, failure or delayed diagnosis, medication-related errors, monitoring failure, injury severity, inadequate physician supervision, or failure…
Read MoreCan you use AI to come up with a medical diagnosis?
Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered programs are increasingly taking over various medical testing functions. As an LNC, you may have worked on cases where the reliability of a pulse oximeter or other measurement device came into question. The influx of AI into medicine, while it may generate more accurate and certainly faster, results, also has more potential…
Read MoreIs it Medical Malpractice or Just a Bad Outcome?
I’m sitting on my hotel bed reading my friend’s medical records. It is the night before her appointment with a second opinion cataract surgeon at Wills Eye, a Philadelphia hospital that specializes only in eye disorders. As she paces nervously around the room, she says, “I know he screwed up my surgery. Do I have…
Read MoreMedical Errors and Patient Centered Care
As a legal nurse consultant, you see medical errors from the perspective of what has already happened. Not listening to the concerns of staff nurses may have played a part in the events leading up to the medical error. Medical Errors and Patient Centered Care “That will never work”, the staff nurse says to her…
Read MoreWhat Does Zero Tolerance of Disruptive Behavior Really Mean?
Do healthcare organization leaders really mean it when they say they have zero tolerance of disruptive behavior? Legal nurse consultants working on medical malpractice cases may hear nurse defendants describe situations of disruptive physicians. Can you relate to this situation? Let’s say you’re working in an acute care setting at 2:00 in the morning. You’re…
Read More4 Stages of Team Development
Ever think about the reason for medical errors as related to team development? Anyone who reads depositions of nurses and doctors understands the way that team dynamics can affect patient safety. There are four stages of team dynamics or team development. A dysfunctional team can directly affect communication and lead to patient injury. Forming The…
Read MoreAlcohol Withdrawal Liability
An attorney asks you to consult on a case involving a patient who is injured during alcohol withdrawal. She asks, “Is there alcohol withdrawal liability?” Dangers of delirium tremens Patients may be injured while going through alcohol withdrawal. Delirium tremens is the most severe form of alcohol withdrawal and occurs 3-10 days after the last…
Read MoreScreening a fall case for merit
Falls are common in healthcare settings. You can perform an invaluable service by screening a fall case for merit. A fall that results in injury – a fracture, head injury, or paralysis may present an appealing case to a plaintiff attorney. But some attorneys stop and think, “Is this really a good case? Should I…
Read MoreMedical Malpractice Errors
Legal nurse consultants work within the high stakes arena of medical malpractice errors litigation. We are often asked to screen medical malpractice cases for merit – does the case meet the criteria for a winnable case – for the plaintiff or the defendant? Other industries, such as aviation, manufacturing, and energy developed safety interventions needed…
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