Here's Another Legal Question!

[StudentNurse68]

First of all, thanks to all that replied to my off duty liability questions. I'm going to start practicing "Consult your Doctor" now.

My second question is: How do you feel about malpractice insurance? Do any of you have it or do you rely on your employer to provide it? Is it dependent on your speciality? For example, if you were an RN working in the CCU or ICU would you be more apt to have additional malpractice insurance than say a general floor nurse?

[Anonymous]

My opinion isn't always popular but I share it anyway.

Pepsi doesn't make any money unless you buy their soda. They tell you theirs is better than Coke..

Now my take on Malpractice. Anyone can sue you anytime they want to for any reason. But if you have no money there isn't much sense in sueing you. I FEEL that malpractice insurance makes you vunerable to a lawsuit. A hospital has deep pockets and has a lot to lose..

Now many will say that you can be sued for future wages. If I get sued for something it will be pretty bad.. And if so I will probably lose my nursing license and might possibly put in prison.. So I FEEL that my future wages would be small or non existant.

I have been a nurse for 24 years. I have never carried malpractice and don't plan to start.

Another aspect to look at is the amount of the premiums.. And OBGYN pays megabucks.. He has a high likehood of liability. Many can't even get insurance now.. And nurse pays less than $100/year for at least 1Million to 3 million does that tell you what the odds are of her getting sued.

I said odds.. I didn't say actual suits.

I know nurses have been sued. I am sure some have lost money. But the chances are slight and I believe having malpractice actually increases your chances of being sued..

JMHO..

WR,,, three commas for Becca

Merekat motto:
Respect the Elders, Teach the Young, Cooperate with Family, Play when you can, Work when you should, Rest in between, Share your Affection, Voice your Feelings, Leave your Mark.

[medi]

Well, as WR predicted my opinion is different from her's about this subject. *lol*

Nurses are being sued, and we all know that whoever files suit can sue the hospital and name you as a party to that suit, and then also file an individual suit against you as well.

WR said, "Anyone can sue you anytime they want to for any reason. But if you have no money there isn't much sense in sueing you."

Most of us DO have "some money" though. It may be cash, savings, investments, or in the form of equity in our homes... so in most cases we Do have something of value worth protecting.

WR is right about nursing liability insurance being dirt cheap still. Just my opinion, but personally I'd rather fork out $100 or so a year (deductable expense by the way) than risk losing the hundreds of thousands of dollars in home equity we own (as well as everything else). Heck, that's extremely affordable protection for the safety net it buys!

Also... relying completely on your employer's umbrella coverage to protect you may involve a conflict of interest. Sometimes what is in the employer's best interests in the case of a malpractice suit may not coincide with what's in your best interests! Know what I mean?

If you have a spare moment read the article I wrote on this very subject: Representation if Sued--
http://medi-smart.com/representation.htm

If you're interested in reading some actual malpractice cases that involved nurses you can find some here:
http://medi-smart.com/law.htm

As I said.. that's just my opinion.. and I respect WR's opinion as well. I'll be interested to learn what everybody else thinks about this subject too!

Anyone out there ever have to testify or been sued for malpractice??

[Anonymous]

Medi I agree people have been sued. But I still say the people making money are the insurance companies. Or they wouldn't be touting it. I am always leary of someone telling me I "need" their product.


I doubt the bank is gonna let anyone have my house while I still owe money on it.

The money a nurse has usually is in the form of malpractice insurance and makes her a target.. If you have insurance you can bet your sweet bippy the lawyers will go after it.

Now I'd hate to be in a lawsuit where I was totally innocent but be in it cuz someone could get money out of me...i.e. my malpractice insurance.. My sanity may be questionable but it's mine.. That would be one of my biggest worries in a suit. That because I have malpractice insurance and a good, easily obtained, source of money that I would get named irregardless of my actions.

I would respect someone in a high liability area I suppose such as OB GYN having it.. Is theirs higher??? If it isn't just goes to show ya that the insurance company considers nurse a low risk...

I have heard that some insurance companies are trying to push terrorist insurance... Do I need that????

WR,,, three commas for Becca

Merekat motto:

Respect the Elders, Teach the young, Cooperate with Family, Play when you can, Work when you should, Rest in between, Share your Affection, Voice your Feelings, Leave your Mark.

Medi your cases look good.. Some don't tell us whether nurses were sued or not... And how much they were sued for.. Did the hospital and doc insurance pay it all .. And the real pertinent question is Did the nurses have malpractice insurance.. Would love to see an UNBIASED report on that aspect... If I were a betting woman I'd bet that the % of nurses actually sued WHO HAVE MALPRACTICE INSURANCE ( not yelling just emphasis) would be very very high.. I'd like to see a study on that. And not one put out by the insurance industry...Wouldn't you?? If you have access to those figures I'd be interested...Thanks..

Also, I'd be interested in the % of nurses each year who are sued, what field they practice in and what the suit was.. The one's you have brought forth are blantant breeches of standards of practice and deserve,IMHO and short synposis I have read, to be litigated...

[tiskathleenherself]

I am a nurse of 30 years, working in the RIsk Management and Legal Nurse Consulting business with an insurance company. I have seen the havoc that litigation has caused---in hospitals, in long term care and most recently, in personally naming nurses and facility administrators as party to a suit.

Many years ago, as a nurse practicing in a hospital, I did not and would not carry malpractice insurance. My opinion has changed today.

Facilities---be it hospital or nursing homes---are carrying lower limits of liability coverage than they ever did before. Plaintiff's attorneys are going to go after the money wherever they can find it---whether it's your extra liability insurance policy or your home---I have seen several cases as of late where the DON and administrators are personally named as party to the suit. It used to be that us poor nurses only had apartments and the second hand couch that was in it. Times have changed and the plaintiff's bar knows that.

My recommendation is to carry a liability insurance policy at this point. Keep the limits low---plaintiff's attorneys can spend upwards of $250,000 to 'work' their case---they're not going to do that if they don't get it back. So buy low limits, continue on with your good work and know that you have coverage should a mistake occur or some crazy person who thinks they can 'cash in' on an infortunate outcome, despite your good intentions., comes into your life.

[miki]

Please help. I have a cousin who is a nurse in Serbia. What is going to take for her to become RN nurse in US in Texas? Are Serbian nurses accepted in US?
you can send me an e-mail on milansimic24@hotmail.com
Thanks,
Milan

[hapkido48]

ALWAYS carry malpractice insurance! You may be covered by your travel company under their policy or even under the hospitals plicy...but remember that their lawyers are going to be looking out for their interests...not necessarily yours. You need your own insurance, so that you will have your own representation, and the cost is so cheap..you would be crazy not to have it...good luck....Tom