Nursing can be an extremely rewarding career, one that makes the process of earning a nursing license more than the effort. Many of us recognize all of the hard work and long hours that go into caring for patients in the hospital, yet it so often happens that nurses get blamed before anyone else when something goes wrong. Whether a mistake or wrongly accused, it’s important that nurses take the proper precautions to make sure they walk away unscathed from an incident that threatens their livelihood. The following are several reasons why it’s so important to have lawyers for nurses, specialized to address their legal needs.
1. Nurses Are Often the Targets of Medical Malpractice Suits
It’s an unfortunate trend seen by a professional license defense attorney. It may be because nurses come into contact with patients more often than anyone else and so are assumed to have much more opportunity for mistakes. Between 2003 and 2013, there were as many as 1,458 adverse actions taken against APRNs, accompanied by 2,791 medical malpractice payments. What’s more, as many as 10% of federal trials by damages claim were for medical malpractice. The uncomfortable truth is that any RN can find themselves in the wrong place and the wrong time, something that is much more difficult to prove without a professional. Lawyers for nurses are skilled in knowing just how to navigate their clients through a med-mal suit.
2. A Nursing License Lawyer Knows How to Get Your Best Possible Outcome
For much the same reason anyone seeks out a good lawyer when being sent to court, lawyers for nurses are especially knowledgeable about the field and can better see their client through to a happy ending than any other attorney. Though there have been many malpractice suits over the last decade with nurses at the heart of blame, those who were wise enough to get the right help fared just fine. The years between 2003 and 2013 report 49, 543 licensed practical nurses and as many as 67, 368 adverse actions taken against them. However, 10, 579 LPNs were reinstated and only 399 med-mal payments were made. All of this owes to the power of lawyers for nurses.
3. There Are Many Lawyers out There to Suit Your Needs
Because there are so many nurses out there, all of whom are at risk for a lawsuit with which they’ll need help, there are just as many lawyers to fit their needs. To be sure, there are 2,824,641 RNs in the U.S., 690,038 of whom are LPNs. This is not a niche interest by any means and is moreover borne from a concern that has been growing over the years that more and more RNs join the workforce.
Somewhere out there is the nurse defense attorney to fit your needs. If you’re an RN in trouble, don’t hesitate to seek professional help as soon as possible.