by Elizabeth Rudolph | Feb 5, 2020 | Legal Nurse Consulting
Ask yourself this question: “What do I want to be doing in five years?”. Do you envision yourself in your same job, or maybe you’re still working as a nurse but in a managerial position? Maybe you’re working less and earning less, maybe more, but still not as much as you’d like. Five years in your nursing career goes quickly. Make it count. But how?
The best way to earn more AND enjoy your life at the same time is to work at a job you love. Start with your nursing degree. Make it work for you.
#1. Get More Education. That’s the quickest way up the ladder of success. You’re already a nurse, get your Certification as a Professional Legal Nurse Consultant (PLNC). Don’t Wait!! Do it Now. REGISTER at www.JurexNurse.com.
#2: Set a Five Year Goal. Then, create a simple Plan to attain it. No sense even thinking about a goal if you don’t have even a simple plan to go with it. Remember in nursing school creating patient goals (or even nursing diagnoses) and then creating the steps to help patients attain them? Same applies to us.
#3: Keep Thinking About Your Five Year Goals. You must keep your goals top of mind, even when you want to think about other things. It has been said “out of sight, out of mind”, so be sure you manage your thinking.
So, if you’d like to get your Professional Legal Nurse Consultant certification, now is the time!
by Elizabeth Rudolph | Apr 1, 2019 | Legal Nurse Consulting
As a Professional Legal Nurse Consultant, you’re reviewing lots of medical records. The same issues seem to be popping up. Think in the back of your mind “I should be looking for these three negligence issues“:
Three Most Common Nursing Malpractice Issues:
1. Communication problems: Whether you see lack of communication, or the opposite — too much but no substance to it, often the key to pursuing or defending a case lies in this one issue alone: COMMUNICATION. Sad, but often true, you need to be looking for communication breakdown. Sometimes, in your Professional Legal Nurse Consultant review, you’ll see little, if any, communication. As they say, “the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing”, is not an excuse. So, be vigilant in your legal nurse consulting review and look for areas where there was either good or not so good communication among the nurses as well as between the nurses and the other health care providers.
2. Lack of interventions: First, the nurse must assess the patient. So, check out the nursing assessment forms for completeness. If you can’t get a thorough understanding of the condition of the patient at the time of the nursing assessment, this is a red flag. Next, go to the interventions. In your Professional Legal Nurse Consultant opinion, are they appropriate, timely, performed as described, and documented? While just because it wasn’t documented doesn’t mean it wasn’t done, there is a strong presumption it wasn’t. What makes you, the reviewing nurse expert, believe or disbelieve the nursing charting? As nurses, we are blessed with nursing judgment. Now’s the time to use it.
3. Medication errors: We, as nurses, administer lots of medications. It’s no surprise that there’s room for error, but that’s not an excuse. Remember the expression “Measure twice, cut once” when sewing or building? This means nurses need to double check themselves before giving a medication to be sure it’s right. Just like they taught us in nursing school. Sure, it could have come up from the pharmacy wrong, maybe it was written by the prescriber wrong, but who had the last clear chance to make it right? Professional Legal Nurse Consultants need to thoroughly review the Medication Administration Record and corresponding Nurses Notes. These two sections of the medical records alone can be a gold mine of information!
Keep these three common nursing malpractice issues in mind when, as the Professional Legal Nurse Consultant, you’re reviewing any medical record.
Next blog post we’ll examine the nursing practice areas where there’s the greatest likelihood of nursing malpractice. Stay tuned.
by Elizabeth Rudolph | Mar 14, 2019 | Legal Nurse Consulting
You’re thinking about becoming a Professional Legal Nurse Consultant (PLNC), but you want to know exactly what you will learn.
Here is what you will learn in the PLNC Certification Course:
Introduction: The Formula for PLNC Success: Get the PLNC success formula. Case examples are sprinkled throughout the course to emphasize key points.
Chapter 1: Becoming a PLNC: You will explore whether to be self-employed or an employee. Most PLNCs are self-employed, but traditional PLNC employment may be the option you select.
Chapter 2: Marketing: The ins and outs of marketing yourself and your Professional Legal Nurse Consultant business are discussed in-depth. Cost effective marketing tools are described.
Chapter 3: Business Development: How to set up your PLNC business from the start is the focus. Essential business equipment, software, and filing systems are presented. Plus, you’ll get lots of home office tips. This section wraps up with ethics and contract negotiation.
Chapter 4: Litigation: You will be taught the legal terms and their meanings. Best of all, you will be taken through a case from start to finish.
Chapter 5: Litigation Support: Find out ALL the Professional Legal Nurse Consultant services you can provide (and there are A LOT!). You will be surprised how marketable your newly-acquired skills really are.
Chapter 6: Evaluating Cases: You will go through medical records and find out EXACTLY how to review them and what to look for. Plus, you will get a roadmap for PLNC success.
Chapter 7: Research: Research can easily be done on your tablet, desktop, or phone. Come hear the great easy tools for looking things up.
Chapter 8: Reporting Your Findings: No heavy report is required but find out what should be in your merit review report. You will be shown what issues and conditions are usually found inside medical records.
Chapter 9: PLNC Tools: Make your reports shine through use of a simple chronology or timeline. It makes your report even stronger and enhances your work product which could lead to you getting even more cases to review!
Chapter 10: Testifying: Learn what it’s really like to testify, whether or not you decide to testify. Lots of case examples are provided so you can apply all the great knowledge you just acquired!
Sample documents, forms, resources, medical records, terms, contracts, and the like are provided. All are yours to use in your Professional Legal Nurse Consultant business.
Now, there you have it. Getting certified as a Professional Legal Nurse Consultant (PLNC) is so worthwhile!
Get your PLNC certification in JUST 2-DAYS! Wow, that’s the way to do it.
REGISTER NOW at www.JurexNurse.com
by Elizabeth Rudolph | Jan 1, 2019 | Legal Nurse Consulting
Picture yourself now as a Professional Legal Nurse Consultant (PLNC). Your career in the legal nurse consulting field can be more exciting and rewarding as the time you spent, or are spending, as a nurse caring for your patients. There is a complete satisfaction that comes from being a Professional Legal Nurse Consultant reviewing medical records and giving your opinion. And, most importantly, PLNCs are able to be paid handsomely for it.
Working with law firms, insurance agencies, hospitals, government entities and those in private medical practice are just a sample of the potential places you will establish yourself as a PLNC and each one of these agencies or entities needs the same care and consideration you gave to a patient facing a significant health issue.
There are nurses and then there are extraordinary nurses and this same holds true for you in your role as an extraordinary PLNC. You want to set yourself apart and be an extraordinary PLNC!
The very definition of the word, “extraordinary” is defined as one who “goes beyond what is regular, usual or customary”. This is the role you want to create as a PLNC. You want to showcase your talents in reviewing medical records and give your best and finest opinions on the care and treatment of patients involved in legal cases.
There are very few PLNC’s who already have a legal or business background when they make the decision to expand beyond the world of clinical nursing. Therefore, the important thing is to not be intimidated by the aspect of acquiring the legal expertise or business expertise to successfully set up your own business. It is important to note that PLNC’s do not need to come from any one specific practice area of nursing. Nor, is it necessary to have any set number of years as a nurse.
You can be the most extraordinary PLNC you can be simply by using your talents and believe in those talents to perform to the best of your ability and to provide attorney-clients with your best efforts. You are capable and can reach your goals because the extraordinary PLNC is in you!
P.S. REGISTER NOW for the upcoming LIVE Professional Legal Nurse Consultant (PLNC) Certification Course OR ONLINE at your own pace! Do it NOW at www.JurexNurse.com.
by Elizabeth Rudolph | Aug 9, 2018 | Legal Nurse Consulting
I was reading an article today about surviving the month of August as it can, deceptively, be one of the busiest times of the year for any nurse, including Professional Legal Nurse Consultants, when I came upon some great quotes on survival and “thrive-ival”. Here are three quotes you can use to motivate you as a PLNC:
- “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” – Arthur Ashe
Or, it has been said in a fire, to “stop, drop, and roll”. This translates into take one step in the direction you would like to go. Already a PLNC, market yourself for more cases to review. If your legal nurse consultant business is already up and running, open the medical records you are tasked with reviewing and start reading. Use the beautiful knowledge you have as a nurse and Professional Legal Nurse Consultant and apply it to the facts. Do not put undue pressure on yourself. Just start doing something to further your legal nurse skills.
- “All progress takes place outside the comfort zone.” – Michael John Bobak
We all have to do things outside of our comfort zone. The sooner we, as PLNC’s realize this, the more successful we can become. Starting a legal nurse business, is outside of our comfort zone as nurses. Even learning to become a legal nurse is outside of our comfort zone as it is a different way of learning than in nursing school. Progress, not perfection.
- “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” –Walt Disney
This means, get going on your path as a Professional Legal Nurse Consultant. You determine the outcome, but get moving.
Calling all Professional Legal Nurse Consultants (whether you currently are one or aspire to be one). Read these three inspirational quotes and you, too, can enjoy not only this month but the rest of your life as a motivated, successful, and inspired individual.
P.S. Check out these great motivational quote websites:
https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/motivational
https://motivationping.com/quotes/
https://www.success.com/17-motivational-quotes-to-help-you-achieve-your-dreams/
by Elizabeth Rudolph | Mar 22, 2018 | Legal Nurse Consulting
As a Professional Legal Nurse Consultant, you just got your first pile of medical records in a nursing malpractice lawsuit. You have been asked to organize them. Where do you start?
Organized medical records impact so many aspects of a case. First, as a PLNC, you will rely on the medical records and knowing where to find key documents is essential. Next, attorneys and the legal staff rely on them both in pretrial and trial proceedings.
Follow this Professional Legal Nurse Consultant roadmap to medical record organizational success:
- Clarify the instructions: Have you been asked to “Bates” stamp them – a paginated identifying numbering system. Have been asked to put them in a certain order – chronological or reverse chronological order. When does the attorney want the organized medical records back – once you get the deadline, consider how to return the medical records to the attorney.
- Compile the documents by sections: Proceed to put all medical records pertaining to a specific department, or event, into one stack, usually in chronological order. Continue to do this with the entire medical record.
- Gather all sections into one bundle: Put the multiple stacks into one complete pile beginning with what you would think would logically be the first section and proceeding to completion. You might want to follow the lead of how your hospital or employer organizes their medical record. In absence of a clear method, put them in the most local sequence.
- Bates stamp each page beginning in the bottom right corner: If the right corner is taken, or would require obscuring items in that corner, opt for the bottom left corner. If the left corner is taken, next look to the top right. If the top right in occupied, use the top left. Remember to Bates stamp each page in the same location, if possible.
The medical records are now ready to be placed into a binder. Punch the holes for binder insertion either along the left-hand side in a three-ring approach or at the top using a two-ring approach. Usually the law firm will provide the binders, but these can easily be purchased from an office supply company and reimbursement can then be sought.
If an index is requested, insert this before the medical records. Be sure to list each section by name and Bates stamp number where that particular section begins. An organized medical record is essential to a thorough review. Now, you are ready to move on to the next Professional Legal Nurse Consultant assignment.
