Several of my colleagues are considering attending a class to become Legal Nurse Consultants. They are under the impression that they can make a very large salary doing part time work screening/reviewing charts for attorneys.
They discussed this class with the doctors on the unit. The doctors stated they know attorneys who are having a hard time making a living/obtaining a job and that the legal market is saturated at all levels.
The doctors did not believe that a decent salary could be made by the nurses after attending a quick class on chart reviewing/summarizing and self marketing. The doctors stated the legal field is very credential oriented and status driven so nurses with quick training are low in the prestige factor that dominates in the legal field.
I heard the nurses discuss this training as a way to leave the hospital and start a new glamorous life. I feel they are wasting their money on a get rich quick scheme.
When I went to several job boards to see what jobs are posted for legal nurse consultants, nurse paralegals, nurse chart reviewers, etc, I did not see much out there. My assumption is that this is a for profit business being marketed to eager but naive nurses who can sign up for a student loan to attend this class. Beside wasting time, this course is very expensive.
I asked our hospital lawyer if he knows anything about Legal Nurse Consulting and he said it is a small niche market for nurses who have very good communication and computer skills who just want "a little" pocket money ($15-20 an hour) for once in awhile work-senior nurses who are at the end of their career.
My question is:
Is this training worth attending?
The class is over $6000 plus travel and lodging expenses. The doctors said it was too good to be true and that this class is not reimbursed by the hospital or the nurses union. I am also concerned that it does not give recognized CEU credits. The class offers it own certification but it is not accredited by the American Nurses Association nor is this certification recognized by the hospital for a wage increase. They were told by the school that a lot of students take the class for fun and to network with other students.
Colleagues, your ideas and suggestions are needed. Should they take this class?
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