Do you carry liability insurance?

[MrsMommaRN]

new nurse here full of questions today. the hospital i will be working for has Liability Insurance that they carry. i understand this will protect me if something happens while practicing there. what i am wondering is if i need to take out a personal policy to protect my practice?

thanks so much for your help.

[tiezto]

Does anybody know if any of these liability ins. co's are better than the other? I'm in need of signing up asap, mainly because the ginormous healthcare entity under which I'm employed would drop me without any second thought if a case was brought against me. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

[BEDPAN76]

I have had NSO for many years.When I had to answer to some ridiculous allegations at the BON, they were great about giving me the names of several nurse-attorneys in my area. The attorney I selected sent her bill to them and they paid in full. ($2000) She moved out of state before it was finished and the next lawyer took over. She was off the case after using up the last $8000. I ended up acting as my own attorney and after 6 years the board dropped my case. I never had to pay a dime out of pocket. I would recommend NSO. The coverage for license protection (10000 per occurence) is well worth it. Nurses always worry about being sued for malpractice. Well, let me tell you if you work with any mean-spirited backstabbers, you will be in the hotseat defending your livlihood and license from false accusations. And don't forget, the BON is NOT like our justice system. At the BON, you are guilty till YOU prove yourself innocent to THEIR satisfaction!

[noc4senuf]

I also have had NSO for years AND thankfully never had to use it.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

the following gem was written by a co-administrator of this site:

good to read of your desire to protect your hard-earned license.

to answer your questions:

1. is the liability/malpractice insurance your hospital/facility provides enough coverage?

no, it is not. read below.

2. would you suggest purchasing your own policy as well?

definitely. i am a strong advocate for this.

3. where would i find a legitimate company to provide said insurance?

go to http://www.nso.com for a free quote. in alabama, the rates for rn are $98/year. i've used nso for years.

per nso, you can qualify for a discounted first year rate:

your graduation date must be within 12 months of your requested effective date in order to be eligible for the first year graduate discount.

4. how much is enough?

i advise $1,000,000/$6,000,000

5. how expensive is it?

see above

6. since i am very new at this is there any other questions or info i would need concerning this topic?

see below

all malpractice insurance policies have limits of liability. other defendants employed at your entity may and probably do share your liability limits under the same policy. if you, as well as others, are named in a suit, your legal costs, including any settlement, could exceed your employer's shared liability limits. this would mean out-of-pocket expense(s) for you.

[PsychNurseWannaBe, BSN, RN]

The funny thing about facility malpractice is it protects you while you are there. Should you leave and then a lawsuit happens, you might find yourself without coverage.

Secondly, just because the facility has malpractice insurance for you, it doesn't necessarily mean they won't turn around and sue you.

So yes, get your own. I also go through NSO. First year as a new grad, it costed $49.

My legal and ethics book stated that technically a person does not ride off your license but the facility. If they provide care and did not seek the RN, then it falls on them. If you actually delegated a task that the person was not competent for, then you can be in trouble. If the LPN or CMA works outside the scope of practice and/or outside their job description, they should be held accountable along with the facility. It was some big legal term and right now I don't remember what they called it.

[CapeCodMermaid, RN]

It's often called go after the deep pockets....If it's you or a CNA...who do you think they'll go after? The person they think they can get the most money from.

[labcat01, BSN, RN]

Who do you have Liability Insurance with and how much do you pay?

I'm asking because I called NSO about their rates and spoke to a (kind of rude) customer service person. She said that Texas nurses have to pay higher rates. If you do the math it comes out to MORE THAN TWICE the price for 95% less coverage (for Texas nurses vs everyone else).

So tell me, do I have to suck it up and pay if I want professional liability or is there something better out there? Thank you knowledgeable nurses for your responses.

Oh yeah- they quoted me $232/yr for 100,000/300,000

[RN1989]

I've looked at various companies and found that NSO offered the best for less money than others. TX has a high incidence of lawsuits compared to many other places - this accounts for increase in price.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I have the NSO policy described above.

Proliability is another option. They offer a $600,000 policy in TX: http://www.Proliability.com

It is true that Texas is one of the 2 or 3 most litigious states in the US.

[kristin9903]

I'm using Bill Beatty insurance, who insured my nursing school.

They have a discount for new grads, so I'm paying $151/year for $200,000/$600,000. It would be $218/yr if I wasn't a new grad. The OB specialties are much, much more than that.

It also includes coverage for an attorney ($5000/incident, I think) if you are brought before the BON for discipline.

[BlueferralRN]

The facility being responsible for the employee is refered to as Respondeat superior.

The common-law doctrine of respondeat superior was established in seventeenth-century England to define the legal liability of an employer for the actions of an employee. The doctrine was adopted in the United States and has been a fixture of agency law. It provides a better chance for an injured party to actually recover damages, because under respondeat superior the employer is liable for the injuries caused by an employee who is working within the scope of his employment relationship.

http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/respondeat%20superior

However, do not think that your employer wont dumb any liability on you. If you didnt dot that i or cross that t, bam youre the defendant.

[achot chavi]

plenty of good advice already given, I will only add that there have been crazy stories where a doctor messed up and the nurse paid the price. Since we never know how things will fall- and we all make mistakes, personal insurance is a must. Like CCM I pay 99$ a year and hope its good enuf, never tested it out- hope we all never have to. OTOH, I know of nurses who did, and were glad to be insured