How likely is to sue nurses?

[xInspiredx]

I just read a story about a nurse accidentally overdosing the medication for a baby. Well, can the parents sue the nurse? Or do they just sue the HOSPITAL as a whole?

[xInspiredx]

Oh right, malpractice insurance. Forgot about that.

~

When someone sues the hospital, about how many cases are successful? Does anyone know a recent statistic? I am just curious...

[hcox1975, BSN, RN]

A lot of hospitals will cover you individually up to a certain amount. But it's always good to have your own malpractice insurance.

That's also why you should, check, check and recheck. If it looks funny to you, ask another nurse! I work in a teaching hospital and we have new docs that write scripts that are worded funny or are incorrect. So, knowing this, I read it and read it again and then I call if I still don't feel good about it. Just last week, a nurse saw an order for Ativan 5mg. This is too much! When she called the doc back, his . button was stuck and it was suppose to say 0.5! So like I said before, check check and recheck and ask someone else to check it!

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

The facility will throow you under the bus in a heartbeat should it help them. CARRY YOUR OWN MAPLRACTICE.

Professional Liability Insurance for nurses, nursing medical malpractice.

[ChristineN, BSN, RN]

Yes, the nurse can and may be sued. Then, if there is a settlement made on behalf of the nurse, this information gets reported to the BON and you can face a hearing and disciplinary action via this route too.

I just wanted to comment that I just went to a seminar for nurse's on what to do if you get sued/how to prevent it from happening. The medical malpractice lawyers that gave the presentation said that in every single case they have ever defended a facility and staff in they have always, without exception, been able to get plantiffs to drop the case against specific individuals such as nurses, and instead convincing them to just sue the facility. However, in this particular case, if I was the parent, I might be a little leary of doing so, even if it did mean more money if I just sued the hospital.

[Flying ICU RN]

However, in this particular case, if I was the parent, I might be a little leary of doing so, even if it did mean more money if I just sued the hospital.

You mean a punitive type of action.

As a parent myself, yes perhaps tempting. But, I well remember Ron Goldman's father prevailing against OJ Simpson in the wrongful death civil suit. To my knowledge, the judgment was never fully collected, and OJ moved to Florida as a result. (He apparently lives mortgage free now in Nevada).

That case is a perfect example of how winning a judgment is one thing while collecting is yet another.

[delilas]

Of course its 'a lot of pressure' for nurses. It's why we go through years of schooling and take a licensure test.

If your doctor prescribed medication that nearly killed you and/or hurt you for life, would you not be inclined to sue?

Likewise, if a nurse misreads a dosage and doesn't take the time to double check her medications, she isn't doing her job properly - and negligence is always a violation.

I have rarely seen a hospital stand by a nurse in a case like that (I worked for an attorney's office that handled just such cases). It's not uncommon for both the hospital and the nurse to be named separately, and the hospital attorney's will look for where the nurse disobeyed hospital policy and use it as a reason to not back them through the lawsuit. It's a litigious society, and when their bottom line is their main focus, a nurse may be on her own.

[emtb2rn, BSN, RN, EMT-B]

When someone sues the hospital, about how many cases are successful? Does anyone know a recent statistic? I am just curious...

I believe you are a pre-nursing student. So this is an excellent opportunity for you to hone your researching skills.

You could have typed that question into a search engine instead of allnurses.

[cincin1]

Well, I just read a book concerning surgeons, who also are targets for lawsuits. And quite simply, lawyers will usually only take on cases that are quite certain to make them a lot of money. This unfortunately means that many people harmed that can and should sue, still cannot get representation. Just as well, you still also have the frivolous lawsuits that cause so much grief and cost us professionals so much money. A nurse can be named in a lawsuit for just being in the wrong place at the wrong time; where something went wrong (again in surgery for instance) and it had nothing to do with her/him. You must always carry malpractice insurance, if merely for the purpose of hiring a lawyer for your own protection if your employer is only looking out for themselves in a lawsuit; that is, if God forbid you find yourself in this situation. Many of us will

[xInspiredx]

You must always carry malpractice insurance,...

So if nurses carry malpractice insurance with them, they never have to worry about liability issues?

I ask because I have been reading some recent messages posted here which state that they are worried about the liability issues associated with nursing.