lawsuit

[Ms.RN]

i had a conversation with a doctor who i work with about the lawsuit. he told me that nurses are not being sued but rather people will go after the doctor and the corporation. he said that when people sue, nurses can be included in the lawsuit but the doctors and the corporation are responsible even though its nurses who are at fault? what do you guys think

[ObtundedRN, BSN, RN]

I gave a lecture on nurses and medical liability when I was in school. There are different situations where the nurse and the doctor are liable but not the hospital. And other situations where the hospital and the nurse are liable but not the doctor. But it all came down to the point of: if the nurse did something wrong, then the nurse is liable. They CAN hold the hospital or the doctor (depending on the situation) liable, but either way you're in it for your mistake. If its a doctor's error, then you should be fine, unless you also somehow contributed.

Take a look at these doctrines: Master-servant, Borrowed servant, captain of the ship, and ostensible agency.

[brownbook]

Lawyers will sue whomever has the most money to collect damages from. If a nurse puts the wrong medicine in a syringe, injects the patient, the patient dies, that nurse will be sued. Lawyers will include doctors, hospitals, etc., in the lawsuit to get more money. They might include the drug company that made the medication, the company that made the syringe, anyone they can think of, but the nurse will be tried in a court of law for wrongful death.

[caliotter3]

I don't know why he told you that.

[Richard_Head]

Lawyers add everyone they can get away with to the suit, that allows them the most felxibility.

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

The Importance of Professional Liability Insurance in Managing Risk

The information and knowledge gained should assist nurses in all clinical practice areas to take control and manage the risks within their individual workplace and nursing practice.

Ceu credit no longer available, but good info. Karen

[GM2RN]

The short answer is that he's wrong.

Anyone can be sued for anything at any time regardless of fault. You can be at fault and win the suit, and be faultless and lose. The only question is, do you have the money to defend a lawsuit?

[carolmaccas66, BSN, RN]

i had a conversation with a doctor who i work with about the lawsuit. he told me that nurses are not being sued but rather people will go after the doctor and the corporation. he said that when people sue, nurses can be included in the lawsuit but the doctors and the corporation are responsible even though its nurses who are at fault? what do you guys think

your post is a little ambiguous - what do you mean by 'the lawsuit?'

and you are responsible for your practice, it doesn't matter what the doctor, nurse manager, student, etc has done/said/told you, etc. you need to follow your state/country's nursing legal guidelines for practice and cover yourself always. you are the one who will be hauled up in court if anything goes wrong, maybe along with everyone else involved. i am quite surprised actually people still ask this question in the nursing field. this is why we registered nurses (don't know re other nurses in your country/state) are called independent and accountable practitioners.

[PostOpPrincess, BSN, RN]

That's a fib.

[SaltyNurse]

Let that physician stick with advising on topics relevent to his/her specific area of knowledge. Clearly, it doesn't include practicing law.