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Discussion

Malpractice Insurance?

I have been told by a couple of nurses that I worked with as a PCT to be sure to get my own Malpractice insurance once I begin working as an RN. I've thought about it on and off since.

I started working as an RN a month ago, and have had some general nursing orientation days where I just sit in a classroom and listen to staff talk to us about different aspects of working as a nurse in this specific hospital. One of them (a woman from HR, I believe) began her speech by telling us that she always gets questions from new nurses about whether they should get malpractice insurance, and she said, "Don't worry about that. You're covered by the hospital. You don't need to buy your own malpractice insurance."

Some of the nurses in my orientation group seemed skeptical of that.

So I guess I'm wondering what you all think about this? Do you think it's safe/smart to rely on the hospital/organization to cover you if a patient files a complaint? Is there the possibility that the hospital will say, "No, we don't want to cover this particular dispute" for whatever reason? Or am I worrying for nothing?

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    • Featured Replies

    The hospital will help you as long as they benefit, too. But if they need to sacrifice you to save themselves, they will. Don't count on the hospital to have your best interest at heart. Get your own insurance.

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    • Guides

    There are a ton of threads in here about your own insurance. I carry my own, the next question is with whom? I use NSO.

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    Please do read the other threads. I think you will find that the overwhelming majority will recommend that you get your own insurance. I have had my own insurance since I was a student and will never practice without it.

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    • Experts
    One of them (a woman from HR, I believe) began her speech by telling us that she always gets questions from new nurses about whether they should get malpractice insurance, and she said, "Don't worry about that. You're covered by the hospital. You don't need to buy your own malpractice insurance."

    Some of the nurses in my orientation group seemed skeptical of that.

    So I guess I'm wondering what you all think about this? Do you think it's safe/smart to rely on the hospital/organization to cover you if a patient files a complaint? Is there the possibility that the hospital will say, "No, we don't want to cover this particular dispute" for whatever reason? Or am I worrying for nothing?

    There are a bunch of existing threads on this site about individual professional liability (malpractice) coverage that are worth reading. Every hospital will tell you what your HR lady told you, because the hospital wants to keep you "barefoot and pregnant," as the old cliche' goes -- if something goes wrong, the hospital wants you to be dependent on the hospital's attorneys for legal advice. However, the hospital is entirely free to choose to cover you or not if something goes sideways at work. There may have been a day when hospitals stood by their employees through tough situations, but, nowadays, as soon as something goes wrong, the hospital risk management and legal counsel people go looking for someone on the staff they can blame for the incident, and they will happily throw that person under the bus to help protect the larger institution. I personally saw this happen many times, in many different facilities, when I worked as a hospital surveyor for my state and CMS for several years.

    I would never practice a single day without my own coverage. My father, a physician, advised me 'waaaay back when I was in nursing school never to depend on an employer to look out for my interests, and always carry my own coverage, and everything I've seen since then (~30 years) has only reinforced what excellent advice that was.

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    I've carried my own coverage since graduation. Even if the HR lady is right (and I wouldn't bet on it, hospitals are not there to help you, they are there to make money, and they will throw you under the buss so fast it will make you breathless), it's so cheap it's hard to justify not having it. Yes, you are covered under the hospital's policy, but if they can show that you deviated from policy and procedure in any way, then they can shove you out in the cold and you are in for a world of hurt. And you will find as you go forth in your career that there will be times that you will deviate from policy and procedure, usually with a very good reason, and often with the complicit support of management. It's usually around $80-120 per year depending on your specialty and the company you choose. Skip buying one pair of running shoes, and you've got the funds for it.

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    Every working nurse should have malpractice insurance.

    About coverage, this is one of the things you ask before you buy. Some will cover you for something that happened whenever so long as you are paying premium NOW. Some will cover you for something that happened whenever if you were paying premium THEN. Ask. Never, ever be afraid to ask.

    Some folks will say that they have heard that only people with insurance get sued, under the "deep pockets" theory of litigation, or that the hospital's insurance will cover you for nursing malpractice. Neither is true. Problem is that if your hospital has a judgment against them for something you did, they don't pay it, their insurance carrier pays it. And then, no matter what the hospital promises you, the insurance carrier is entitled by law to recover their losses...from you, and don't think they won't. My dad wrote insurance on hospitals for years and told me never, never, never go "bare" (without my own insurance) unless I was perfectly comfortable living under a bridge, with no real estate, no money, and no car.

    Yeah, I know, there are laws protecting some assets under bankruptcy. But they could garnish your wages more or less in perpetuity, and that wreaks hell with your credit rating. (Did you know that credit ratings are checked when you apply for jobs?) You wanna deal c that? Not I, since decent malpractice insurance is good for short money.

    Make sure the policy you buy is clear to you: Does it cover you only while it's in force (while you're still paying for it), or does it cover you for things that happened while you were paying for it in the past, even if you aren't working now and don't think you need insurance? Be sure it pays for your own lawyer, too, or supplies one to defend you (never, never, NEVER rely on the hospital's lawyer to defend you-- conflict of interest there; they do not have your best interests at heart no matter what they say).

    . :)

    For more good info and comments, see these threads:

    https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/malpractice-insurance-rns-787067.html

    https://allnurses.com/general-nursing...es-583077.html

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    You REALLY need to get your own insurance. It is only about $100 bucks per year and it is worth every penny. Just ask any RN who has gotten sued. And believe me, it really does happen. I have only been a nurse for a little over 1 year and I personally know of two nurses who have gotten sued. One of them was working at as an agency nurse and was dragged into a lawsuit that lasted for 7 years. The hospital will leave you out in the cold without a second thought if it benefits them, believe me. Visit a website like NSO (nursing service organization, I believe).

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    Do it. As everyone said, hospitals will gladly throw you under the bus to cover their own financial self-interest. My insurance was $54 for the first year from NSO with the first-year discount for 50% off. I'm going to see if I can buy a rider to double my financial coverage.

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    My "LIKE" clicking finger has gotten a cramp from "liking ' all the responses posted here!!! You'd be plain crazy NOT to get your own malpractice insurance.

    Think about it - how likely is it that the HR lady would ever be sued??? Not her, but you would. It's called protecting yourself, your family, your education, your career, your assets.

    DO IT!

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    • Experts

    Don't leave home without it!!!!!!!

    The hospital will throw you under the bus in a heartbeat. They don't like nursing having it because when they do wrong you have a lawyer available to you to protect you. If you are ever accused of a license threatening offense...... the hospital lawyer, especially if it by the hospital itself, will not help you.

    I carried insurance for 35 years...never needed it but I was glad it was there. I used NSO.

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    • Admin

    I just watched a video for my class on legal issues for nurse educators. The main speaker, a nurse who is now a judge, said the same thing as your HR person. My jaw dropped, and continued to drop over the comments from my classmates who believe this crap. For me, it's all about the peace of mind knowing that there is someone looking out for my interests, not the interests of the hospital or school.

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    we were required to have it as students so definitely as a practicing RN. I forget who mine is through right now - but it was the same as I had as a student and they gave me a new grad rate at 50% off the regular rate. I can certainly find something worse to blow $100 a year on!

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