To get insurance or to not get insurance...that is the question

[Stella_Blue]

Ok so something happened to me today at school that has me thinking. I am currently a LPN and have always carried malpractice insurance throughout my entire career, and you could not convince me otherwise. Well, I am currently in a bridge program working on my RN. Today we were at clinicals, and we were just discussing the end of our day with our instructor. I had brought up something about malpractice insurance and to make sure you always have it. Our instructor highly emphasized that we DID NOT get malpractice insurance. I was baffled by this. She said most RN's she has ever worked with never carried it because it just puts a big red X on your back. She proceeded to tell us that even her ethics professor at her school told her not to get insurance as well. My instructor said that hospitals will cover you under their policy. Now I already knew this, but I also know that hospitals do not have our best interest, they have want to protect their own butts first.

I guess I just wanted to know what is everyone else's take on this? Do you carry malpractice insurance? It seems like it has always been drilled into my head to always have malpractice insurance, and now I have an instructor telling me no! I understand that it can target you, but still. I guess I'm just trying to figure out what I should do when I graduate. Of course, I'm going to watch my P's and Q's and follow protocol, but still I'm human and a mistake could always happen.

[kaydensmom01]

That's horrible that she has told the students that and confused those who do not know any better! Our instructors have always told us the importance of carrying your own malpractice insurance.

[Mulan]

We were required to have it as students and I have continued to have it for many years.

[amoLucia]

I said this before in another thread - you have home owners' insurance, auto insurance and health insurance. You wouldn't think NOT to have them, even though we know it's only for JUST IN CASE scenarios. Nobody else will protect you as well as you do it yourself. And you're protecting your license, your husband's and kids' futures as well as your assets.

And for about $100 a year which is about the cost of 2 or 3 cartons of cigarettes.

To OP, JUST DO IT!!!!!

[CT Pixie, BSN, RN]

And for about $100 a year which is about the cost of 2 or 3 cartons of cigarettes.

To OP, JUST DO IT!!!!!

2-3 cartons would run closer to $200-300 here in CT. Just sayin

[SGroRN87]

As a nursing faculty, I carry Liability Insurance for my own protection even though our school has a blanket policy.

[melizerd, ASN, RN]

Our instructors encouraged us to get our own, both in school and as a practicing nurse. The school (and then the hospital) will ALWAYS cover their own butt but not always ours.

[amoLucia]

2-3 cartons would run closer to $200-300 here in CT. Just sayin

WOW! Haven't smoked in years - didn't realize smokes were so expensive!!! Just trying to make my point re yearly malpractice insurance cost being a bargain in today's economy. Worth every buck!

[MrChicagoRN, RN]

The argument against individual malpractice insurance has some merit, but you need to do what you think is best.

The argument:

If someone sues, they follow the money. If you and the hospital are named in a suit, the hospital will generally represent you, because that's in their best interest. Your actions are the hospitals liability, like it or not. They will also usually be able to get the nurse removed from the suit as the plaintant is...following the money, and you are small potatoes. If you do have your own policy, you will have your own representation, and the hospital has no interest in getting you off the complaint, as they now have a party with equity to share the potential liability.

There's no way anyone can find out if you have a private policy with a private company unless you tell someone, or through discovery when legal action is first being initiated.

In an individual action, involving the BON, etc your own counsel is definitely needed.

So, do whatever you think is best.

[NicuGal, MSN, RN]

Old school for sure!!!

[cassie77775]

I was actually told the very same thing.

[Wushu]

I recently got malpractice insurance. Was throwing the idea back and forth. Finally, decided to get it. One of my nurse friends said that they would be able to find out before a lawsuit but couldn't answer my question "how?". She is also an old school nurse. I would honestly have the peace of mind knowing that I am covered. The hospital policy will only protect you to a certain point. I wouldn't think that they won't throw you under the bus to save themselves. Also, it helps with the board. My advice would be to look around and compare different policies and learn about the different types of coverage (like occurrence based etc). Usually students get a discount.

[elkpark]

If you and the hospital are named in a suit, the hospital will generally represent you, because that's in their best interest. Your actions are the hospitals liability, like it or not. They will also usually be able to get the nurse removed from the suit as the plaintant is...following the money, and you are small potatoes. If you do have your own policy, you will have your own representation, and the hospital has no interest in getting you off the complaint, as they now have a party with equity to share the potential liability.

What I personally witnessed over the several years I worked as a hospital surveyor for my state and CMS was, in situations we investigated that were likely to end up being lawsuits, the first thing the hospital (any hospital, anywhere in the state) did, long before anyone even filed any kind of suit, as a pre-emptive gesture, was to identify some nurse(s) that the hospital could blame for the incident and promptly fire that RN as a gesture of good faith and attempt to minimize the organization's liability (golly, we're very sorry, we didn't realize we had a dangerously incompetent RN working for us -- but we've fixed that now). I never investigated a situation/complaint that looked like it would probably end up as a lawsuit in which the hospital was going to stand by the RN(s) directly involved. That might have been the case "back in the day," but it's not the case now. As soon as something bad happens, the hospital attorneys and risk management people start combing the records looking for someone they can point the finger at and blame for the incident, in order to reduce the hospital's liability.

Of course, the chance that an RN will be sued in the course of her/his career is slim. The chance of needing to appear before the BON to defend one's license, or of being called as a witness in a case against someone else is significantly higher, and (as you note regarding the BON), one would want one's own counsel in either of those situations.