What NSO will protect

[RedZeppelinRN]

Be very, very, careful for applying for nursing insurance. Research thoroughly. The only protection you get, is if you you are sued and you nursing license is in jeopardy. My understand is that the help you get in your policy is only for license protection. If you are being sued for malpractice or anything else, if your license is not in jeopardy you will not be covered.

I filed a suit for dangeous practices at a LTC that the administer ignored, believing I was mandated to report these dangerous practices to the state if the facility did not correct the situation, and of course I was fired. My attorney called me one day and said he wasn't making any money and wanted me to sign a paper that I wanted a replacement. I refused because he told me that he would represent me and gave it to an unexperience attorney. He told me the case would settle, and we probably would not have to go to Court. The facility was cited many times and was placed on the "National Watch List" for actual harm. One day he called and said he want to dismiss the case because he wasn't making any money. However, on the WRITTEN request he gave the reason that he could not get along with me.

The attorney applied for dismissal of the case and I got a lot of services to go to court and the judge issued a order that I pay the defendent 1700 dollars. There are a lot of things that I am being served for, the attorney did not return the discoveries and the interrogatories, but did not tell me, so I am told if I lose the case, I will lbe iable for thousands and thousands of dollars for sanction and served with 4 court dates. I told the lawyer I was not going to get another attorney, that I did not want to go through any more of this trauma. The attorney does not want to give me back my file for some reason.

Just be exceedingly sure that NSO insurance is for License protection only, even though that protection seems adequate.

I don't know what to tell you about lawyers if you need them. Maybe nurse lawyers. This was an employment lawyer. I was told the case would settle and we would just have to wait. I was just flabbergasted at the deception. I am in San Diego, and if you want the names of the lawyers, please pm me. Silly me, I thought lawyers were supposed to protect you. He agreed to take it under contingency and then said he was busy and gave it over to a foreign lawyer who did some strange things, all the while not letting me know of all the horrible consequenses.

The lawyers told me over the PHONE that they wanted to dismiss it because they weren't making money. Then in there petition to be relieved of my they said "I was too difficult to deal with."

I guess my mistake was in trusing an employment lawyer. But how did I know any better. I guess the road for anyone else is a nurse lawyer, that only handles license protection.

I am curious, if they say they will take it on a contingency, is that a dangerous sign. I am in shock. I don't know what this is all about but I know for sure they don't want me to have my file. They keep saying, I am busy, I am going to go to Arizona next week. I'll call you.

But if you dont have a contigency and have to pay a lot of money up front, how do you get a guarantee that you will win. You don't and you stand a chance of unknown consequences and loss of money. Who do you trust, and when you lose your case against LTF that have many, many abuses against these poor people, that experience outrages deaths and abuse, when they drop their cases against these abuse people, it gives a green light to continue the practice of abuse of these helpless patients for their obscene profits. Also when I asked this attorney for my file, he said he resented me for asking for it and I dont remember what his reason was. He said I had lot of holes in my history but wouldn't tell me what they are and doesn't want me to have my file. I ended up after being fired depressed and traumatized, and then more of it by the lawers. I looked for another job and was fired for the same thing. I tried to tell the DON about the patients and vital signs that weren't being taken done by the CNAs and she ignored me, would not return my phone calls, as I believe I am mandated to report to the State dangerous and abuses situations for patients. So that is what I did. Of course I was fired. My lawyer screamed at me and told me to stop getting into trouble. I had to send out a patient 911 because of her respiratory failure and COPD because no one had checked her that day, much less vital signs, resp 33 and going up, 02 sats leading to confusion, but stablized by the EMT.

It was my duty to report it since the DON would not deal with me, and correct the situation then the administrator and she fired me. Catch 22, I'm obeying the law, they are not, they are cited for this and something else. In 2006, a patient was given an order for Coumadin and asked to report INRs every morning. No labs were ever taken and the same Coumadin dose was given every day without reporting to the doctor. (The doctor did not follow up). She was given the same Coumadin dose for 23 days. Apparently, someone did finally check on her and thought she had a problem and was sent to the hospital and died of a massive brain injury. It was written up in the San Diego Tribune as the worst patient problem in the state. They haven't even paid the $94,000 fine and apologized for her death. Or at lease they appealed it. How could they in their hearts appeal the death of a poor helpless patient they killed?

BUT MY LAWYER TOLD ME TO STOP GETTING INTO TROUBLE.

I thought about becoming an advocate, but thought better of it. It seems like you will get into some serious trouble. You don't interfere with patient abuse and corporate profits.

How do you be a patient advocate like my Union CNA tells me without being a criminal because you interfered with corporate profits.

[elkpark]

I'm very sorry you have found yourself in this awful situation, but you are correct, it is not something that professional Liability Insurance (from any company, not just NSO) would cover.

I hope you'll find a way out of this and can get your life and career back on track! Best wishes -- :icon_hug: