According to anecdotal evidence, there are approximately 250,000 lawyers doing medical malpractice suits in the U.S. That doesn’t mean they don’t consult with medical experts when it comes to understanding the complex language of medicine. Legal nurse consultants, trained originally as a nurse in one of the accredited nursing colleges, is often their specialist of choice.
At its core, a legal nurse is a person who first became a Registered Nurse who then went on to study law. They are employed both by the legal and the medical professions. Lawyers hire them to read and interpret medical reports and records of their clients, especially for finding irregularities. The medical world has legal nurses around in order to advise about possible legal consequences for one action or another. Courts have also been known to hire them to discern which of two different sides is telling the truth, while the other is hiding behind legal or medical jargon.
The interesting thing is it’s a very young industry. Its main professional organization, the American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants, was only established in 1989. Assisting with definitions of professional stature, counseling, research, and educational needs, this not for profit association works closely with those in the field. If you need more information about online nursing schools, look on the internet.
Writing detailed reports, working under pressure and with looming deadlines, and relating complex medical information to those who don’t have a medical background are just some of the qualifications of those wishing to be a legal nurse. On the web site for the Association there are some 20 questions that anyone thinking about specializing in this field should answer. A significant amount of yes answers indicate a good candidate. Too many no responses and those who are curious many want to reconsider.
From the looks of things, one of the larger problems a nurse faces is getting a proper education in the specialty. While there are a number of organizations that offer courses and curriculum, both online and on campus, there apparently is no formalized approach for the legal aspect. Attending an accredited school to obtain your nursing degrees, such as a bachelor of science, is one way to make sure your hard work is recognized. This is offered as a standard by the Association.
The primary emphasis of the education should then be if the program offered is considered separate from the education of paralegals and legal assistants because of the differences in their practice in the legal arena. The primary focus of legal nurse consulting education should be to build on nursing education and clinical experience and to prepare nurses to function in the legal arena. If the school meets these standards, it is more than likely legitimate. There is an abundance of information about nursing university on the web.
A legal nurse can build quite a healthy practice if her network skills match medical and legal expertise. The recognized pro can command $125 to $150 an hour for their services. With experience and a growing expertise, a legal nurse has the potential to make over $100,000 per year, working two to three days per week.
Nursing colleges are providing the basic education and degrees for those entering this field. Even if one does not wish to specialize in the legal side, nursing degree schools provide the background to work in numerous fields meeting one’s own professional requirements.