FAQs

What is a legal nurse consultant?

• The legal nurse consultant is a licensed Registered Nurse who performs a critical analysis of clinical and administrative nursing practice, healthcare facts and issues and their outcomes for the legal profession, healthcare professions, consumers of healthcare and legal services, and others as appropriate. With a strong educational and experiential foundation, the legal nurse consultant is qualified to assess adherence to standards and guidelines of healthcare practice as it applies to the nursing and healthcare professions.

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How can a legal nurse consultant help me?

• Legal nurse consultants can act as collaborators, strategists, and educators by offering support in medically related litigation and other medical-legal matters such as personal injury, product liability, medical malpractice, toxic torts, workers' compensation, risk management, healthcare licensure investigation, and other applicable cases.

How is a legal nurse consultant different from a paralegal or a legal assistant?

• A legal nurse consultant is a Registered Nurse, unlike a paralegal or a legal assistant, and is a unique and valuable member of the litigation team. Legal nurse consultants bring their health science education and clinical expertise to healthcare-related issues in the litigation process.

What are some specific benefits of hiring a legal nurse consultant?

• Experience. The legal nurse consultant has an extensive background of clinical experience, which includes interpretation of medical records, documents, and medical-legal issues.

• Cost-effectiveness. Legal nurse consultants utilize their nursing background and knowledge of healthcare standards to identify strengths and weaknesses of a case.

• Resourcefulness. The legal nurse consultant possesses a network of medical and professional resources and contacts.

• Knowledge. The legal nurse consultant has a thorough understanding of medical issues and trends related to the total litigation process. The legal nurse consultant is able to customize the case for the attorney, the client and jury.