September 19th, 2012
A blog located on a website is a powerful tool.
1. Use your blog to demonstrate your expertise.
Blogging is a way to demonstrate your knowledge of a subject of interest to your visitors. Once you clearly define your target market, your blog enables you to share new insights, stories, news, advice, tips and other helpful details. A blog has become a way to talk about the things that you are interested in and the services you offer.
2. Use your blog to provide fresh content to help with your search engine ranking.
Websites tend to be static, whereas a blog can be changed as often as you like. Some people blog daily; others blog 2-3 times a week or less. Search engines thrive on fresh information. A blog that contains strategically placed keywords in the blog title and body helps draw search engine attention.
3. Use your blog to express your personality.
Your blog opens up a channel of conversation with your visitors. Take a stand; state an opinion on a hot topic in your niche. Encourage comments and feedback. A blog can provide this forum.
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Tags: blog, blogging, ideas, legal nurse consultant, market, search engine, social media, target
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June 9th, 2012
By guest bloggers Lee Houston RN BSN and Pat Iyer RN MSN LNCC
9 Advantages of Reviewing Medical Records Using Adobe Acrobat
This blog post refers to using a computer monitor and Adobe Acrobat to review medical records that have been saved as PDFs.
1. It’s more cost effective. Consider the costs of a copier, a scanner, toner, paper, postage, and maintenance of a copier machine, compared to the cost of scanning records and recording a disk.
2. Electronic files can be sent or stored on a document sharing site, making them accessible to many people.
3. It is easier to store records that are scanned and saved on a CD.
4. Electronic medical records are much more portable.
5. Electronic records can be searched using Adobe Acrobat.
6. You can bookmark pages using Adobe acrobat as well as add comments.
7. You can combine PDF files using Adobe Acrobat, and then number them using a Bates stamping system such as the one that is part of Case Map
8. You can copy and paste sections of a medical record without having to retype or transcribe them.
9. You can electronically reorganize pages within a file.
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Tags: Adobe, electronic medical record, EMR, JERK LNC, legal, legal nurse consultant, LNC, medical malpractice, medical record, medical record review, pdf file, RN
Posted in Legal Nurse Consultants | 1 Comment »
February 25th, 2012
There are days, especially when I am with students, when I feel my life has been divinely led. Tonight was on of those evenings. My clinical setting is a SNF for medically fragile children- one of a handful in the country. Kids there have trachs, g tubes, j tubes and soon will start taking vents as well. The main diagnosis is Cerebral palsy, but there are also children with genetic disorders, severe TBI, and near drowning.
I got into my part time job as a clinical instructor by accident- one of my previous students told me that they needed an instructor for this setting, and knew that I would be a perfect fit. After all, I had 7 years of experience of working with special needs kids and adults.
I had never thought before of wanting to be a nursing instructor. Even though I always had students in my previous jobs, they were always fit into an already tight schedule and I would feel resentful- how would I do my own job, when I am making sure they were taken care of?
So, fast forward to the present time and my joy of being with students. I consider myself very fortunate to be with the students in this setting and tell them regularly it is my honor to be their instructor. I tell them that working with these children is a spiritual experience and they will never be the same.
I talk a lot to the students about the spiritual side of nursing- the part that leaves us so often when we are busy and stressed. I tell them my definition of spiritual care- which is bearing witness- just being there and not necessarily needing to provide anything except a smile, touch, or ear.
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Tags: BSN, legal nurse consultant, Nurse, nursing, nursing instructor, pediatric, student, student nurse
Posted in Legal Nurse Consultants | 5 Comments »
February 13th, 2012
As Legal Nurse Consultants we may be faced with reviewing charts where any number of these issues have occurred. These are problems that when patients and families face them, lead to unpleasant discussions, many times very emotional outcomes, and frequently lead them to believe that someone needs to be sued because the outcome was not what they desired. An attorney may ask you to give your opinion on whether the right decision was made. Are we able to determine what the right ethical decision is? No, because what may seem ethical to me may not be ethical to someone else. However, we can determine whether the health care provider did all that they could to facilitate communication so that the patient and their family were able to make an informed decision.
What are some ethical issues that one may run into with the End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patient population?
1. Starting Dialysis
2. Withdrawal of Dialysis
3. Non-compliance
4. Do Not Resuscitate (DNR)
I will give you some scenarios; each I have had experience with, and each has its own set of ethical issues. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: dialysis, dilemma, DNR, ESRD, ethics, hemodialysis, JERK LNC, kidney failure, legal, legal nurse, legal nurse consultant, LNC, nurse consultant
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February 8th, 2012
For many Legal Nurse Consultants (LNCs), the thought of testifying in a trial is extremely intimidating. No matter how much your attorney has prepared you for what might come at you from the other side; the thought of the unknown can be terrifying. Even seasoned testifying expert nurses can experience anxiety and apprehension during trial. Extensive preparation is needed to ensure the expert is well versed with the case and is prepared for the dreaded cross-examination.
Legal Nurse Consultants are utilized by attorneys as expert witnesses to provide the jury with the needed knowledge to arrive at the truth. Expert witnesses are individuals that have a certain skill set or specialized knowledge to assist the jury in understanding certain evidence and/or in determining a material fact. The advanced knowledge that a Legal Nurse Consultant possess makes them an excellent expert witness to effectively aid in explaining difficult nursing issues or deviations in nursing Standards of Care to the jury.
No matter how well prepared you are to testify as an expert, the cross-examination by the opposing counsel can be intimidating. There are many tricks and techniques the opposing side will utilize to try to discredit you and “poke you full of holes”, but if you can prepare yourself to think how they are going to cross-examine you, you can remain one step ahead and hold your ground.
According to Jim McElhaney (2011), a Litigation Columnist at the ABA Journal, there are eight ways to cross-examine a witness, both expert and lay[1]. First stated is that opposing counsel (OC) is going to try and make the witness their witness. They will try to get them to speak on their clients behalf instead of going at them head on in a defense attack. This occurs when the OC switches the questioning around so that you, as the LNC witness, will be talking about their client in a manner that is more beneficial to their issues. For example, the OC questions you about the lifelong physical and emotional issues the client may have to experience due to their injury rather than why the nurse did what they did. This form of questioning makes you their witness as you end up speaking “for” their client. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: attorney, cross-examination, expert witness, JERK LNC, lawyer, legal nurse consultant, LNC, Nurse, testifying expert
Posted in Legal Nurse Consultants | 3 Comments »
