As a legal nurse consultant, you have encountered or will encounter cases that involve incidents in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU). You may have personal experiences of being in a recovery room.

Pat Hirsch, a nurse who has a depth of experience in critical care and PACU units, describes some of the common types of liability in this setting and how PACU personnel handle them.

The possibility of falling always looms large in a PACU. Patients may be disoriented, have pre-existing cognitive issues, visual disturbances, language barriers, and other issues. Where Pat works, low-, medium-, and high-risk patients are pre-identified. High-risk patients are given yellow socks and wrist bands, and other precautions are set into place.

Today you’ll have an opportunity to learn from a cardiologist, pharmacologist, and author, who has brought his expertise into the world of expert witnesses. Dr. Michael Zema shares what he has learned to sharpen his expert witness abilities.

Dr. Zema has a routine of breaking up case analysis with research, which not only relieves the tedium of endless pages of documentation but gives him new insights into the case.

This podcast is different from others we’ve done. Jean Cooper documents her role and that of a multitude of experts in the case of a 19-year-old African American single mother, Susan, in Arizona who was convicted of murdering her 10-month-old daughter, Lily.

The mother had a healthy, active older daughter, but her younger girl had failed to thrive. Although she took the little girl for well-baby visits, this was not noted. In addition, when the child was 10 months old, the mother took her to the ER for an upper respiratory condition.

The doctor failed to document the large amount of ketones in released urine that day; nor did he mention that she was underweight. She weighed 11 pounds, and the normal weight for a 10-month baby is 16 pounds. It seems likely that early diagnosis and treatment could have averted tragedy. Instead, Lily developed another respiratory condition that resulted in her death.

No one looks forward to going under anesthesia—for good reasons. Under the best of circumstances, there may be unanticipated risks. Kristen Hull, an experienced nurse anesthetist, shares with us how anesthesia mishaps can occur and what best practices can prevent them. Because an LNC is likely to get involved in a malpractice suit involving anesthesia, this podcast has particular value to you.

We have increasing awareness of the multiple deficiencies in the U.S. medical system, particularly in hospitals. Here with an inside look at efforts to solve this, is Dianna Goodwin, a registered nurse with 28 years of varied experience. Speaking as a manager, she shares her experience in providing the best possible support for nurses in terms of training on all levels.

The ability to deliver an informative and easy-to-follow medical chronology can boost your LNC business. Emily Flynn, an experienced emergency department nurse, has been a legal nurse consultant since 2006. She brings her expertise to the complex subject of preparing a chronology that meets her clients’ needs.

Emily describes how she uses basic software such as Word to build her chronologies, including specific color accents to highlight major points. She also keeps a file of medical and pharmaceutical definitions that she can cut and paste into chronologies.

Though this is her basic approach, she always determines the attorney’s preferred format for a chronology and also how much content the client wants. Emily finds it crucial to have a system for organizing the files and discovering when critical files are missing from the records.

Medically-assisted opioid-related overdoses have become major news items. Erin Laferriere got involved in such a case, the Mount Carmen/Dr. Husel litigation in 2020. Dr. Husel was charged with 14 counts of murder. The nurses involved were charged civilly with negligence and were reported to their respective nursing boards. Erin was involved with the civil cases.

In the course of her investigation, she learned about much more than the process of medically assisted death. What astonished her was the degree to which the nurses involved went along with the doctor. Some of that may have been due to the deference nurses often show physicians, but a deeper issue was identified.

Erin says: “Nurses are not going to report medical errors if they're going to be punished for it, whether it's their mistake or somebody else's mistake. That fear of losing your license, your livelihood, your passion, your profession is a very real fear, and it's becoming more common in the post-pandemic era.”

Pat supported this, that when she was in a clinical position, her director of nursing said that if a nurse reported three medication errors, she would lose her job.

This podcast will not only give you useful information should you ever come across such a case, but it will make you think. When a hospital punishes nurses for doing the right thing, how can they expect an environment in which a patient’s pharmaceutical needs are correctly administered?

Join me in this episode of Serial Healthcare Killers - Erin Laferriere

* What are the correct protocols for a “Do not resuscitate” case?

* When should a nurse question a medication order?

* Why did these nurses not question the medication orders of Dr. Husel?

* What role did the punitive atmosphere in the hospital play in this tragedy?

* How did the pharmacists become involved in this?

Listen to our podcasts or watch them using our app, Expert.edu, available at legalnursebusiness.com/expertedu.

https://youtu.be/qdOGodIfwcU

You can still order the recordings for our 7th Virtual Conference!

LNC Success is a Virtual Conference 3-day event designed for legal nurse consultants just like you!

Pat Iyer and Barbara Levin put together THE first Legal Nurse Consulting Virtual Conference in July 2020.

They are back with their 7th all-new conference based on what attendees said they’d find most valuable. This new implementation and networking event is designed for LNCs at any stage in their career.

Build your expertise, attract higher-paying attorney clients, and take your business to the next level.

After the LNC Success Virtual Conference, you will leave with clarity, confidence, and an effective step-by-step action plan that you can immediately implement in your business.

Your Presenter of Serial Healthcare Killers - Erin Laferriere

I am a registered nurse and critical care expert witness with more than thirteen years of critical care experience. I obtained a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Salem State College in 2009 and a Master of Science in Nursing with a focus on leadership and management from Walde...

Do you feel that you have the ability to help resolve conflicts between people? Are you able to listen impartially to both sides of a dispute? If so, you may have a future as a mediator. And if you don’t, you can learn a lot from this podcast about how understanding the mediation process can allow you to help your client, the attorney.

An LNC, mediator, and mediator trainer, Jaime Gerrie, shares what she’s learned in her career as a mediator. She emphasizes that as nurses, we’ve been trained to act as mediators. We may mediate between physicians and patients, fellow nurses, and other members of the medical community.

Even the experienced LNC may wonder how to best inform an attorney that his or her case lacks merit, especially when it’s clear that this attorney has become invested in the case. Pam Di Gennaro, a highly experienced LNC, provides a practical guide on how to let attorneys down easily by speaking to them in the language of tort law.

Another issue arising from a case without merit may be an unwelcome call from the plaintiff. She explains the ethical and compassionate response.

Pam is not only skilled at LNC etiquette; she has had the unique experience of being an Army wife who had to reestablish her practice every time her family had to move. Her techniques and positive approach can benefit any LNC.

She also gives a detailed summary of the positive and negative aspects of getting involved in mass tort litigation. Pam recommends it for a new LNC because it provides a steady paycheck and extensive experience. She views it, however, as a training period only, advising the LNC to take the experience, put it on your résumé, and move on to better-paying work.

This podcast is both practical and inspirational. You’ll want to listen to it more than once.

Even the experienced LNC may wonder how to best inform an attorney that his or her case lacks merit, especially when it’s clear that this attorney has become invested in the case. Pam Di Gennaro, a highly experienced LNC, provides a practical guide on how to let attorneys down easily by speaking to them in the language of tort law.

Another issue arising from a case without merit may be an unwelcome call from the plaintiff. She explains the ethical and compassionate response.

Pam is not only skilled at LNC etiquette; she has had the unique experience of being an Army wife who had to reestablish her practice every time her family had to move. Her techniques and positive approach can benefit any LNC.

She also gives a detailed summary of the positive and negative aspects of getting involved in mass tort litigation. Pam recommends it for a new LNC because it provides a steady paycheck and extensive experience. She views it, however, as a training period only, advising the LNC to take the experience, put it on your résumé, and move on to better-paying work.

This podcast is both practical and inspirational. You’ll want to listen to it more than once.