In March, I taught a one hour session to legal nurse consultants at the American Association of Legal Nurse Consultant’s annual meeting. I challenged them to share their best writing tip. I’ve compiled the tips in this ezine, eliminated duplicate entries, and selected the first tip as the prize winner, who won the Writing Handbook for LNCs. Read the prior blog post for the winning entry.
Short and simple. Write the sentence, then go back and cross out unnecessary words but retain the meaning of the sentence in the shortest format. Veronica Bennett, Clifton, VA
Provide backup for determinations based on facts in documents, gold standards, the provider’s own statements, etc. Use bullets. Norma Janke, Larkspur, CO
I always acknowledge that it was a pleasure to work with him or her on this case, or I thank them for the opportunity to have worked on this case. Kathleen Rau, Rosebud, MT
Spend 10-15 minutes to outline my thoughts related to my case. Identify the outline’s answers, the complaint, or issue at hand. Keep the number of pages limited. Kim Beladi, Franklin, TN
When you use Dragon Naturally Speaking, you may enter specific terms, diagnoses, doctors’ names, and so on so that the report is consistent. You can use this tool simply to be consistent in writing. Cheryl O’Connell, West Chester, PA
Once you review a record, immediately do a report even though the attorney may not want one. This way when you need the report, you do not have to review the records again (at your own expense of time.) Lori Klingman, Pittsburgh, PA
Plan for multiple drafts and prune each draft. Diane Krasner, York, PA.
Keep it simple enough that a judge can understand it. Beth Zorn, Victor, NY
Complete review by identifying each issue, regulations pertaining to the issue, deviations by staff, physician, etc and the consequences. Attorneys tend to like regulation/rule + consequence. It simplifies the case. Fran Britt, Pinellas Park, FL
Summarize briefly the specific breaches of the standards of care in one paragraph. Then express opinion with strong adjectives (i.e. willful disregard, reckless, outrageous, and negligent) as appropriate to the case. Terri Antoinette, West Alexander, PA
Want more tips? Read our ezine by filling in your information in the optin box on the website.
