Frequently Asked Questions |
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1.
How do we protect your privacy during Online purchases of books
and other products?
The security of your
personal information is very important to us. We never sell or
rent your personal information to any third parties under any
circumstances. We value your trust very highly, and will work
to protect the security and privacy of any personal information
that you provide to us. Please review our billing
FAQ for more information.
2. What is a legal nurse consultant?
A
legal nurse consultant is an individual with expertise in both
nursing and the law. This specially trained nurse assists those
involved in the litigation process by acting as a bridge between the worlds
of law and medicine.
3. How many legal nurse consultants are there
in this country?
While
there is no accurate count available, there are close to 3600
members of the American Association of Legal Nurse Consultants,
the largest organization of legal nurse consultants.
4. Who employs legal nurse consultants?
Nurses
in this field work with primarily defense and plaintiff attorneys,
insurance companies, and the court system. They are also employed
by healthcare facilities to provide risk prevention services.
5. Who uses your services?
Med
League Support Services Inc. works with plaintiff and
defense attorneys who are handling personal injury, medical malpractice,
products liability and criminal cases. We have clients in 33 states
and have been in business since 1989.
Who We Are provides you with information
about our president, support staff and consultants.
6. Do you work directly with injured patients
who do not have attorneys?
No,
we will assist an attorney once the injured patient has decided
to seek the services of an attorney.
7. Can you recommend an attorney to an injured
patient who does not have one?
We
do not provide referral services but would suggest that a patient
contact the local bar association for a recommendation of an attorney,
or speak to friends and associates for a recommendation.
8.
What is involved in screening a medical malpractice case for merit?
We
help attorneys who have been approached by a person who believes
that malpractice has been committed by the healthcare providers.
After the attorney has obtained the records, we review them and
offer a screening opinion
on the merits of the case. Our physician consultant provides an
opinion based on their years of screening medical malpractice
cases. He reviews cases involving most areas of medicine. The
attorney may then chose to use our services to locate an expert
witness to provide a more detailed review of the case.
9. Why should an attorney use a physician consultant
or nurse rather than an expert witness (physician) to screen a
malpractice case?
The
economics of screening a malpractice case suggest that it is far
less expensive to use our service than to send the case directly
to an expert witness to review. A physician who acts as an expert witness charges
$250-$500 or more per hour to screen a case. Our hourly rate is
a fraction of that. In order to win a malpractice case (obtain
a settlement or trial verdict), the patient (plaintiff) has to
prove four things:
1.
The healthcare provider had a duty to provide care.
2.
The standard of care was not followed.
3.
The patient suffered some type of injury.
4.
It was the deviation from the standard of care that caused the
injury to the patient
Most
of the cases that we review do not contain all four of these elements.
It becomes very expensive to refer every case to an expert witness
to review, when our physician or a nurse can analyze the four
elements of the case instead.
10. Why is it important to have a nurse summarize
medical records in a personal injury case?
The
nurse is better able to read
and interpret medical records than the typical attorney. Nurses
are used to physician's handwriting, medical terminology and abbreviations.
We can spot the significant clinical information that may not
be noticed by the attorney. A summary provides a concise snapshot
of the significant information that will affect the claim.
11. Do you testify
about your summaries of medical records?
We
have created a unique type of expert witness role called the expert fact witness.
After reading the plaintiff's medical records, we prepare a narrative
report and figures which define the pain and suffering that the
records state the plaintiff experienced as a result of either
a personal injury or medical malpractice incident. Our testimony
is then used in the court room to educate the jury. Although most
of these cases have settled, this testimony has been used in a
number of trials so far.
12.
How can an attorney find out more about your service?
Contact us. |
