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Understanding malpractice: a guide for nephrology nurses.

Article Excerpt
Goal

To provide an overview of a malpractice lawsuit.

Objectives

1. Identify the three distinct parties who comprise the litigation process.

2. Discuss the elements of a malpractice suit.

3. Explain the process of malpractice.

Malpractice is a rare but life-changing event in the career of a healthcare provider. Nurses tend to harbor a false sense of immunity to this event, but statistical trends show that malpractice claims and payments made by nurses are on the rise. The National Practitioner Data Bank, established under the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 (Public Law 99-660), collects data on the malpractice and disciplinary actions of physicians, dentists, and other healthcare providers, including nurses (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration [DHHS HRSA], 2008). Violations that must be reported to the National Practitioner Data Bank include the loss or restriction of hospital privileges, disciplinary actions taken by state licensing boards, or disciplinary reports generated by professional health care organizations (Martin, 1999).

Medical malpractice payments are also mandated for reporting in the National Practitioner Data Bank. Because nursing malpractice is often brought as a case against the institution versus the individual, the absolute number of cases per year is difficult to track (Carson-Smith & Klein, 2003). However, medical malpractice payments indicate a gradual escalation of malpractice cases involving both non-specialized registered nurses (RNs) and advanced practice nurses (APNs) (DHHS HRSA, 2006). Data from the National Practitioner Data Bank 2006 Annual Report indicate that all types of professional nurses have been responsible for 6,208 malpractice payments (2.1% of all payments) over the history of the agency (DHHS HRSA, 2006). Monitoring, treatment, and medication problems were responsible for the majority of payments made in cases involving non-specialized nurses. Diagnosis-related issues were responsible for nearly half of the 594 payments paid in cases involving nurse practitioners. Median and mean payment for all types of nurses in 2006 (the most current data available) was $112,500 and $277,431, respectively (DHHS HRSA, 2006). Data from the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) (2009) indicate that 1.4%...

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