Many LNCs have a limited understanding of the trial preparation and process. Most LNCs do not have the opportunity to experience a trial prior to one of their cases actually going to trial, and they would benefit from witnessing a trial beforehand to expose them to the LNC practice skills and expectations. This session will help LNCs and expert witnesses understand what to expect, how to prepare, and how their work and work products assist an attorney at trial.  There will be three hours of didactic content followed by a mock trial with attorneys and experts for the defense and plaintiff presenting testimony before a jury to decide the case.

The healthcare system is not broken but it is dysfunctional. We are providing the minimum basic standard of care to patients with systemic failures leading to medical errors. Join Dr. Kayur Patel to gain insight on what really matters when caring for a patient population and current trends in medical errors. 

With spending on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare anticipated to skyrocket in the next two years, healthcare professionals need to prepare themselves now for the medicolegal issues that are coming. This session will focus on how AI is being used in medicine and its anticipated negative consequences, including new medical professional liability risks and discovery issues. LNCs will gain valuable information for use in healthcare litigation and information technology about the next revolution in healthcare: the use of AI in medical decision-making. 

Attorneys are marketed to by medical consultants and expert witness firms on a near daily basis. Often experts have trouble getting their foot in the door. Many starting experts will blanket email every lawyer at a law firm, while others try to reduce their rates to show affordability with neither of these things being beneficial.  This session will discuss things that have been found to make an impression on attorney clients leading to being hired as an expert or LNC consultant.

Mesenteric ischemia can lead to loss of small and large bowel if not identified and treated in a timely manner and LNC’s need current, relevant, and evidence-based guidelines to help the attorney either defend or prosecute a medical legal case. LNCs have a limited understanding of the pathophysiology of mesenteric ischemia and how fast and efficient treatment can save loss of organs and life. This session will help the LNC better be able to identify and understand both medical and surgical therapy of mesenteric ischemia.

Sepsis is a leading cause of hospital deaths and litigation.  LNCs are frequently unaware of recent changes in sepsis nomenclature and clinical guidelines and LNCs need current, relevant, evidence-based guidance to evaluate sepsis cases. This session will help LNCs to define sepsis and septic shock and describe current clinic guidelines for managing these conditions.

Legal nurse consultants have limited working knowledge of malpractice, billing, and industry standards for physical therapy and chiropractic care.  There is a need within the legal nursing field to educate LNCs on analysis of rehabiltation records as they relate to malpractice and personal injury cases.  This session will help the LNC to gain knowledge and competence in analysis of rehabilitation records.

LNCs may not have a thorough understanding of trail strategy and the LNC role preparing for and during trial. This session will help the LNC gain insight of anticipated attorney and expert witness needs for trials and gain knowledge of trial stragegy and managing the unexpected during a trial as it takes a behind the scenes look at a record breaking wrongful death medical malpractice case that took place.

LNC’s may be considered “replaceable” to attorneys due to increased market saturation. New and intermediate LNC’s make up a large percentage of the LNC workforce and may lack confidence, skill set, and strategic thinking when it comes to their LNC business.  LNCs must meet the challenge of improving in self-development, leadership, effective communication, and strategic thinking to grow in their LNC role. In this session the LNC will learn how to apply the four core qualities of a outstanding legal nurse consultant to their business and become indispensable to their attorney clients resulting in longer, more fulfilling LNC careers.

Vascular surgery is an intense practice that involves the evaluation, assessment, repair and possibly reconstruction of the arterial and venous structures in the human body. Vascular surgeons are also commonly asked to assess limb viability and commonly remove limbs when they're not salvageable. The most common aspects of vascular surgery that result in legal action include peripheral interventions (open and endovascular), cerebrovascular disease and aortic surgery. This session will briefly touch on the issues surrounding each of these treatment areas and pointers for nurse reviewers when examining legal cases.
 

LNC’s review cases for attorneys that involve children without having direct pediatric experience. This session will help LNCs better understand differences in anatomy/physiology, identify common red flags and pitfalls,   and common pediatric medical malpractice claims to increase their knowledge needed to identify if there is a case as well as to determine appropriate pediatric experts.

LNCs have limited understanding of how death investigations are conducted and the importance of a multidisciplinary approach. LNCs need education on the complexity of death investigations and the potential impact on community safety. This session will help LNCs better be able to identify different aspects of a comprehensive death investigation.

EHR Audit Trails are slowly becoming "common practice" in the medical malpractice field but truly understanding the benefits and value of the documents is lagging among both LNC's and attorneys.  LNC’s and attorneys may be unaware of how to effectively utilize EHR audit trails for medical malpractice cases. This session will help the LNC gain a basic understanding of the EHR Audit Trail and its use in the field of medical malpractice to better assist their attorney clients.

Serial healthcare murders continue to prey on patients and there are cases taking place each year.  LNCs may not recognize the signs that a patient has been murdered, even when working on a case involving sudden death. In this session the LNC will learn about the flaws in the healthcare system that allowed Charles Cullen to become the most prolific mass murderer in U.S. history.

There is a direct link between the nursing shortage and medical errors, which increase the risk of medical malpractice and criminal culpability. LNCs have limited understanding of the impact of staffing shortages on medical errors, malpractice, and criminalization of errors. This session will help LNCs become more knowledgeable about the influence of staffing on healthcare quality and medical errors, as a strategy for mitigating the risk of medical malpractice claims and criminalization of errors.  

There is a lack of knowledge regarding the roles of forensic nurses in personal injury case investigations and their collaborative work with forensic engineers, medical providers, and pathologists to deliver comprehensive case analysis to clients. LNC’s have limited knowledge regarding forensic engineering and how this specialty area can assist in legal-medical case analysis. In this session LNC’s will learn about the key roles of the forensic nurse, forensic engineer and medical providers in forensic analysis and investigation. 

Due to the change in the healthcare environment, the increased demand for care has evolved and created new roles for the advanced practice nurse that may lead to confusion within the general population. This session will provide educational updates to allow LNC’s to fully understand the varied roles, rules, and responsibilities. 

LNCs are faced with subcontracting issues without definitive guidance. 
This session will help LNC's develop a framework for performing analysis of subcontracting situations that occur in their practice.
 

LNCs have a limited understanding of the complexities of clinical alarm fatigue.  Understanding nursing practices and workflows is essential to contextualize alarm fatigue within the daily routines of healthcare professionals. Legal nurse consultants should be familiar with the roles and responsibilities of nurses and how alarm fatigue can affect their ability to provide quality care. This session will help LNCs be better equipped to evaluate cases related to alarm fatigue and provide informed advice to clients based on a thorough understanding of the clinical of alarm fatigue,