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Why does a student nurse need malpractice insurance?
Changes
in health care delivery and nursing practice has resulted in the
increased
acuity of patients seen by student nurses.
In today's world of managed care, cost-cutting and high staff demands,
mistakes
can easily happen. You will have patient contact during your training
and you will be providing care.
When an "unfortunate
incident" occurs and a patient sues, their lawyer can name anyone
who cared for that patient including you,
the nursing student. Even though you may not have been directly involved,
you may need to hire costly legal counsel to represent you. If you
are named in a malpractice lawsuit, even a suit with frivolous
or unfounded charges, most policies will provide
an attorney
to represent you individually, as well as if needed.
Doesn't
my school or hospital's coverage protect me?
Malpractice
insurance provided by your school or healthcare facility may indeed
provide some coverage for you. Don't wait until it's
to late to find out they don't have full coverage, or any coverage
at all. Yearly coverage for student nurses ranges between $20-$29
in most states. This is an added expense at
a time
when
most
people
are facing high tuition. It is a small price to pay to know you are
covered should any incidents come up. |
