What is a Legal Nurse Consultant?

The legal nurse consultant (LNC) is a registered nurse who educates others about the practice of nursing and medicine and any issue where health, illness or injury plays a role.

The legal nurse consultant acts as a link between the legal and medical communities.

Nurses bring to the legal profession a unique knowledge about the standards of care as well as the inner workings of our complex health care system and institutions.

Nurses are well aware of the trends in health care. Areas such as managed care, the use of unlicensed personnel, subacute care, the shift from inpatient acute care setting to outpatient and home health treatments are all movements that affect the care provided by nurses and physicians to ultimately predict patient outcome.

Besides medical and nursing malpractice (plaintiff or defense), there are many arenas in which a LNC can be of assistance. LNCs can identify fraud, abuse or waste in any medical record - a top objective of the U.S. Department of Justice as it pertains to Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements.

LNCs can also spot red flags in fraudulent workers compensation cases.

LNCs can help identify causal links between an event and the injury, and whether insurance coverage can be disputed.

The LNC is a welcome addition to the team involved in toxic tort cases with its mounds of medical records.

Finally, LNCs can use their nursing expertise and knowledge to assist with the development of criminal cases, both prosecution and defense.